Nintendo Q1 Switch sales fell 22% to 3.43 million units

Different models of the Nintendo Switch are displayed at a GameStop in Manhattan, New York, U.S., December 7, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly

TOKYO, Aug 3 (Reuters) – Japan’s Nintendo Co Ltd ( 7974.T ) said on Wednesday it sold 22 percent fewer of its Switch consoles in the April-June quarter than a year earlier, while maintaining its forecast for 21 million sales in the year to the end of March 2023.

The Kyoto-based game company sold 3.43 million units of the console in the quarter, up from 4.45 million a year earlier. It sold 23.06 million units last year.

The company behind “Super Mario” is predicting its second annual sales decline for the hybrid home/portable Switch device, which is in its sixth year on the market.

Nintendo released an upgraded Switch model with an OLED display last October to drum up interest in the old system.

Console makers are facing supply chain problems, with Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa in May pointing to ongoing component shortages.

First-quarter operating profit fell 15 percent to 101.6 billion yen ($763 million), below analysts’ estimates.

Investors are looking for signs of a slowdown in the gaming boom among consumers stuck at home during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sony Group Corp ( 6758.T ) last week reported a 15 percent drop in PlayStation user engagement compared with a year earlier.

Nintendo’s upcoming games to support demand in the key year-end shopping season include “Splatoon 3,” which will be released in September, and “Pokemon Scarlet and Violet” in November.

($1 = 133.2100 yen)

Report by Sam Nussey. Edited by Christopher Cushing and Tomasz Janowski

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