The Nintendo Switch has seen a decline in sales this year in comparison to 2023. The Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5 also saw a sales drop this year. All three consoles’ sales have dropped by double-digit numbers from last year.
Circana, an analytics company, released its report on the U.S. video game market in May, revealing that video game spending is down by 40% since 2023. Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony are all down by double-digit percentages since last year with Nintendo seeing the largest drop.
Mat Piscatella, Circana’s executive director and video game industry advisor, partially attributes the drop in sales to The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. Tears of the Kingdom released in May 2023 exclusively for the Nintendo Switch, causing sales of the console to spike. Because console sales increased so much during this time, sales are now seeing a drop in comparison to last year.
Circana’s report coincides with rumors of mid-generation console refreshes for the Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5, as well as Nintendo gearing up to reveal the Switch’s successor within the next fiscal year. Console refreshes are common around the midpoint of each generation, and the ninth console generation is already in its fourth year. The likelihood of these updated consoles releasing soon as well as the confirmation of the Switch’s successor likely also contributed to the drop in sales from last year.
What Games Topped the Charts
Circana reports that the top-selling games so far have been Ghost of Tsushima, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door Remake and Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3. Call of Duty was the top-selling title on both Xbox and PlayStation with Paper Mario leading the way for the Switch. Ghost of Tsushima had such successful sales due to its PC release on May 16.
