Nintendo declares Switch the fastest-selling home console in U.S. history

By Gabe Gurwin Published January 4, 2018

The Nintendo Switch had an incredible 2017, with games like Super Mario Odyssey and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild giving players plenty of reasons to pick up the new console. And it now appears that the system has managed to set a record. According to Nintendo, the Switch is the fastest-selling console in U.S. history.

In the 10 months since the Nintendo Switch launched in the United States, the system has sold more than 4.8 million units, making it the fastest-selling console over that period. The previous record was held by the Wii, which sold 4 million units in 10 months. The latter system went on to sell more than 48 million units in the United States and more than 100 million units worldwide, though it remains to be seen if the Switch can continue to sell at such a high pace.

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Players aren’t just buying one or two games for the Switch and calling it a day, either. Of the first-party titles released thus far, Super Mario Odyssey has the strongest attachment rate at 60 percent, followed by The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild at 55 percent and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe at 50 percent. Twenty percent of Switch players have even purchased Splatoon 2, helping the game to keep a substantial base of online players since it launched last July.

“Fans across the country have experienced the joy of playing their favorite games at home or on the go,” said Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime. “Now that many more people have received Nintendo Switch systems for the holidays, we look forward to bringing them fun new surprises in 2018 and beyond.”

Thus far, the lineup of 2018 games for Nintendo Switch is a little skimpier than it was in 2017. We expect new games in the Fire Emblem and Yoshi series as well as Kirby Star Allies, as well as ports of the original two Bayonetta games. Bayonetta 3 doesn’t have a release date yet, and it’s unlikely Metroid Prime 4 will release in 2018, as well. With strong third-party support, however, the Switch won’t have to rely on Nintendo’s own library of games in order to move systems.

Former Contributor

Gabe Gurwin has been playing games since 1997, beginning with the N64 and the Super Nintendo. He began his journalism career…

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