Nintendo Switch overtakes the Wii U
The Nintendo Switch games console has outsold its predecessor, just 10 months after its launch.
Nintendo sold 7.23 million Switch consoles in the previous quarter, bringing total sales to about 14.86 million devices.
The Wii U, which went on sale in November 2012, sold 13.56 million units before it was discontinued in 2017 and was considered a commercial failure.
Nintendo reported its most profitable quarter since 2009.
The company announced an operating profit of 116.50 billion yen (£755m, $1.07 billion), up from 32.26 billion yen a year ago.
The Kyoto-based company raised its profit forecast for the year ending March from 120 billion yen to 160 billion yen.
It said it expected Switch sales to reach 20 million in 2018.
Super Mario Odyssey was the best-selling game for the Nintendo Switch, with 9.07 million copies sold since it was released in October.
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – a rerelease of a Wii U title – has sold 7.33 million copies, with launch title The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild selling 6.70 million.
Splatoon 2 – a sequel to one of Nintendo’s newest original properties – sold 4.91 million copies.
“Switch sales during the holiday season were stronger than expected in Japan, the United States and Europe,” Nintendo President Tatsumi Kimishima said at an earnings briefing.
more to follow