Virtuos – a studio that has been around in the gaming industry for more than a couple of decades and has worked on major titles like Cyberpunk 2077, Horizon Zero Dawn, Dark Souls Remastered, and even L.A. Noire – has offered its thoughts on the success of the Nintendo Switch 2. In an interview with WCCFTech, director of business at Virtuos North America Alex Heise and technical director at Virtuos subsidiary Black Shamrock Eoin O’Grady have spoken about how expectations for the Switch 2 were already quite high, but how the console breaking sales records still came as a surprise.
When asked about whether they expected the Switch 2 to become the fastest-selling console in the first four days of its launch, O’Grady went into detail about why he believes the console succeeded. In his answer, he spoke about Nintendo’s massive pool of loyal fans, as well as the growth of the handheld market thanks to devices like the original Switch, as well as more recent ones like the Steam Deck and the Asus ROG Ally. Ultimately, he believes that gamers want access to AAA games on the go. O’Grady also goes on to mention that he believes that the Switch 2 will go on to surpass the original Switch.
“Given the phenomenal success of the Switch, expectations for the sales performance of the Switch 2 were already quite high,” said O’Grady. “Nintendo has a huge pool of loyal fans, but alongside that, the handheld gaming market is growing right now — and I’m not talking about smartphones. The original Switch, along with the Steam Deck and other high-quality handheld gaming rigs, has contributed to growth in this area.”
“Gamers increasingly want AAA games on the go, and so I think we will see the Switch 2 surpass its predecessor. This is precisely because it is a Nintendo console, renowned for innovation and its unique gameplay experiences, and because it meets the growing demand for gaming on the go — offering indie gems, Nintendo exclusives, and now AAA blockbuster titles.”
Heise mentioned that he doesn’t think anyone could have truly predicted just how successful the first few days of the Switch 2’s launch were going to be for Nintendo. However, he did note that he had high expectations thanks to Nintendo’s experience in iterating on its ideas over the years, going as far back as the move from the NES to the Super NES. He also brought up how the Switch, in a lot of ways, was a refinement of ideas that were first explored with the Wii U.
“First and foremost, the Switch 2 is the most iterative console Nintendo has launched in quite some time, dating back to the transition from NES to SNES,” noted Heise. “No Nintendo console has ever had a “2” in its name, and in this case, they made a strategic decision by building on the proven success and strong brand of the original Switch with a similar yet more compelling product. The value of the Switch 2 is immediately clear to gamers, improving upon past console launches such as the Wii U.”
Heise also noted how Nintendo has been quite adept at managing its supply chains to ensure that the demand for the Switch 2 wasn’t stifled by a lack of hardware on store shelves. As we saw with the launch of the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, quite a few early sales were lost due to stock shortages stemming from the global pandemic causing supply chain issues at the time.
“Another key factor contributing to the successful launch was effective supply chain management to ensure sufficient units were available,| he said. “Earlier launches of competing consoles were limited by supply, capping sales and keeping products out of stock for months. Meanwhile, Nintendo clearly prepared well in advance, sourcing new partners and adjusting manufacturing locations to meet the high demand for the Switch 2.”
The Nintendo Switch 2 was officially launched early last month. For more details, check out our review.
