Switch vs DS Sales Comparison - July 2021 - Sales
by William D'Angelo , posted on 01 September 2021 / 2,908 Views
The VGChartz sales comparison series of articles are updated monthly and each one focuses on a different sales comparison using our estimated video game hardware figures. The charts include comparisons between the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch, as well as with older platforms. There are articles based on our worldwide estimates, as well as the US, Europe, and Japan.
This monthly series compares the aligned worldwide sales of the Nintendo Switch and the Nintendo DS.
The DS launched in November 2004 in North America, December 2004 in Japan, and March 2005 in Europe, while the Nintendo Switch launched worldwide in March 2017. Therefore, the holiday periods for the two consoles do not lineup, which is why there are big increases and decreases.
Switch Vs. DS Global:
Gap change in latest month: 365,068 - DS
Gap change over last 12 months: 1,492,279 - DS
Total Lead: 9,263,016 - DS
Switch Total Sales: 89,038,722
DS Total Sales: 98,301,738
July 2021 is the 53rd month that the Nintendo Switch has been available for. During the latest month, the gap grew in favor of the DS by 365,068 units when compared to the Switch during the same timeframe. In the last 12 months, the DS has outsold the Switch by 1.49 million units. The DS is ahead of the Switch by 9.26 million units.
The 53rd month on sale for the Nintendo Switch is July 2021, while for the DS it is March 2009. The Switch has sold 89.04 million units, while the DS sold 98.30 million units during the same timeframe.
The Nintendo DS sold 154.02 million units lifetime. The Nintendo Switch is currently 64.98 million units behind the lifetime sales of the DS.
A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel dedicated to gaming Let's Plays and tutorials. You can contact the author at wdangelo@vgchartz.com or on Twitter @TrunksWD.
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The DS is tough competition. Well, what else did we expect from the second best selling console ever. It is amazing that Switch could keep up with DS as long as it could, but now it loses momentum after both having their respective holidays. I don't think Switch can recover here, but if it end ups just 10 or 15 million units short of DS, this will make Switch still the 3rd-best selling console ever.
I withhold judgement until the release of the OLED model. It's possible that the slip in sales is just due to the wait for that model and could thus the current short-term trend entirely get reversed after it's release.
Based on this, I see 3 possible scenarios:
If the Switch can keep up in the end with the concurrent year of the DS, then I expect the Switch to outsell the DS, as the latter drops down relatively quickly after this year.
If the Switch can't quite keep up but ain't far behind in sales this year, then I expect the Switch to end up with similar sales as the DS managed to do in the end .
If the Switch still can't keep up with the DS after the release of the OLED model, then the DS should stay on top, as it means the Switch is already on it's descent.
Switch can close the gap to 2 mil if it can match last year's holiday. Also, the thought of the switch passing 100 mil in under 5 years is just insane.
If the Switch doesn't catch up significantly after the OLED model launch outselling the DS will become impossible.
I agree to some extent. But it also comes down to the life of the switch. If they go 36 more months without even announcing a replacement (meaning another October announcement and march launch), I think the switch will do surprisingly well in comparison.
25-28 million this year is expected. I think it would match the ds next year. Then it will start gaining ground on the ds which was replaced 6 and a half years after it launched. If the switch has a full year longer lifespan, that's going to add up to a lot more units sold when comparing them.
Switch is only 1.5m behind the DS when you look at the past 12 months. That actually isn't much when the systems are selling close to 30m a year. Switch will be close to DS's total after the holidays. Also, the DS really only has one good sales year left and then its sales plummet hard. Switch is going to pass DS in the long run. Nintendo can keep Switch's sales going for a long time, because even when the Switch's successor is released Nintendo will only have to support 2 systems instead of 4 like it used to.
The OLED is a boost to expect, but so far no price cut happened yet, they can slow down the decrease for very long on next 2 years with price cuts or more generous packs.
I can see a cross, if the OLED model flies off the shelves and if Switch peaks this year. The upcoming DS holidays were weaker than last year, but DS would definitely re-cross, if a cross even happens.
Switch will have a new model, still has no price cut and has a stellar year in 2022. It will have a long life cycle, i don't think we should count it out just yet.
