If Nintendo Can Manufacture Enough, Perhaps
We have officially hit the mid-year mark. And after sizing up the game industry, Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter decided to give his two cents on the path of two major consoles. According to him, the Nintendo Switch will outsell the Xbox One in 2017.
Pachter explained his projections in his latest episode of Pachter Factor. He’s made many predictions in the past, but this time he’s saying that Nintendo will lead Xbox One in the global market. To be more specific, he said it will be close.
“close .. I would say Switch could sell as many as 14 Million and if that happens then that’s more than Xbox One. Xbox One is probably going to sell about 10-11 Million, but again Microsoft doesn’t tell you and there is no way to measure anymore. But I think Xbox One is on track to sell 10-11 Million a year, Switch is gonna do that 10-11 could sell more but it really depends and I need to get through to a holiday season to see.”
Hot off the heels of E3 2017, Microsoft just unveiled their powerful new console, the Xbox One X. While hefty in capability, it still bears the highest console price point. On the other hand, Nintendo Switch’s portability is highly sought-after; in addition, Nintendo will be producing more starting this month.
“My bias is that Switch is a handheld and it’s a really good handheld for $300,” continued Pachter. “Xbox is a really good console for $300. So if you want a console you are buying a Xbox, and if you want a handheld you are buying a Switch. But I think the portability of the Switch probably slightly dictates in its favor, I think the Japanese market is gonna buy 3 or 4 million of them as opposed to Microsoft who have probably not sold a million there yet. So there is a lot of demand in Japan for Nintendo based products.”
And yet, Pachter doesn’t even take into account Nintendo’s first-party IP. While the Nintendo Switch is alluring for its doubling as a handheld, it also gives buyers access to Nintendo’s strong lineup of games, many of them with popularity resulting from nostalgia.So far, we have The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and the upcoming Super Mario Odyssey.
But, what do you think of Pacher’s projections? Do you believe the Nintendo Switch will outsell the Xbox One? Will Nintendo even make enough? Comment down below.