Nintendo, the Japanese video game company known for iconic franchises like Super Mario and Pokemon, announced a 55% decrease in profit for the April-June quarter as compared to the previous year. Sales for both game machines and software saw a decline in this period.
Game machine sales typically decrease over time after the initial launch excitement. The popular Nintendo Switch, which has sold over 140 million units since its debut eight years ago, experienced a 46% decline in quarterly sales.
Quarterly profit for Nintendo Co. totaled 80.95 billion yen ($543 million) for the latest quarter, a significant drop from the 181 billion yen reported a year ago. Sales figures also fell by 46.5% to 246.6 billion yen ($1.7 billion).
Despite assurance from Nintendo’s president earlier this year about an upcoming announcement regarding a successor to the Switch, no new information was provided on that front during this earnings report.
The company attributed the decline in sales and profit to the exceptional performance during the same period last year, partially boosted by the release of the Super Mario Brothers movie. Nintendo’s recent financial results were said to be in line with analysts’ expectations.
In an effort to maintain momentum, Nintendo plans to release new titles in their popular franchises like Mario Party, Donkey Kong, and Zelda in the upcoming months. The company is also set to open a Nintendo Museum in Kyoto later this year and a store in San Francisco’s Union Square in the following year.
Despite the drop in Nintendo’s stock value by 2.3% in Tokyo trading, the company retained its profit forecast for the fiscal year through March at 300 billion yen ($2 billion). The weakening of the U.S. dollar against the yen has impacted Nintendo’s stock performance, although the company stands to benefit from a weaker yen due to increased overseas earnings.
Overall, Nintendo remains focused on leveraging its popular intellectual properties and expanding its reach to attract more players to its gaming platform, amidst ongoing challenges and market fluctuations.
