The Nintendo Switch has bested its rivals PlayStation, Xbox, and others, coming out on top as the best-selling console in the US in 2018, Australians still prefer the PS4.
Before the Christmas period, PlayStation’s marketing campaign proclaimed that the PS4 was the top-selling console in Australia every year from 2014-2018 (through to September 30) — year trends for Australia have not been released.
Mat Piscatella, an analyst with the consumer trends NPD Group, went to Twitter with the US 2018 gaming trends which show the Nintendo Switch as the best-selling console in both units and dollars, the highest annual total for any console since the PS4 was released in 2015.
US NPD HW – Nintendo Switch ends 2018 as the year's best-selling hardware platform in both units and dollars. Annual unit and dollar sales of Nintendo Switch are the highest annual total for any hardware platform since the PlayStation 4 in 2015.
— Mat Piscatella (@MatPiscatella) January 22, 2019
According to the report, overall console sales grew to their highest totals since 2009.
Although this report focuses on the US sales trends alone, it is indicative of global trends. However, it is unlikely that the Switch will beat out the popular PS4 or Xbox engines here which offer 4K gaming, increased hardware power, and more gaming options.
Nintendo shipped 35 million of its projected 38 million units worldwide in 2018, and reportedly investors are optimistic about 2019.
As more and more gaming companies are focusing on online gaming streaming services, Nintendo will likely continue to develop its online subscription service, Switch Online, before PlayStation and Microsoft release their next-gen consoles — expected in 2020.