Daily Debate: Will the Hyrule Edition Switch Lite Boost Dwindling Switch Sales?

Posted on September 03 2024 by Julia Wilson

June’s Nintendo Direct announced the September 2024 release of the Hyrule Edition Switch Lite. However, given the Switch is seven years old and rumors are abound that it will be replaced, surely Nintendo can’t be expecting to sell great quantities of these? Unless, this announcement means that the Switch successor won’t be available any time soon?

Nintendo has stated that information on a release date for the Switch successor will be given before the end of March 2025. Although, we do not know what the actual timescales between the announcement and release date will be.

The Switch was originally announced in 2015. Yet, it was March 2017 before it was available for purchase, eventually reaching over 140 million sales in May 2024. Nintendo are still anticipating significant Switch sales for 2024/25 according to their report for the 3rd Quarter of Fiscal Year Ending March 2024:

“We have also modified the unit sales forecast for the fiscal year, increasing Nintendo Switch hardware by 0.50 million to 15.50 million units.“

That report also shows a decrease in Switch sales of 7.8% compared to the previous year. However, Nintendo’s 1st Quarter of Fiscal Year Ending March 2025 report shows a 46.3% decrease in hardware sales.

The graph above also shows that the Switch Lite makes up a much lower proportion of unit sales compared to the original and OLED Switch consoles, which makes the decision to release the special edition Hyrule Switch Lite an interesting one. However, given that the Tears of the Kingdom special edition OLED Switch was only released in May 2023, it was probably too soon for another Legend of Zelda OLED.

Of course, the Hyrule Edition Switch Lite is stunning, and it will sell because of the Legend of Zelda branding. But will it sell in great quantities given the Switch is in the twilight years of its product lifecycle with sales declining? Or does the September 2024 release date of the Hyrule Edition Switch Lite mean that the Switch successor is going to be much further away than we thought?

When do you think the Switch successor will be released? Are you planning on buying the Hyrule Edition Switch Lite, and do you think it will boost the declining Switch sales? Let us know in the comments below!