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Nintendo sales soar on Animal Crossing success

Animal Crossing screenshot
Animal Crossing screenshot

Profits at Nintendo surged more than five-fold in April to June, driven by the success of its Switch console and sales of tranquil island life simulator Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

The Japanese manufacturer of Pokemon and Super Mario games reported operating profit of 145 billion yen (£1bn) in the first quarter, up from 27.4 billion yen last year.

Its handheld Switch console has been highly sought after by millions staying at home, as digital shelves emptied in the early weeks of lockdown. Nintendo has ramped up production of the console to keep up with demand.

Launched in 2017, the Nintendo Switch has defied expectations and has now sold an estimated 59 million consoles. Its quirky design includes detachable controllers, while it can be played on the move or connected to a TV.

While other console makers Playstation and Xbox have relied on powerful consoles to attract players, Nintendo's device largely eschews powerful features, instead relying on its popular line up of arcade games, such as its Super Mario titles.

Switch - Getty
Switch - Getty

Its latest hit game, Animal Crossing, sold 12 million copies in its first fortnight, and a further 10 million over the last three months.

The game drops players into a idyllic island realm, where they build a house, farm, garden and meet animal friends. The soothing gameplay has been seen by many as an antidote to the stress of lockdown and coronavirus.

Ring Fit Adventure, which has players exercising while jogging in place holding a ring that works as controller, was also a hit. It has already sold 4 million units since going on sale in October.

Nintendo saw sales of digital downloads for games surge to 56pc of all titles sold, with players preferring to download software than buy a physical copy.

Other game makers have enjoyed a surge during lockdown. Demand for digital downloads of Sony's PS4 games surged 84pc, according to its company results earlier this week, boosting its gaming division by 32pc.

In the UK, according to online seller Console Deals, during lockdown sales of the Nintendo Switch doubled, while PS4 ales tripled.

Nintendo acknowledged COVID-19 had caused a shortage in parts to produce the Switch, but such problems were being gradually fixed.

“We did not change our fiscal-year forecast because it’s too soon to judge how long the current Animal Crossing sales momentum would last,” a Nintendo spokesman said. “We would like to wait until the year-end shopping season’s performance to check whether we need to revise our forecast.”