The Japanese video game pioneer's shares fell 5.83% to 8,356 yen on Monday. (Photo: 123RF)
Nintendo shares plunged on the Tokyo Stock Exchange on Monday after several media outlets reported in recent days that the Japanese company would not launch its next console until early 2025.
The Japanese video game pioneer's share price fell 5.83% to 8,356 yen at the close of trading, significantly worse than the flagship Nikkei index, which ended stable. The stock lost as much as 8.8% early in the session.
According to multiple media outlets, including VGC and Bloomberg, Nintendo has informed its game publishers that its next console, the highly anticipated successor to 2017's Switch, will not launch until the first quarter of 2025.
So far there has been a lot of speculation about a release of this “Switch 2” at the end of 2024, coinciding with the year-end holiday season, which is generally the most important for the sales of consoles and video games.
This prospect sent Nintendo shares to new highs last week.
“If the rumors are true, then 2024 is likely to be a pretty difficult year for Nintendo,” Serkan Toto, director of analytics firm Kantan Games, commented on Monday.
Nintendo “won't be able to release blockbusters (this year, editor's note) because it has to reserve them for its next console. “So you should limit yourself to reissuing old titles, releasing smaller games or recruiting external studios,” or why not launch a new mobile game, according to this analyst interviewed by AFP.
Nintendo “generally generates up to 50% of its annual revenue” in the Christmas quarter, Serkan Toto further emphasized.
On the other hand, the launch of the Switch in 2017 began in March, and that didn't stop it from being a “huge success,” he put it into perspective.
For the time being, Nintendo is remaining completely silent about the successor to the Switch and the schedule for its release.