Nintendo Shares Drop 6% on Console Delay Reports

Nintendo’s shares experienced a significant decline on Monday, plummeting nearly 6% in response to reports suggesting that the launch of its highly anticipated next-generation gaming console has been postponed until 2025. The company’s stock price dropped to $55.72 (¥8,356) on Monday, marking a 5.86% decrease from the previous trading day.

The news of the delay first surfaced over the weekend, with Brazilian journalist Pedro Henrique Lutti Lippe being the first to report on it. This information was later corroborated by gaming news outlet Eurogamer and Bloomberg. According to these reports, the delay is intended to allow for a more robust lineup of games to be available at the time of the new console’s launch.

Several game publishers have reportedly been informed about the delay, leading to expectations that the new console will now be launched around March 2025. Despite this delay, the launch is still expected to fall within Nintendo’s 2024 financial year.

This delay is seen as a significant setback for Nintendo, as it means that the company will miss out on the crucial holiday sales period, which is traditionally a peak time for game console sales. The delay also raises questions about the company’s ability to maintain momentum in the highly competitive gaming market.

Nintendo has been tight-lipped about the details of its next console, but if the March 2025 timeline holds true, it will mark a gap of eight years since the launch of the company’s current console, the Switch. The new system is expected to build upon the Switch’s innovative hybrid design and is rumored to be powered by a chip made by Nvidia.

Despite the delay, Nintendo’s current console, the Switch, has been a commercial success, with the company recently announcing that it has sold 122.55 million units worldwide. This makes the Switch the third best-selling console of all time, behind Sony’s PlayStation 2 and the Nintendo DS.

In summary, the news of the delay in launching its next console has had a significant impact on Nintendo’s stock price, reflecting investor concerns about the company’s ability to maintain its competitive edge in the gaming market.