What's going on?

Nintendo faced the music on Tuesday, acknowledging the tide�s turned for its Switch consoles.

What does this mean?

The Nintendo Switch has long had the gaming world in its thrall, and the trusty console brings in over 90% of sales for the Japanese giant. But even the brightest stars must eventually dim � and the Switch isn�t shining like it used to. Nintendo slashed its forecast twice last year, and despite launching some record-breaking games, holiday console sales weren�t the festive feast it hoped for. If that�s a hint, then the stats drive the point home: Nintendo sold 18 million consoles last financial year, a 22% drop from the year before. That hit both revenue and profit � and the firm�s admitted that its forecast for the current financial year, at just 15 million consoles, could be a long shot.

Why should I care?

The bigger picture: Game on.
The ups and downs of Nintendo�s consoles are nothing new � and after six years on the market, with a few makeovers and updates, it�s no surprise we�ve passed �peak Switch�. That means Nintendo�s facing a true challenge: coming up with a superstar successor that can take up the torch and rake in sales as the Switch wanes. Let�s just hope the firm has learned a thing or two from the famous flop of the Wii U, its unloved follow-up to the wildly successful Wii��

For markets: Super Smash Bros� smash hit.
A new console�s unlikely to see the light of day for at least another year, and analysts are predicting a downhill slide for Nintendo�s valuation until then. In the meantime, the firm needs to keep the dough coming in from its 114 million annual paying users � something its lineup of world-famous characters should help with. Plus, with the sweet box-office success of The Super Mario Bros. film, it might just be on the cusp of a new little gold mine.