Sales are now not-so super at Nintendo as Switch loses its sparkle

Nintendo slashed its full-year profit and sales forecast as its Switch video-game console loses its sparkle. 

The Japanese firm cashed in during the pandemic, posting record profits following the lockdown gaming boom and the release of games such as Animal Crossing: New Horizons. 

But the tech giant behind Super Mario has been forced to cut its profits forecast by 8 per cent to £2.4billion for the full-year ending March 2023 as appetite slows for its most famous but ageing titles. 

It lowered its annual sales forecast for its popular Switch console from 19m units to 18m having sold 28.8m in 2020. 

Nintendo said global sales for the nine months to December were also hit by chip shortages, which made producing consoles increasingly difficult. 

The chips are predominately made in China, which has had strict lockdown rules that have impacted other tech companies like Apple in recent months. 

It said sales in the run-up to Christmas were disappointing compared to the previous two years, worsened by the fact that its most popular titles, including Pokemon games, were not selling at the same pace as previous years. 

Nintendo’s net profit for the nine months was £2.2billion, down 5.8 per cent on the same period of the previous year