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The Pokémon Company CEO, Tsunekazu Ishihara, recently discussed the Nintendo Switch in an interview with Bloomberg, and revealed that he wasn’t always on board with Nintendo’s new console.
Ishihara was initially quite skeptical about the Switch, especially with the prevalence of smartphones in today’s society, saying that, ‘I told Nintendo that Switch wouldn’t be a success before it went on sale because I thought that in the age of the smartphone, no one would carry out a game console.’
The sales of the console since launch and the continued fervour for it have changed his view somewhat. ‘It’s obvious I was wrong. I came to realize the key to a successful game is quite simple: software with absolute quality leads sales of hardware. Playing style can be flexible if the software is attractive enough,’ said Ishihara.
He does worry about the Switch’s popularity in the long-term, and he feels that the sales momentum is predominantly down to fans of the Nintendo console, saying that, ‘Currently, it’s popular among the early adopters, but there needs to be one more step to attract a wider audience. I see more potential in Switch, but one shouldn’t overestimate its potential.’
The Nintendo Switch has done pretty well since its release, especially so in Japan where retail stock of the console is divvied out to purchasers in the form of a lottery-system, where people have to queue to get a raffle ticket. Sales of the console are also popular in the West, with the the Switch selling out of stock on the Nintendo online shop and Amazon as stock comes in.
