Third-Party Nintendo Switch 2 Game Sales Low, But CD Projekt Red VP Insists Physical Is Important To Fans
Third-party titles aren’t selling so well on Nintendo Switch 2, with one publisher reportedly declaring it’s “below our lowest estimates.” Nonetheless, CD Projekt Red’s VP of business development cheered on the importance of physical games for Nintendo fans. This comes amid Cyberpunk 2077 being the best-selling third-party title on the new console, and having the whole game on the cartridge, unlike the Game-Key cards others are using.
The Game Business’ Christopher Dring reported on third-party sales on the recently launched Nintendo Switch 2 (citing Circana, and NielsenIQ as well as data from publishers, where available). Notably, 62% of physical game sales in the U.S. were first-party titles (excluding the Mario Kart World bundle). In the UK, 48% were first-party titles, but that rises to 86% when the aforementioned bundle is included.
These figures are down from the launch of the original Nintendo Switch, wherein physical game sales in the U.S. and the UK accounted for 81% and 89% of first-party titles, respectively. As such — at first glance, at least — it seems third-parties are getting a bigger cut of the pie on Nintendo Switch 2; even Sega being the third biggest publisher for it.
Even data from the eShop can’t make much of a dent, as over 80% of Nintendo Switch 2 game sales proceeded from physical stores, including both digital and physical titles.
Yet, Dring highlights, “Although third-party publishers appear to have done slightly better during the launch of Switch 2 compared with Switch 1, it’s hard to describe these statistics as positive,” revealing that third-party games had “posted very low numbers.”
One publisher, its name unreported, stated the sales figures were “below our lowest estimates.” This all despite the Nintendo Switch 2 selling 3.5 million units in four days. In fact, the Nintendo Switch 2 selling more consoles is why the third-parties having a larger percentage of sales is “slightly misleading.”
Further, the original Nintendo Switch launched with five physical games. Nintendo Switch 2, enhanced ports included, debuted with 13 physical titles.
Dring explains that another element, somewhat unsurprisingly, is consumers purchase Nintendo consoles for their exclusive titles. Including the Mario Kart World bundle, all Nintendo Switch 2 sales accounted for 80% of the total, with the remaining 20% were expecting to pick up the title regardless.
As such, Dring expects third-parties will have their time in the sun “once players have had their fill of Mario Kart.”
One issue that can be put squarely at the House of N’s feet is that they didn’t send out Nintendo Switch 2 consoles to the media before it launched. As such, there weren’t any reviews for the third party titles at launch to tempt gamers into buying a second title day one.
Even then, backwards compatibility with Nintendo Switch games — many receiving graphical and performance updates on Nintendo Switch 2 — present gamers with yet more first-party options to overshadow third-parties.
Yet another element working against them is nigh-all of these physical third party titles are available on other platforms, and have been for a long time. “Considering the high cross-over between Switch owners and PlayStation/Xbox players, it’s not unreasonable to suggest that a lot of Switch 2 owners already own these titles,” Dring lays out.
Dring also addresses arguably the biggest controversy with third-party titles, the Game-Key Cards. Players need to download the game with them, and have an Internet connection when booting it up for the first time. Nintendo emphasize that the Key Card operates like a normal cartridge after this, only needing the cartridge and no online connection required, albeit filling up the memory and microSD card of the console.
“This has proven unpopular amongst core audiences, who appreciate the plug and play nature of Nintendo Switch,” Dring explains. Cyberpunk 2077, the best-selling third-party game on the new console, notably doesn’t have a Game-Key Card, with all their software on-cart.
Games utilizing Game-Key Cards include Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake, EA SPORTS Madden NFL 26, Hogwarts Legacy, Sonic X Shadow Generations, Street Fighter 6, Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut, and more.
In an earlier interview with The Game Business, CD Projekt Red’s VP of business development Jan Rosner revealed what they had learned from bringing The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt to Nintendo Switch. The game was a notable success for them, surprising them due to Nintendo’s audience growing more diverse. They also learned how important physical media was to that audience.
“The [internal storage] was way lower than it is now. A game like The Witcher 3 would take up to 80% of your internal memory if you don’t have an external memory card. But… a plug and play experience is a really cool thing,” Rosner admitted. “We’ve already seen from the original Switch that Nintendo players are quite receptive to that. It was a goal that we wanted to achieve fairly early on.”
The interviewer, again Dring, implied that Game-Key Cards would be cheaper than traditional cartridges. Asking if CD Projekt Red could have “could have got away with doing the same thing,” Rosner refuted, “It’s not a matter of getting away with something. Nintendo at physical retail is still strong, and retail is, in general, not going anywhere. I don’t think we’ll soon experience a reality where we’re just having all games digital.”
“But again, it’s especially important for the Nintendo audience. We maybe could have got away with it, but is there a point? The right thing to do was to have it out on the cartridge with a plug and play experience,” Rosner championed.
He added, advising other developers, “Do not underestimate the physical edition. It’s not going anywhere and Nintendo players are very appreciative of physical editions that are done right.”
Strong words from Nintendo’s best-selling third-party title on Nintendo Switch 2. But if everyone else is feeling the squeeze, will they opt for the cheaper Game Key-Cards? Do they have to wait for Nintendo’s first party library to be a bit meatier before they get a look in? Should hopes rest on new third-part titles, rather than ports?
NEXT: ‘The Outer Worlds 2’ Director Claims $80 Price Tag Was Out Of His Hands: “Talk To The Xbox Folks”
