Nintendo Switch overtakes the Wii U Published duration 31 January 2018

The Nintendo Switch games console has outsold its predecessor, just 10 months after its launch.

Nintendo sold 7.23 million Switch consoles in the previous quarter, bringing total sales to about 14.86 million devices.

The Wii U, which went on sale in November 2012, sold 13.56 million units before it was discontinued in 2017 and was considered a commercial failure.

Nintendo reported its most profitable quarter since 2009.

The company announced an operating profit of 116.50 billion yen (£755m, $1.07 billion), up from 32.26 billion yen a year ago.

image copyright Nintendo image caption Nintendo's biggest star continues to entertain

The Kyoto-based company raised its profit forecast for the year ending March from 120 billion yen to 160 billion yen.

It said it expected Switch sales to reach 20 million this year and said a Pokemon game would be released for the Switch "in 2018 or later".

Super Mario Odyssey was the best-selling game for the Nintendo Switch, with 9.07 million copies sold since it was released in October.

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe - a rerelease of a Wii U title - has sold 7.33 million copies, with launch title The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild selling 6.70 million.

Splatoon 2 - a sequel to one of Nintendo's newest original properties - sold 4.91 million copies.

"Switch sales during the holiday season were stronger than expected in Japan, the United States and Europe," Nintendo President Tatsumi Kimishima said at an earnings briefing.

Analysis:

image copyright Getty Images image caption Nintendo Switch is both home console and handheld

By Chris Foxx, technology reporter

The Nintendo Switch is a curious device that many gamers thought would fail. Equal parts home console and handheld device, it lacks the computational might of the Xbox One and PlayStation 4, and has no movie-streaming apps or web browser.

But while Microsoft and Sony have been busy pushing ultra-high definition gaming, Nintendo has focused on what it does best: making really fun games.

Critics have been bowled over by its home-grown titles such as Super Mario Odyssey and Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild, and the games have won awards.

Nintendo's latest accessory for the Switch is a collection of foldable cardboard sheets that turn the console into a piano, robot or fishing rod. Odd, perhaps - but it shows the company is not afraid to innovate.

The Switch is not only a successor to the Wii U. If the price comes down, it could replace the hugely popular 3DS as Nintendo's primary handheld console. For now, Nintendo says both devices will be sold alongside one another.

But Nintendo might need a few more hits to keep up momentum.

Pokemon games are typically among the best-selling titles for Nintendo's consoles, but a Pokemon adventure for the Switch has yet to be released.