Nintendo warns about possible Switch shortage in 2021: Here’s why

Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa in an interview with Nikkei (translated by Video Games Chronicle) stated that the ongoing semiconductor shortage could soon cause the company from keeping up with the increased demand for its portable gaming console, Nintendo Switch.

“We have been able to secure the necessary materials for the immediate production of semiconductors for Switches, however, in Japan and other countries, demand has been very strong since the beginning of the year, and there is a possibility of shortages at some retailers in the future. It is difficult to say how we will deal with this, but in some cases, we may not be able to prepare enough for orders,” said Furukawa during the interview.

To recall, there have been multiple Switch shortages over the past year due to the high demand and low supply caused by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

One of the reasons behind such immense demand is the release of Animal Crossing: New Horizons, which until December 31, 2020, sold over 31 million units, and managed to become the system’s second bestselling game, trailing Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, which has sold over 33 million copies to date.

Furukawa further added that even though Japan’s state of emergency is now over, people are now preferring to spend more time inside of their home’s than before, and with games with long life spans like Animal Crossing, which allow players to communicate with each other, become more acceptable, it will have a significant impact on future development.

The shortage would be a bit worrisome for the company as it reportedly has plans to launch an upgraded Switch with an OLED display, 4K output and better battery life, by the end of 2021 or early 2022. However, a shortage would make it focus more on unit manufacturing and push the upgraded Switch further into the future.