On October 20, Nintendo revealed its new game console: Nintendo Switch.
It's an entirely new concept from Nintendo - a hybrid home console and portable. You can play the same games on your TV that you play on-the-go. Simply pick up the tablet-like console, attach a couple of controllers, and you're off to the races.
Nintendo
Left: Home console version. Right: Portable version.
Nintendo's the Disney of video games, with Super Mario as the iconic Mickey Mouse. The company is beloved the world over by adults who grew up with Nintendo classics like "Super Mario Bros." and "The Legend of Zelda," and by kids who are enjoying new classics like "Splatoon" and "Animal Crossing."
But that didn't stop Nintendo's last console from cratering. The Wii U sold just 13 million units across four years - by comparison, Sony's more expensive PlayStation 4 game console launched a year after the Wii U, and has sold more than 40 million units in less time. And the Nintendo Wii - the second most popular console ever released by Nintendo - sold over 100 million units in its lifetime.
To say that the Wii U is a failure is a massive understatement.
Even still, Nintendo fans are passionate, loyal, and - most of all - forgiving. Look no further for proof than the insane number of views that the Nintendo Switch reveal video has on YouTube:
Nintendo
It's by far the most-viewed video that Nintendo's ever released, including the reveal of the company's latest "Legend of Zelda" game and the introduction of the Nintendo 2DS handheld console.
The video was released on October 20, and it's already collected over 17 million views. Which is to say the video has been watched over 17 million times in the past three days. Serious business!
Here's the video in question:
In fairness, this is the reveal video for Nintendo's first all-new game console in nearly five years.
Moreover, Nintendo's been teasing out teensy bits of information about its new console across the past year:
- It was previously codenamed Nintendo NX and described as, "a dedicated game platform with a brand-new concept," by late Nintendo president Satoru Iwata.
- Nintendo said it wants a return to the broad appeal its consoles once enjoyed. The idea, Nintendo said, is to "create a new platform that will be accepted by as many people around the world as possible."
- Beyond those two tiny teases, Nintendo repeatedly said it would announce more in 2016.
All of which is to say: Nintendo's most hardcore fans were primed and ready for a big announcement. Apparently their interest is infectious, as tens of millions of people flocked to the video as well.