Besides some aspects like voice chat, Nintendo seems to be hitting a stride they havent in many years. With 3rd party support and games looking and running well for a handheld system.

Its appealing to the millions who bought a 3ds, it is also appealing to those who want a console experience. Now if they can get some Virtual console stuff on the store it will be even better.

Its a great time to be a gamer with so many options. I am really enjoying everything the industry has to offer on all fronts, and I am excited for what will be coming out in the future, its been a really long time since that has happened for me.

Because it's selling better than most consoles that launched (alligned). But I still don't see it catch up or overtake the PS4.

They've got the execution of the platform right.

Because Nintendo consoles are unusually front-loaded. The Wii peaked on 2007 on Japan for crying it out loud.

The only one who wasn't in The last 20 years is the DS, but then, it only really kicked off after the DSi, when its iterations started to follow the usual Nintendo pattern.

Well there's a few key reasons:

-It's portable, which is pretty unique

-It's capable of playing console quality games

-Super strong launch title

-Moving on from the Wii U early and having games many didn't have access to from the Wii U has allowed for some very well received ports and a deeper library of games that shifted their development to the Switch than we would have likely received

-Overall, it's well-constructed, looks like a legit piece of tech rather than a toy, and has a ton of games that people want.

I want to see this comment about the time the Switch passes the WiiU (won't be long imo) and when BotW is still selling.

Most people here in Europe don't even know what a games console is. They simply know of "Playstation". Many do not even know it is made by Sony.

Practically PS3 (and even Sony itself at the time) were saved by name, in Europe, alone.

This thread was a good read. I would agree with many that Zelda is the biggest contributor to the Switch's success. Any main Zelda game would have had a similar effect, but Breath of the Wild had a lot of things going for it:

- Zelda game with a massive open world.
- Long drought without a new, 3D entry in the series.
- Insane positive reception. I was not going to buy a Switch at launch, but after seeing the Zelda reviews, to hell if I wasn't going to be a part of it. Wow, nearly 3 decades of playing games and I've never seen such hype surrounding a game, and to be a launch title on a new Nintendo console, hot damn.

Besides Zelda, Switch still had several things going for it.

- The obvious thing is the console itself, being a hybrid system with tons of accessories and ways to play. It caters to most everyone's playstyle.
- The price. When you see people purchasing the console at a 100% mark-up on eBay, it's hard to complain.
- Marketing.

I've owned all Nintendo consoles/handhelds, although the Wii U I did not purchase until very late in it's lifecycle (maybe a year and a half ago). It's not surprising to me that the Wii U was a failure. The controller itself is so large and clunky; what were they thinking?!

I think there were a lot of people who hadn't played a good Nintendo game in years due to not wanting to own a Wii U. As a result, when Nintendo introduces the Switch, that camp of people wasn't burnt out and was ready to re-subscribe to Nintendo.

Its doing OK. Give it another year, then we will talk.

I think it was Zelda hype, the sold-out effect, early adopters and maybe the merger with the portable Nintendo market.

It has done well so far, but i'm interested in seeing how it develops.