with almost 3 years on the market Switch has surpassed Xbox One in global sales and whether sales will rise or slow down after PS5 and Xbox launch is still a question but the Switch is clearly a Winner for Nintendo.

Many thought the Switch would be another WiiU and be dead at arrival and some still believe the Switch is just another gimmicky fluke.

There are many reasons for the Switchs success but I think the top 3 reasons are

3. marketing

the most obvious, Nintendo did a terrible job with marketing the WiiU and thought the console would sell just by having the Wii name on it. It also didn't help that they were very strict with youtubers promoting their games around this time and by releasing two versions of the same console at launch first it confuses consumers and the 8gb model would require you to buy another harddrive with more storage anyway which costs even more than the 32gb model making the 8gb utterly pointless.

2. back to core audience

the Wii/DS era was and will probably always be Nintendos biggest success story in history but Nintendo had a huge focus on its casual audience with games like Brain Training, Nintendogs and Wii Sports, Fit and Music which were very innovative and fun for a while but games for the core audience was overall a wasteland other than the standard Nintendo games which are incredible.

Nintendo tried this tactic again with the WiiU and they utterly failed because they actually believed that the casual audience would be just as loyal as core gamers and would stick around for the next Wii Fit well nope. Casuals had moved on to smartphones and tablets and Nintendo was slapped back to reality that their core audience are what made them successful in the first place and were under appreciated for years. Admittedly, Nintendo tried to balance both audiences with the WiiU but it was just far too late and too naive of Nintendo to think that gamers will blindly support them without giving us a good reason to buy the WiiU and funnily enough most WiiU games have been ported to the Switch now which definitely has a more core gamer first mentality which goes to my final reason.

1. the games

Nintendo has proven everytime that they don't need the most powerful hardware to make good and innovative games. The WiiU is a big failure for sure but it has some incredible first party games that is what kept Nintendo relevant all these years even during their worst moments and with Nintendo promoting their games so much better with Directs Mario, Zelda Smash Bros sales have reached new records and even lesser known Nintendo games like Xenoblade are seeing more success and recognition.

Sure Switch has lots of ports but it actually helps to have some than none like WiiU. More 3rd party games are seeing ports on the Switch and while they may not be as succesful as first party games it's a start which Nintendo has to keep going with their next generation of consoles. Nintendo has done a good job with the Switch, again we still don't know how it will hold up against PS5 and Xbox which might end up being another Wii situation but this time Nintendo can act on time and release a more powerfull version of Switch which probably won't match the other consoles but will keep them competing like they should.

1. The Switch is a hybrid. Both Nintendo's home console and handheld markets are now merged. While we have yet to see the full benefits of this, it's apparent. Nintendo handhelds were always guaranteed to succeed once a new generation of Pokemon came out. Pokemon Sword and Shield is a big success on Switch, as is the spin-off "Let's Go". The Switch's hybrid nature also gives more incentive to play first and third-party ports. Even if third-party games can't match the specs of other consoles, you have the option to play them anywhere.
2. Marketing. The marketing with the Switch has been mostly great. There are still some kids and families shown, but it's mostly teenagers and under-35 adults. If you market to adults, kids will likely show an interest too. If you market largely to kids, adults will back away.
3. Strong 2017. For all the faults the Switch had for 2017, there were a lot of strengths. There were a lot of heavy-hitters in exclusives and multiplats. Breath of the Wild, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Splatoon 2, Mario+Rabbids, Stardew Valley, Super Mario Odyssey, Skyrim, and Xenoblade Chronicles 2. Switch's 2018 certainly didn't match 2017, and 2019 may not have either. 2020 will likely be Switch's best year financially, and may get its best games. Hard to say, though, since we still don't know a lot about this year.

Basically:
1. Hybrid system is a very appealing idea (play anywhere, console level games on a portable)
2. Zelda. BotW was the Switch's version of Wii Sports, though obviously a very different type of game. The killer app of the system that was available at launch and generated huge positive word of mouth.
3. Huge 1st year. Beyond Zelda they had Mario Kart, Splatoon, and Odyssey which again like Zelda was an incredibly well received release of their other main franchise from the NES.
4. It has become the best way to play indies

I don't think marketing is that big a reason. Nintendo commercials and the like have never been a big seller of the systems. Word of mouth is what sells Nintendo. Wii had that, Switch has that. A friend has Switch, other people play it, and are like oh I gotta have that, and word spreads. Switch's marketing is baked into the fact that its got the awesome hybrid design and got must-have versions of the great Nintendo games everyone loves.

Marketing can only take you so far if the product isnt desirable on it's own. A bad product with great marketing might do well initially but it will quickly be forgotten.

As for going back to the "core", this is a system where the main controller is an evolved Wii Remote and launched with the motion based party game 1-2 Switch, followed that up with a DIY cardboard craft Labo in Spring 2018, saw Mario Party return to Wii/DS level sales later that year, released a hit fitness RPG a few months ago, released a new Brain Training a couple weeks ago and has seen the Just Dance series rebound.

A well executed approach to consolidating their hardware & software into a single ecosystem is the biggest reason. That alone made sure it would be successful.

I knew the Switch was going to be a big success (100m+) even before it launched.  Here are the top 4 reasons why in ascending order:

4. Strong Launch - The main title available at launch sets the tone for a system.  The Wii had Wii Sports.  Not only was this a popular game, but it also drew in a big new audience into gaming.  This game set the tone for the whole Wii system.  The NES launched with Super Mario Bros (in the US at least), and it was both highly popular and it also makes people think of the NES as a system of 2D platformers.  The Wii U launched with Nintendoland, a dud game for a dud system.  Switch launched with Breath of the Wild.  It's a fantastic game open-world game that appeals to a lot of gamers: 2D Zelda & 3D Zelda, core Nintendo as well as core Sony/Microsoft.  It has very broad appeal, but mostly for modern gamers.  Switch was not focused on winning back the Wii or DS audience that it lost.  Instead it was the ideal system for the current mass market.

3.  Consolidated resources - HD games can really slow down development, but Switch would not have development droughts to the same extent that the Wii U had.  All 3DS and all Wii U development teams are making games for Switch.  Sure there are still slow seasons and peak seasons on Switch, but they were far worse on the Wii U.  Switch would always have enough first party games to keep people coming.

2.  Hardware Has Fantastic Value - In the past a person would have to buy both home and handheld hardware to have access to all of Nintendo's software.  Now they only need to buy one system to experience all Nintendo's games.  Not only does this appeal to people who owned a Wii U and 3DS, but it also appeals to people who owned PS4 and Vita, or PS4 and 3DS (probably the most common).  Also, it is extremely convenient to game on a TV and then go handheld whenever you need to, or vice versa.  The Switch is one piece of hardware that fits all of a person's gaming needs and that makes it a fantastic value.

1.  King of Handhelds - Nintendo is undefeated in the handheld market.  For so many reasons they do things right in handheld gaming and no one can touch them.  With the Switch they can bring all that experience, all of that prowess, to the home market as well.  Not only are they guaranteed to bring in the 3DS and Vita market into the Switch, but they can reach into the home market and bring in a lot of those gamers too.  The more Switch progresses and the bigger its game library gets, the more that almost every gamer is going to want to own one.

Mario Kart brought the wheel back and introduced self driving cars. ARMS is exactly what you'd expect a fully fledged Wii Boxing to look like.

The difference between Wii games and Switch looks exactly the same as the jump from NES to SNES.

In my opinion here are the main reasons why the Switch is successful:

1. The Hybrid Console/Handheld concept: In my opinion, this is the biggest reason why the Switch is successful, the Switch's concept is just so intriguing to people kinda like how motion controls was an impressive concept like the Wii. People love the idea of being able to have the same console experience on the TV and to be able to SEAMLESSLY take that same full console experience on the go. Also, the detachable joy-cons makes the Switch the perfect system for local multiplayer and allows players to play full console like local multiplayer games on the go which is awesome to many people. I can't tell you how many times people in my High School would beg me to bring the Switch to play local multiplayer games like Smash Bros,Mario Kart, 2k ECT in tabletop mode. The concept is just so impressive that even a bunch of Non-Nintendo gamers want one because it's hybrid concept is so amazing.

2. The Core Games the Switch's concept combined with the revolutionary amazing "wow" type games are another big reason for the Switch's success. One of the main reasons why the Wii U did so poorly is because how the Wii U lacked any revolutionary, ambitious, or exclusive experience type game that would be a must-have for people. Their were too many casual,safe,repetitive, and unambitous Wii U games to where consumers were not willing to spend 300+$ just to play another Mario game they could play on their Wii or 3DS. Mario 3D World did not hold a candle to the Galaxy games in terms of ambition. That all changed with the Switch, at launch Nintendo released one of the greatest most revolutionary games of all time Zelda BOTW, which was pretty much the Wii Sports of the Switch where the game amazed people enough to want to experience it for themselve and spend 300+$, Super Mario Odyssey was first Open-Sandbox 3D Mario in 15 years while implementing totally brand new mechanics, worlds, and even the first Mario song with lyrics impressed people enough to sell Switch units. Also having a Smash game with no cuts and being on a system that people actually care about was also big. Not to mention, a mainline Pokemon game which would sell 10M+ Units all by itself. As a result of these amazing core games, Zelda became by far the bestselling Zelda game of all time selling 15M,blowing it's previous bestseller Twilight Princess's 7M. Mario Odyssey became the bestselling 3D Platformer and Mario game of all time despite being only 2 years old selling 15M. Smash sold 15M as well and im sure Pokemon sold close around that number as well.

3.Marketing- The Wii U's marketing was completely garbage, a good portion of people still don't know that the Wii U exists or is a controller add-on for the original Wii. The name didn't sound like a whole new next gen system, it sounded more like an Add-On and too many of the advertisements focused on the gamepad controller rather than the console making people very confused to what it was. Even for the few who did know what a Wii U was, the advertisements made it seems like a children and casual family system, when casual families moved onto smartphones and tablets and children were in the very small minority of gamers worldwide. making the Wii U appeal to very few gamers. However, Nintendo's marketing all changed with the Switch, they removed the cancerous Wii name from the Switch which let consumers know this was an entirely new system from Nintendo and the advertisements made the Switch's concept clear that it was a console you can happen to play on the go anywhere in a multitude of ways. And Nintendo started finally marketing to adults in their commericials, making the Switch's image seem more accepted by the adult crowd, which is the majority of gamers right now.

4.Essentially a Handheld in Japan- It's clear that the Japanese gaming crowd are now far more into handhelds more than anything. As home consoles don't really sell well in Japan anymore since Japanese players are usually too busy and out too much to play on a home console. Since the Switch is essentially a handheld system, many Japanese players are going to purchase it since it fits their lifestyle and handhelds are more appealing than a home console for Japan. This is giving Nintendo far more sales in Japan than with home consoles as a result leading to more success overall in terms of sales. Proof of handhelds being dominant in Japan is shown when comparing the Switch's sales to the PS4's sales in Japan, where the Switch already outsold the PS4's lifetime sales in Japan despite the Switch being 3.5 years younger.

5.3rd Party Support- It's clear that since the SNES, Nintendo has struggled to gain 3rd Party Support on their home consoles for a variety of reasons. However,now with the Switch, you could argue that this may be Nintendo's best 3rd Party console since the SNES. We're seeing 3rd Party Games that you wouldn't ever imagine would see the light of day on an underpowered Nintendo system, such as the Witcher 3, MK11, Outer Worlds, Doom, ECT...And unlike other Nintendo systems where 3rd party games would struggle to sell due to the market. 3rd party games are selling well on the Switch since the Switch has the added benefit of playing full 3rd party console games on the go. As a result of this 3rd party support, many non Nintendo gamers are purchasing a Switch to play their favorite 3rd party game anywhere. Also Switch is full of exclsuive Indie and JRPG games you can't find anywhere else, also helping the Switch's 3rd party lineup.

OK so my points have met your awfully low expectations. I'm not gonna lie, I am honored that you're not dissapointed with this thread as you still took the time to write and post and i guess in your mind the average Nintendo fan is a simple minded sheep that praises Nintendo's farts and everything else Nintendo pulls out of their ass, but not you, oh no because you're just so much smarter than the rest and have an actual well thought out opinion or you're just an edgy contrarian, I really don't know, but i still got your attention to read my weak minded views in a long post. Either way it's your views and you have every right to express yourself but you don't have to apply my views on your own so keep breathing and RELAX.

The WiiU being a good or bad console is highly subjective and frankly a stupid reason to point as a cause of failure. The WiiU was underpowered? Yes, but so is the Switch and especially when the next generation of consoles launch yet it's not bad because it's selling well? The Dreamcast failed, Gamecube failed, PSVita failed are all of these consoles bad according to you? They were among the most powerfull consoles/handeld of their time and are still fondly remembered by many. Of course marketing alone does not guarantee a succesful product as it's a combination of factors but neither do the rest of the factors alone guarantee success. Marketing is essential in making the target audience aware of your product and to specify what's it got in store for them whereas Nintendo failed with WiiU because most people did not even know that it was a new console and why they should buy the thing, what makes it worth a purchase? I remember seeing Nintendo putting a side by side ad of the Wii and WiiU and their differences because the WiiU was virtually unknown and people were uninterested in another Wii console targeting children. That is the first thing Nintendo fixed with Switch marketing, focus on young adults then the children will follow the adults not the other way around.

I think you're complicating this way more than it is and again, sorry but you bringing up the NES is a terrible example. The NES days were way too different from todays videogame industry and i don't think i need to explain you all of it's differences. But to repeat the examples i mentioned games like Wii Sports, Wii Fit are fun and innovative multi million selling games but those are not the type of games Nintendo's core audience or "Nintendo Nerds" were looking for. And here is where you're horribly wrong or just purely in denial... YES, Nintendo fans wanted more 3rd party games like Assassins Creed, Dark Souls, Battlefield, GTA the games every other console got but the WiiU because these games in most cases simply wouldn't run on the U and more importantly wouldnt sell so why would 3rd parties waste their time on it? This has been the oldest and most vocal criticism of Nintendo consoles coming from Nintendo fans, the Gamecube actually managed to get decent third party multiplats but again it had it's hardware limitations which also limited it's third party support just like the N64. The fact that games like Tekken Tag, Injustice or Assassin Creed 3 underperformed on WiiU doesn't mean Nintendo fans don't want them it's just that these games in most cases were inferior ports, ported too late when people already owned these games on other platforms and the fact that the WiiU sold terribly, you can't expect third party games with next to no marketing to get decent sales on a console with next to no marketing. Why would Nintendo even try to convince 3rd parties if they knew they wouldn't sell? They tried to please both audiences with the WiiU and ended up losing both.

Please, take your time and reread my post as i've never specified nor stated that AAA 3rd party games are a huge success or define Switch's success. I clearly said 3rd parties, either indie or AAA, are getting more ports on Switch which in of itself is a success for the Switch and Nintendo because you know damn well that the WiiU wasn't getting this many 3rd party support not from Bethesda, not from From Software, not from Capcom and again yes these are mosltly safe bet ports but the Switch is doing something right which attracts 3rd parties, WiiU didn't. Nintendo needs 3rd parties whether you agree with this or not.

You wrote your own thread? Before Switch released? God it must be so good i'll be sure to read it when i've got the time okay? Just like you dedicated your time to read my weak minded post, again i'm so happy that you're not dissapointed.

The portable/hybrid aspect is one of the reasons i had considered to include it's the best thing Nintendo has done bringing 3DS and WiiU owners together and just focusing most of their resources on one console.

Perfect.

The core game for Nintendo system are arcade games easy to learn hard to master. With Sega and Atari down, Nintendo is the only sucessor of this core type. 

The core game for Sony and Microsoft are computer games heritage. EA, Rockstar, and other major thirds born in PC game.