This doesn't actually contradict their previous statement about the 13.5m not including the successor.

Not to be too dismissive, but his answer is kind of a nothing-burger in that it doesn't really tell us anything new.

This reads to me that Nintendo planning a price cut. They’ve got a strategy to boost NSW sales which they aren’t comfortable disclosing yet…not sure what else that could mean.

Yeah. That’s how I read it too. His comments seem to confirm the 13.5 mil for switch only. And states they will share surprises with investors in a timely and appropriate manner. He also hints at a sale strategy being a surprise as well. 

if anything it hints to revisions in the forecast in Jan/feb after q3 results and either just after or before the switch 2 announcement. 

A price cut could do wonders for them, but I doubt it will happen given that inflation has driven up the cost of pretty much everything.

A $150 Switch Lite, $250 base Switch, or $300 OLED each bundled with a big game would be a very attractive deal in today's climate and would get them to 13.5 comfortably, it just doesn't seem likely given Nintendo's conservative nature and the economic backdrop.

@curl-6 But a price drop and bundling with a game would explain why Nintendo is projecting decent sized drops in profits but comparatively smaller drops in hardware and software.

I definitely feel like they will do $50 price drops across the board and bundle each with a game. My choice for game would be ACNH with Lite, MK8 DX with OG and SSBU with OLED, which is pretty easy to picture because they've basically done bundles like these before.

I don't expect it to happen, but it would be cool if it did.

I always wondered why they never did a BOTW bundle, at least not that I am aware of; $250 for a base Switch with BOTW or $300 for the OLED could be a strong sell. Maybe bring that Switch Sports bundle from Japan to the West.

I thought the profit drops would be due to manufacturing costs of the new system. I imagine there will be a spike in cost before the process is streamlined and initial manufacturing problems are fixed.

Nintendo is also one of the few in the industry who actually increased the number of employees lately. 

I don't know if it is relevant, but I noticed that the Switch is sold out constantly at my local Media Markt. Only the Switch Lite is readily available. I do not know if the reason for this is high demand or low stock. But I found it interesting since last year there were always stockpiles of Switch and Switch OLED.

It is available online though, so maybe the store just screwed up or something. =P

Same at my place, in retail either OG and OLED Switch are not available at all or only 1 or 2 pieces each. I have the impression that Nintendo undershipped in Q1 25. Actually, it's the other way around: Retail expected the demand for Switch will cool off much more than it actually did and ordered too less. I expect shipping in Q2 will be significantly higher than in Q1.

Or it's a sign that one or both SKUs are on the verge of getting phased out. It's more likely that only the original model gets phased out and the resulting shortage of it has translated into more sales for the OLED model, causing the more expensive SKU to experience shortages as well. So it's not so much that retailers underestimated demand, but rather that there can't be placed any new orders.