The Nintendo Switch Is Four Years Old Today

Four years ago on March 3, 2017, the Nintendo Switch was launched across the globe. The Wii U had arrived in 2012 but its impressive lineup of launch games ran dry not long after and then it quickly fizzled into obscurity, selling a mere 13.5 million units during its lifetime.

The smaller handheld Nintendo 3DS and its various hardware revisions would hold the fort down while the veteran Japanese company began work on its new gaming hardware, a device that would fuse Nintendo's best ideas together into a single console. The end result was the Nintendo Switch, which launched with not only a strong library of first and third-party games but also a killer app in the form of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.

Since then, the Switch has become a haven for all manner of games. Nintendo continues to develop well-received first-party titles for the Switch such as Super Mario Odyssey, Pokemon Sword/Shield, and Animal Crossing: New Horizons to name but a few. Some of the best games from the Wii U era have also received a second chance on the console that's equally at home on the streets or in your living room, as Bayonetta 2, New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe, and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe have all found new audiences on the Switch.

Beyond first-party and a surprising number of third-party games from developers who have been able to make the most of the Switch's surprisingly capable hardware, the console has also been a big hit with its selection of indie games. You don't need to look too far to find a number of the best games from any number of genres available on ith.

Hades, Hyper Light Drifter, and Return of the Obra Dinn are just some of the many games available in a packed marketplace right now. Being able to play those award-winning games while on the move has also been a big reason why indie games have seen a surge in sales on the Switch in recent years, as fans load up their memory card with the best that the smaller side of the industry has to offer.

With 80 million units sold worldwide at the halfway point of its life-cycle--including the recently-released Switch Lite as well--Nintendo believes that the plucky portable device is on track to outsell the Wii by a fair margin. The Nintendo DS family of consoles still remains the top-seller in the company with more than 154 million units sold through, but the Switch still has plenty to offer even in an industry that has seen the launch of Sony and Microsoft's next-gen consoles.

Games such as Pokemon Brilliant Diamond / Shining Pearl, Monster Hunter Rise, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD, Pokemon Legends: Arceus, and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2 are still on the way, and there'll likely be plenty of people interested in picking up a Switch and seeing what all the fuss is about when fans dig into these new titles in the months to come.