Sales: Nintendo Switch surpasses Xbox One in Spain

There are already more Nintendo Switch systems than Xbox Ones in Spain, Gamereactor Spain has been able to confirm, as the ongoing success of the hybrid console since launch means Nintendo has sold more units in 10 months than Microsoft has in almost 50.

The 'sorpasso' happened, as several indicators were suggesting prior to our confirmation, during the 2017 Christmas campaign. Microsoft was betting high on its powerful Xbox One X, while Nintendo kept trying to meet demand, and at the year's end, based on the sales figures Gamereactor has had access to, the Xbox One closed nearing the 300,000 units mark, whereas Nintendo Switch ended up surpassing that milestone.

So far the only official statement referring to Christmas performance came from Nintendo's side, as they confirmed that "Nintendo Switch is the fastest-selling Nintendo home system in Spain, surpassing Wii numbers," although no official figures were offered.

If not already, this all points to a similar situation in France, where the showdown between the two machines was around the million-unit mark.

Spain, France, and Italy are traditionally tricky markets for Microsoft and favourable to Nintendo, especially with the Wii and its handheld systems. The United Kingdom (and of course the United States, its home country), however, are big Xbox consumers, so if the same situation is to happen, it'll be much later.

PS4 surpasses 3DS

If we add both home and handheld systems into the mix, another overtake happened: there are more PlayStation 4 units than Nintendo 3DS systems in Spain.

Nintendo's old 3D system (it'll turn seven in a month's time) has started to feel fatigue despite Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon's push, and naturally due to the Switch's own handheld nature. Market leader Sony, however, by means of an aggressive strategy of sales and promotions, has had another outstanding merry Christmas, including a PS4 Pro model that is beginning to spread around the market. In total, both the PS4 and the 3DS have an installed base of 2+ million, but it's Sony's machine that's making a gap, already looking at its predecessor's 3 million mark as its next goal.

With revisions and new models mid-generation being a reality, and with traditional life cycles being more blurry than ever, it'll be interesting to see the moves by the three main game hardware manufacturers for the rest of the year, always in parallel to a PC market that is leaving a new golden era.

Do any of these figures surprise you?