It's official — Nintendo Switch inventory will be a nightmare this holiday season

It's official — Nintendo Switch inventory will be a nightmare this holiday season

If you're hoping to find a Nintendo Switch OLED among your Black Friday deals this holiday season, it's time to temper your expectations.

Last week, reports came out that Nintendo will not be able to ship many Nintendo Switch consoles due to parts shortages that continue to plague supply chains around the world. Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa has now confirmed that supplies will be even lower than previously revised sales targets.

"We will not be able to produce enough to meet the expected demand for the upcoming holiday season," Furukawa said at a news briefing, as reported by CNBC. He announced a sales target of 24 million Switch units. This is a significant decrease from the official target of 30 million units set earlier this year, according to Nihon Keizai Shimbun. Nintendo has lowered this target to 25.5 million units, and now to 24 million units, showing that even a major company with enormous influence is struggling.

"There are no signs of improvement at the moment, and the situation remains difficult, and I don't know how long it will last," Furukawa added.

Last month, a slightly updated OLED for the Nintendo DS was released to modest but positive reviews. Nevertheless, demand for the device remains high and systems are hard to come by. And this is considering that the Switch series of consoles has already sold 89 million units to date.

Serkan Toto, founder of Kantan Games consultancy, told CNBC that new buyers are not buying up Switch OLEDs, but current owners are upgrading. If so, some may trade in their old Switch units to stores such as GameStop or sell them used online.

It is likely that used regular model Switches and Nintendo Switch Lites will be available. Unfortunately, next-generation consoles like the PS5 and Xbox Series X are likely to remain hard to find over the holidays.

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