Mario Kart 8 Deluxe had a very successful launch on the Switch, selling 459,000 units on launch day in the US, making it the fastest selling Mario Kart game ever.
And Jefferies equity analyst Atul Goyal believes the game’s success is more than just sales numbers, it shows the Switch as a viable console.
In a note to investors, Goyal advised them to buy Nintendo shares, and said about the success of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe:
“No, this is not just any ordinary success. The scale of this success is many times bigger than what is visible with ‘MK8D sales of 459K units exceeded MKWii sales of 405K’. Analyzing the scale, we realize that like-for-like, MK8D is mega-hit on a different scale altogether (maybe 5-10x better).”
See also: New Mario Kart 8 Deluxe feature helps disabled gamers
Analysts like Goyal did not expect Mario Kart 8 Deluxe to be a huge success on the Switch, mainly because it was already released on the Wii U. Goyal, among other Wall Street analysts, now believe that Nintendo’s shares will see a rise in 2017.
Not only that, Goyal believes that Nintendo’s operating profit this year will be “well beyond the company’s conservative guidance”.
Just as Goyal released his investor’s note, Nintendo shares hit an all time high for 2017.
However, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe has not launched without problems. Players are reporting issues with online multiplayer, including random disconnects, lag, and more.
