Nintendo's president said the Switch is a console 'with a long lifespan'

Kim Kyung Hoon/Reuters

Nintendo's president, Tatsumi Kimishima.

• Nintendo has sold more than 10 million units of its Switch console so far.
• Nintendo's president Tatsumi Kimishima announced last year that the company wants to reach 14 million consoles sold by the end of the fiscal year in March, and also set next year's goal for 20 million more.
• In a recent interview, Kimishima said that the console has "a long lifespan," but to achieve its long-term goals the second year will be "crucial."

Nintendo has big ambitions for 2018.

In a recent interview with Japanese newspaper Mainichi (which we saw via NintendoEverything), Nintendo's president Tatsumi Kimishima said that the second year of its successful Switch will be "crucial," and that the console has "a long lifespan."

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After closing 2017 with great momentum and a whopping 10 million units sold (which the company wants to bring to 14 million before the fiscal year closes in March), Nintendo said that next year's target is even more ambitious: 20 million Switch consoles sold.

To do so, the Japanese firm plans to keep on doing what it does best, which is a mixture of popular first-party franchise titles - such as "Super Mario" and "The Legend of Zelda" - as well as family games from both its own development studios and external partners.

One of Nintendo's objectives this year, Kimishima said, will be to expand the console's user base to "those who have never touched game machines too much," other than more traditional gamers.

The Switch has been doing so incredibly well in its first year that people have drawn comparisons to all-time favourite consoles such as Nintendo's own Wii as well as Sony's PlayStation 2.

In response to this, Kimishima said that the Switch is indeed rivalling the Wii, as far as momentum goes, as the console's unique form factor (which allows it to be played both at home and on the go) has been well received.

It took the Wii about seven years to reach 100 million units, but if the Switch keeps its pace, it may well be on track to beat that record too.