What significant announcement is Nintendo planning to make by the end of March regarding its gaming console lineup?

Nintendo intends to announce its successor to the Switch console by the conclusion of the financial year ending in March 2025. With titles like "The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom," Nintendo has prolonged the Switch's lifespan, prompting anticipation for the transition to next-generation hardware. 

The Kyoto-based gaming company aims to sell 13.5 million Switch units in the current fiscal year, seeking to maximize sales from the aging device. While withholding specifics on the new hardware, Nintendo confirmed that no further details would be disclosed at its Nintendo Direct presentation in June. Serkan Toto, founder of the Kantan Games consultancy, noted that many users are delaying purchases of the current Switch in anticipation of the new model's release in 2025. Despite incremental changes to Switch devices, including the growth of OLED model sales, Nintendo projects a decline in operating profit this year to approximately 400 billion yen ($2.6 billion). With a lineup of anticipated titles like "Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door" and "Luigi's Mansion 2," Nintendo strategically reserves heavy-hitting releases for the successor device. 

The company anticipates selling 165 million software units this year, marking a 17% decline from the previous year. Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa highlighted the evolution of game development, characterized by increasing sophistication and complexity. In the fiscal year ending in March, operating profit increased by 4.9% to 528.9 billion yen. Ahead of earnings, Nintendo's shares closed up 2.4%, with a 5.4% increase for the year following a recent sell-off.