Ninth generation of video game consoles

Ninth generation of video game consoles
Designer	Microsoft, Nintendo, Sony, various
Manufacturer	Microsoft, Nintendo, Sony, various
CPU	various
Graphics	various
Memory	various
Media	Blu-ray, CD, digital distribution, DVD, Ultra HD Blu-ray, SD Card
Released	March 3, 2017 - present
Added to Museum	See below

The Ninth generation of video game consoles began with the release of the Nintendo Switch on March 3, 2017.

The three major console manufacturers

Like the previous two generations, the three main video game console manufacturers are Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony. In this generation, Microsoft released the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S consoles, Nintendo released the Switch, and Sony released the PlayStation 5.

Nintendo Switch

The Switch was released only five years after the release of the Wii U as that system sold poorly and Nintendo wanted to recover from its losses.

As with the previous two generations, Microsoft and Sony released consoles with much higher processor, memory, and graphics capabilities than the previous generation. Nintendo continued with its plan to release a console with a unique design that only has a modest increase in processor power, memory, and graphics capabilities.

The Switch combined portable and home consoles with a handheld system that can be played on a television set through HDMI when plugged into a charging dock. Because of this, the Switch was the successor of not just the Wii U, but of the Nintendo 3DS and Nintendo 2DS handheld consoles as well

Sales numbers

The Switch was the highest-selling console worldwide from 2018 through 2022. Because the Nintendo Switch had a headstart compared to the release of the PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S systems, it was the only ninth-generation console available on the market until 2020.

From 2020 to 2022, the strong sales of the Nintendo Switch were partly due to the fact that the Microsoft and Sony consoles had persistent stock shortages. The manufacturing process and the supply chain were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Other consoles

Although Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony have the highest sales numbers, some companies also released consoles in the ninth generation.

Companies also continued to release consoles for the retro video game market. These consoles ran video games through emulation from the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, and early 2020s, or newer video games either created on consoles from those time periods or games developed in the style of games.

Major consoles

Title	Release	Added to museum	Computer it resembles
Nintendo Switch	2017	July 29, 2017	6.2-inch LCD screen. Digital distribution and Game Card
Nintendo Switch OLED model	2021	Not yet	7-inch OLED screen. Digital distribution and Game Card
Microsoft Xbox Series S	2020	Not yet	Digital distribution only.
Microsoft Xbox Series X	2020	Not yet	Digital distribution and Blu-ray.
Sony PlayStation 5	2020	Not yet	Digital distribution and Blu-ray.