There's no denying that the Nintendo Switch has been a commercial success, nabbing first place in console sales over Thanksgiving break, but in terms of overall sales the incumbent PS4 currently reigns supreme. However, according to a new financial forecast, Nintendo's portable hybrid will outsell even the PlayStation 4 in 2019.

A press release put out by research firm Strategy Analytics has Nintendo Switch edging out Sony's best-selling home console by a thin margin. According to the prediction, Switch sales will top out at 17.3 million, trailed closely by the PS4 at 17.1 million. The Xbox One is predicted to reach just over 10 million in sales.

If the forecast turns out to be true, this would mark the first time Nintendo has held the top spot in hardware sales since 2009 when the Wii outsold its competition from Sony and Microsoft. With the release of the highly anticipated Smash Bros. Ultimate closing out 2018, the Switch is likely to enjoy considerable success from one of Nintendo's most celebrated franchises well into the new year.

Continuing its financial success for 2018, Nintendo saw record-breaking sales figures for the Switch's first Pokemon exclusive, Pokemon Let's Go, which sold three million copies in its first week and became the console's fastest-selling release since the Switch launched in March 2017.

The work is not done for Nintendo, however; Sony's overall hold, in terms of console use, remains firm going into 2019. Benefiting from considerable seniority over Nintendo Switch and consistently strong sales, Sony's home consoles account for more than half of all consoles currently in use, with 84% of that figure belonging to PS4 and PS4 Pro.

Further, Nintendo continues to aggressively combat the leak of Smash Bros. Ultimate content after the full game was illegally obtained and uploaded online by hackers. The leaks have already resulted in copyright strikes and YouTube bans, yet Nintendo continues to work toward mitigating the consequences. Despite clips from the soundtrack being leaked and story details revealed, thankfully the release of the exploited materials has yet to affect anything about the game, including its December 7 release.

Source: Strategy Analytics