#Nintendo Switch just had the second-best October in video game history

The looming release of the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X didn’t put a damper on Switch sales last month, with Nintendo’s flagship console delivering the second-strongest October sales performance ever.

The ultra-popular gaming system moved 735,000 units last month — more than three and a half years after its March 2017 release — as the Covid-19 pandemic continues to pour rocket fuel on the Japanese giant’s sales.

The eye-popping figure is second only that of another Nintendo console, the Wii, which sold 807,000 units in October 2008 according to NPD.

The Switch has now sold more than 22.5 million units in the US, and more than 63 million worldwide. It has been the best-selling console in the world for 23 consecutive months, the longest such streak since NPD began tracking sales numbers.

The popularity is sure to boost Nintendo’s bottom line, with the maker of the iconic “Super Mario” franchise reporting earlier this month that profits more than tripled thanks to the console’s red-hot sales.

Nintendo raked in profits of $2.8 billion between April and September, up 209 percent from the same period in 2019.

Indeed, the Switch has been selling so fast that Nintendo warned it could be hard to find even though it’s increasing shipments ahead of the holiday shopping season.

But the Switch now has new competition, with Microsoft and Sony both launching their new gaming consoles this week.