Nintendo investors and fans are awaiting more details on the Switch 2, the successor to the company's near eight-year-old Switch console.

The Japanese videogame maker said Tuesday that net profit dropped 42% from a year earlier to 237.19 billion yen, for the nine-month period.

Japan's Nintendo cut its operating profit forecast on Tuesday by 22.2% to 280 billion yen ($1.8 billion) for the financial year ending March. In the April-December period, profit fell 46.7% to 247.6 billion yen.

Japanese video game giant Nintendo on Tuesday cut its annual net profit forecast after hardware and software sales for its Switch console fell in the first three quarters. "Nintendo Switch hardware and software sales through the third quarter were below expectations,

Nintendo Co. revised its full-year forecast down after profit and revenue shrank over the holiday period, with gamers increasingly looking forward to the release of its next-generation console.

Nintendo (7974.T), opens new tab on Tuesday reported operating profit in the April-December period fell 46.7% from a year earlier. Profit was 247.6 billion yen ($1.59 billion). That compared with profit of 464 billion yen in the same period a year earlier.