Nintendo Switch has cut deep into porn traffic

Turns out you can't watch porn and play video games at the same time, but you can watch porn about video games.

YouPorn reports that their traffic dropped noticeably after the release last weekend of the highly anticipated new gaming system the Nintendo Switch. It seems people were so excited to play with their new device that they didn’t need to search for more, um, excitement in the form of porn.

YouPorn regularly experiences small traffic fluctuations from things like holidays, big TV shows airing or movies premiering. But the Switch was a different story. It’s debut on March 3 coincided with a 15 percent drop in traffic from users who self-identified as gamers. By the next day -- a Saturday, peak sit on the couch and play a game day -- it was down 17 percent, and by Sunday it was only 13 percent down.

There was an increase in one area, however. Demand for porn related to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which came out the same day as the Switch, was way up. “Link” searches rose 164 percent over that weekend, and those for “Zelda” were up 102 percent. Who knew Zelda got people so hot and bothered?

The Switch sex halo extended to the brand more generally, too. Searches for “Nintendo” itself went up by 37 percent. Big characters also got a boost, like Mario (up 24 percent), Bowser (up 23 percent), and Princess Peach (up 16 percent).

Huh. The porn market will no doubt rise to the occasion and meet this new Switch-inspired demand.