Original URL: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/08/03/uk_games_sales_hit_all_time_rock_bottom/
UK physical game sales hit rock bottom
Retail in need of therapy?
Posted in Games, 3rd August 2012 10:22 GMT
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The UK games market hit an all time low last week. Retailers took in just £8.4m from software sales.
With the release schedule dryer than a Saharan snakepit, this time of the year is always grim, but with just 394,688 physical copies of games sold through stores [1] last week, the industry suffered its lowest financial performance since records began.
The figures - which come by way of GfK Chart-Track, via MCV - are said to be the result of various detrimental factors. Not only has the country suffered economic woes, reached the end of a console cycle and given more focus to digital content, but it has also been overwhelmed with Jubilee [2], European football tournaments and more recently Olympic fever.
Perhaps it comes as no surprise then, that Sega's official Olympics game was the best-selling title last week.
Massive dive
These figures don't take into account the takings from from digital sales and online gaming subscriptions.
Still, our thumbs haven't quite stopped tapping current-gen controller pads just yet, and with various triple-A titles scheduled [3] for release in the autumn, the industry remains positive. Game on. ®