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Video game retailer Game is the latest high street store to hit problems, as its suppliers, including Nintendo and Electronic Arts, are refusing to do business with them. A report from The Express has even suggested that Game’s directors are even considering closing the high street chain, which trades under the names of Game and Gamestation and has 600 stores in the UK.

Shares in the company have fallen 77% following supplier refusal to work with the company, leaving Game without crucial titles such as Mass Effect 3, widely predicted to become amongst the biggest selling videogame titles of 2012 upon its release.

Growing competition by online electronics giants such as Amazon and Play.com has contributed to the decline of such stores on the high street. This has already been evidenced by the closure of some HMV stores following the tough Christmas period, after a decline in profits by 61% in January 2012.

Game itself hit problems in 2010 when it announced the closure of 100 stores by 2013, and now, following a bad 2011/2012 Christmas trading period where sales fell 12.9% from the previous year, the company has lost the confidence of the major players in gaming.

Game has commented, saying that it was "working actively to resolve these issues as quickly as possible", but it is unsure if its efforts to turnaround the company’s fortunes will be successful.

The Express report quotes a source close to the company as saying; “There is a real risk that Game’s directors will pull the plug because they can’t be sure that the company can survive through the next trading season, and then insolvency becomes inevitable”

If this happens, it will be sad news for technologically savvy shoppers who enjoy browsing through racks of DVDs, CDs and games. With the removal of Zavvi’s high street presence back in 2009, then HMV reducing its stores and now Game on the downturn, it seems that electronics retailers on the high street are soon to become a thing of the past.

Online stores, such as Amazon and Play are noticeably cheaper than their tangible counterparts, and are a wiser choice for consumers watching their wallets during the economical crisis. It’s an unfortunate fact, but it’s likely that the high street just isn’t able to offer prices competitive enough to challenge the internet.

Source:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-17336697

http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/305980/Bosses-may-pull-the-plug-on-Game

http://www.computerandvideogames.com/338406/game-directors-considering-shutting-up-shop-report/