GAME holiday sales hit 15 percent low

GAME's sales during the Christmas break were down by 15 percent, the retailer said today, but the company remains optimistic on the year ahead with the upcoming launches of PlayStation Vita and Wii U.

Sales dropped by 14.7%, while like-for-like numbers went down by 12.7%.

On a regional breakdown, sales in stores for the UK and Republic of Ireland were down by 17.6%, while international sales dropped by 3.9%. Consolation came in the form of online sales being up by 3.9%.

For the year ending January 2012, sales were down by 11.9%, less than the overall market in the UK at 13.1%.

"Our industry had an incredibly tough 2011, and so did we," said company CEO Ian Shepherd.

"We remain the market leader and have a clear strategy which will return the business to growth. We are adapting to the changing market and are well prepared for the next hardware cycle," he added, touching upon the upcoming launches of PlayStation Vita next month and Wii U later this year in Europe.

There's more details over on GI.Biz.