Gaming boom for UK retailers
2008 sales leap
According to word from the Entertainment Retailers Association this morning, gaming is enjoying a veritable boom in stores, despite the surrounding economic malaise.
Apparently, gaming is comfortably the nation's fastest growing entertainment sector, with 82.8 million 'units' shifted last year - 17% up on 2007.
Reports suggest the Nintendo Wii console was one of the main driver's of this games boom, although most gaming firms offer up healthy numbers for the last 12 months.
Total console and game sales for 2008 top 4.03 billion GBP, with 1.9 billion of that on games - up 23% on the year before; with game sales rocketing across the board.
"Videogaming is increasingly bringing families together with the introduction of so many outstanding family-based console titles," chimes in ELSPA's Michael Rawlinson.
"These have really opened up the market to those who may never have even considered playing a videogame before."
