NEWS Asda predicts 2013 market turnaround
Gaming market to show growth in two years Games are ‘significant’ sales driver Grocer targets online by Christopher Dring
UK GAMES retail can expect another 18 months of decline before things start growing again, says Asda.
The firm was talking following last month’s E3 conference, with games chief Andrew Thompson describing the games on show as ‘unbelievable.’ “The quality is so high now,” Thompson told MCV. “You don’t really see poor quality next-gen games. And in many ways that makes this job quite difficult. When you are at a grocer with 25 chart spaces you do have to ask yourself: ‘How am I going to get all these in?’ I guess this is a
nice problem to have. And the big titles just keep getting bigger. Last year the Top 20 was worth 40 per cent of the market, this year we think it will be worth 50 per cent.
“ by Dominic Sacco
CULT DOWNLOADhit Super Meat Boywill arrive in the form of two UK retail special editions on August 26th. Fans will be able to pick up the Ultra Edition for £19.99 or an Ultra Rare Edition for £24.99. Both include a soundtrack, comic, sketch book and poster, while the Ultra Rare SKU
www.mcvuk.com
We think the market will grow again in 2013, but we will see a decline this year. Andrew Thompson, Asda
“All three entertainment categories have had a tough time in terms of consistent year-on-year growth. The games market can regenerate itself through
innovation, and in particular new hardware launches. We think the market will grow again in 2013, but we will see a decline this year. Music, video and games are still such a significant proportion of our home and leisure category, it is about a quarter of Asda’s H&L sales. So it is still very important to us as a business.” Asda’s entertainment team is now focusing its efforts online, with former games buyer Alastair Islip moving online earlier this year to work alongside former GAME exec Frazer Locke. “We have a big target in terms of online and getting a foothold in that market,” added Thompson. Asda: 0113 243 5435
Asda’s Thompson believes the Top 20 games will make up 50 per cent of the market this year
KONTROLFREEK TRANSFORMS JOYPADS INTO ARCADE STICKS
A NEW accessory from peripherals manufacturer KontrolFreek allows gamers to give their standard controllers an arcade makeover. The Rcade Freek is compatible with Xbox 360 and PS3, and fits over the analogue sticks to create a more authentic arcade-style experience for downloadable titles such as Space Invadersand Pac-Man. KontrolFreek has released the sticks to mark the 40th anniversary of Galaxy Game, the earliest known coin-operated games machine, as well as every arcade that followed it. The Rcade Freek sticks retail for £9.99 and are distributed by
KontrolFreek and Lime Ltd UK. They are available in red, green or classic black.
www.kontrolfreek.com Super Meat Boy hits retail next month
comes with a Super Meat BoyT-shirt.
The platform game – developed by Team Meat – was originally released on Xbox Live last October before heading to PC download services such as Steam and Direct2Drive. It has over 300 levels. “With more than
600,000 units sold online, Super Meat Boyhas
achieved cult status amongst the gaming community,” said Lace Mamba Global’s head of PR and marketing Claas Wolter. “We saw huge interest in the boxed version as well as a special T- shirt – both of which are currently only available online for
delivery in the US. We are already receiving great customer feedback and pre-orders for both editions.”
The publisher is also releasing a boxed version of Sam & Max: The
Devil’s Playhousefor PC on August 26th. Lace Mamba Global: 01273 202220
July 8th 2011 7
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