The last few months the retailer has been trying to restructure itself and save money as it faces increasing debts. Recently some leading publishers have refused to supply their new titles to the chain amid concerns of it going under, and now seems its woes have deepened as according to MCV, senior management teams from the chain have been warned to get ready for administration.

CEO Ian Shepherd met with senior staff at the beginning of this week and warned the company had around two weeks to save itself from going bust. There has been rumors that rival US chain GameStop may be interested in taking up a number of the GAME stores, and only recently it was reported that the company’s directors were seeking advice whether it was better pulling the plug or running up more debts.

There have been reports from consumers that the company has started what seems like a fire sale at its UK GAME stores. This will be seen as an effort to get some much needed cash into the company as it tries to stay afloat, and in the meantime it will be hoping some sort of deal can be struck with GameStop to at least keep some of the stores open.

When contacted about the news a GAME spokesperson said the company doesn’t comment on such rumors. Whether you like the retailer or not because of their sometimes high prices, you have to think about the thousands of staff that will be worrying about their jobs.

Have you noticed any bargains at your local GAME store?

Only recently we told you that the GAME stores would not be stocking the latest blockbuster games from EA, which included titles such as Mass Effect 3. Sources have told the Express that directors of the company are thinking about pulling “the plug”, after EA and Nintendo stopped supplying the chain.

The source is claiming that directors from the company are unsure if the retailer can continue “through the next trading season”, and then face insolvency. Discussions are rumored to be taking place with legal experts to see if it would be better to call it a day or build up even bigger losses.

Only recently the group secured a deal to relieve its debt conditions with its creditors let by the Royal Bank of Scotland. But it is believed the banks patience is now running thin, and the fact that stores may not have much to offer consumers in regards to the latest titles, could be the straw that broke the camel’s back.

But if RBS was to decide to close the operation it won’t come cheaply as the chain has 1,274 branches across Australia and Europe. It is thought creditors would only agree to a ‘pre-pack administration’, which allows a pre-arranged suitor to buy the business as a whole. There have been whispers recently that GameStop might be interested in snapping up the troubled chain.

The retailer has already started proceedings to close sixty stores, and may even cut back its overseas operations. Retailers in the UK have been struggling for the last few years with a number of household names falling by the wayside since 2008. Only recently we told you the gaming industry as a whole was feeling the affect of the credit crunch, with a number of big game titles not selling as well as expected.

Update: EA has responded to the issues surrounding some of its new releases and providing stock to the retailer. The company released a statement and said the current situation affecting GAME was “unfortunate”, but as ITProPortal are reporting the publisher also added that customers had plenty of other alternatives to get hold of the new releases. The company also didn’t see that there would be any delay in getting the games released to the market.

Do you think the GAME Group will have a future?

The news of the breakdown between the two companies saw shares in the GAME Group slide almost ten percent to only £5.32 almost immediately after it broke. Now according to an article over at The Telegraph the retailer won’t be stocking upcoming titles such as Mario Party 9, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 13, and Mass Effect 3.

This apparent falling out between the two companies has come after GAME said it had worked out special deals with suppliers and lenders, which seemed to give the company an important lifeline. This would have also meant it didn’t miss any banking requirements.

Gamers that have preordered Mass Effect 3 will be offered a £5 voucher by the retailer, and will now have to purchase EA titles at the various rival retailers. Tom Devine the groups channel director sent a memo round to stores, which suggested the move was down to GAME and not EA to stock the games.

It does state though that EA didn’t want to alter or change its terms for GAME to make enough profit from stocking the games. The memo read that the company had reached out to its partners to make them aware of the short term challenges it faces, and asked for their support with “manageable credit terms”, while the company restructures itself.

The memo went onto reveal that the company will now only stock products it “could get the terms” for, and they wouldn’t sacrifice long term deals in favor for short term opportunities. It went on to say that the company reached the difficult decision not to provide next month’s releases from EA.

GAME Groups last published earnings revealed the company owned suppliers £295 million as of the end of January 2011, and was settling its bills within thirty days. The recent agreement the company made with suppliers provided GAME with generous rebate payments, which will help it in the short term.

Although not all the details are known surely it would make sense for GAME to stock AAA titles even though it may have only made a small amount on each sale. The retailer obviously would need all the income it can get to ease the pressure, and whether you are a regular customer or not, it would still be in everyone’s best interests if they can survive their current troubles.

Do you hope GAME comes through the current situation?

According to a report on MCV sales of the big titles have hit an all time low, with the UK games market down 25% compared with last year. Even publishers are shocked at the sales of even major sequels this time round. One leading analyst has stated that sales are only fifty percent of what they should be.

Retail sources are claiming that recent new launches have been shifting between 10,000 and 48,000 units during the first week of availability. This compares to last year where it was between 35,000 and 80,000. One unnamed publisher has seen its latest triple A title struggle and said they are not making half the money that is being spent on marketing alone.

UFC 3 for instance is this week’s number one but hasn’t compared to previous releases regarding sales, with the original outselling it by three to one over the same period. Big game releases from last year are now being offered at big discounts from various retailers.

Meanwhile struggling retailer GAME has announced it will be closing an extra 35 stores as well as closing Gameplay.co.uk next week. The retailer has been having a tough time for a while now and is looking to cut back costs so it can move forward and survive. It currently has 610 GameStation and GAME stores around the country, but is looking to reduce this to 550 by the end of 2013.

The company is looking to redeploy as many staff as possible after the store closures, and customers of Gameplay will be served via Gamestation.co.uk from the start of next month. GAME stores will soon have new IT systems that will fully support its online store, and could mean a click and collect service will soon be available.

It has suffered credit issues in recent months that have led to some new titles not being stocked by the store. Many of our readers have said they no longer use the GAME stores based simply on price, as it seems unable to compete with the big supermarkets or online stores for the best prices of new games.

Have you cut back on your game spending recently?

There have been various rumors circulating recently that the store wouldn’t be able to stock this week’s big releases such as Soul Calibur V, Final Fantasy XIII-2, and Metal Gear Solid: HD Collection. But according to MCV the company is currently processing the titles in order to provide them this week.

It’s not all good news though for the company as it has been having issues regarding credit insurance after its financial position has reportedly changed since the start of the year. The lack of credit insurance was one of the reasons that pushed retailer Woolworths into administration back in 2008, as suppliers became reluctant to supply goods to the chain if it meant they would have to foot any losses due to a collapse.

GAME is now working individually with its publishers to find a solution to the financing problems, and the retailer has been reassured how supportive the games industry has been so far. It is currently engaged in conversations about upcoming releases. It would surely benefit the games industry more if GAME survives and continues providing an outlet for future releases and hardware.

There have also been rumors that staff have failed to receive their wages, but this is untrue as well. The company revealed that the lack of Resident Evil: Revelations was down to a website error and nothing more sinister.

It does seem though that the retailer like many others is facing some tough challenges ahead, as it has already admitted it may fail to meet covenants requirements of some of its lenders. One publisher executive did state though that no credit “means no stock for the stores”.

It is obvious these stock claims are unfounded, but it is clear there is a tricky situation going on behind closed doors. Rival retailer HMV has also had some tough times recently and has announced a new deal with some of its suppliers as it looks to improve its financial situation. The many staff at the GAME Group will be hoping something similar can be achieved by their employer.

Do you still shop in GAME or Gamestation?

Gamers in the country, who want to try out Sony’s new console ahead of the release date, can simply head off to one of GAMES or Gamesstation stores in the country. The retailer has provided its 600 nationwide stores with a PS Vita unit according to a report over at CVG.

Sony has said that all of the retailers store managers have been sent a PS Vita unit “to enable them and their staff to demonstrate first hand just what makes the new PlayStation handheld so special”. There will be special demos of some of the consoles upcoming games as well.

These will include Everybody’s Golf, Reality Fighters, ModNation Racers: Road Trip, WipEout 2048, and Uncharted: Golden Abyss. UK boss of Sony Computer Entertainment, Fergal Gara, said that the new console is “an amazing piece of technology”, and added the best way for consumers to find out about it “is by putting it in their hands”.

He went on to say about the quality of the 5-inch OLED display with its design and analogue joysticks. Meanwhile a report over at MCV has worked out that the average price of a PS Vita game in the country at launch will be £33. This comes after the console gets its second game priced at £44.99 in the form of FIFA Football, which joins Uncharted: Golden Abyss.

There are some titles that are listed for an RRP of £24.99 though such as the likes of Reality Fighters and Little Deviants. Obviously some retailers will offer games that are priced below the recommended asking price. Below we have a couple of video reviews for you of the PS Vita. Will you be getting the PS Vita?

The last Medal of Honor title was released towards the end of 2010, and now it seems almost certain that we will see a new release this year. A report on Gamerzines is saying that after a presentation by the publisher EA, UK retailer GAME took to Twitter to say that the publisher had revealed a new title from the franchise will launch this year.

It has now been deleted but the tweet also said EA would be launching Need for Speed 13 sometime this year, which is thought to be Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2. Late last year a promotional leaflet that was included with Battlefield 3 hinted a new Medal of Honor title was on route, but it didn’t reveal any timeframe.

Almost a year ago in February 2011 Medal of Honor Executive Producer, Greg Goodrich, revealed that Danger Close were already at work on the next game in the franchise. Any sequel has yet to be announced officially by the publisher EA.

If there was a new Medal of Honor game this year it would fill the gap between releases of the Battlefield series. DICE has hinted previously that it doesn’t want to release a Battlefield game every year, which will be unlike Activision with the Call of Duty franchise.

Are you hoping for a new Medal of Honor game this year?

The retailer has recently reported an 8.2 percent drop in like-for-like sales of video games in the busy five week lead up to Christmas, and according to The Telegraph the company is considering reducing its video game business. It’s not all doom and gloom for the retailer though as it saw a small improvement on the final nine weeks of 2011, with sales falling 9.8 percent.

HMV did lose 16 percent of the video games market in the UK with competition from online stores and supermarkets. This has led the company to consider how much room it dedicates to the sector in its brick and mortar stores. Chief Executive Simon Fox is considering only selling the big new titles and not stocking older software.

The company currently has £160 million of debt as well as falling sales, but a recent decision to stock larger levels of technology seems to be paying dividends. These types of sales leaped 51 percent at stores that had been open for a year or more for the five weeks after 144 stores were refitted. This was to promote sales of the likes of tablet PCs and headphones, and currently accounts for 12 percent of total sales with headphones taking fifty percent of that.

It is hoped that technology sales will continue to grow during the next year, and by enough to counteract falling sales of DVDs and games. HMV is not the only company seeing falling sales of boxed video games though, as the industry as a whole saw a drop of seven percent last year across the board.

Many gamers wait to get a new title so the price may drop saving them money, but less profit for the retailer. Reuters is reporting rival retailer the GAME Group has warned it may break the terms of its loans after reporting low trading over Christmas. Sales across its stores where worse than the retailer had estimated before Christmas.

Sales over the last eight weeks had dropped 14.7 percent compared to a year ago, and 10 percent for stores open a year during the 49 weeks to January 7th. It also lost 13.1 percent of the overall games market. Do you use either HMV or GAME to purchase your new games?

Last week the retailer lowered its revenue by over half according to an article over at the Edge. Originally it was expected to have a full year revenue between zero and three percent but now GAME is saying it could drop by at least seven percent.

The video game retailer is still confident it is outperforming the market as a whole, but like-for-like revenue in the forty one weeks to November 12th dropped 8.6 percent. The market as a whole dropped by 12.3 percent but the forecasts has unsettled investors.

Its share price dropped from 15.75p down to 10.25p that is a fall by 35 percent in just one day when the company announced the news. Since then the share price has dropped every day and closed at only 6.66p recently, which accounts for a drop of 57.7 percent. At the start of this year the Game Group’s shares were valued at 70.5p, and even further back in 2008 they were worth 296.7p.

This year the retailer has been experimenting with digital sales but it has been a far from successful year, which recently saw losses more than double. It has found it hard to compete with the supermarkets with prices, and when the Nintendo 3DS was launched it was purchasing stock from Tesco stores and selling it as pre-owned on its own shelves.

Luckily it is not all doom and gloom for the retailer though as many analysts feel GAME can turn things around. Despite expected losses it has about £120 million in the bank and has increased its market share, which coincides with new hardware releases next year with the PS Vita and Wii U.

Do you still use GAME?

Christopher Dring from MCV is reporting that Goldman Sachs thinks the GAME Group is heading for trouble. They have downgraded the retailer from neutral to sell, and thinks its move to online and digital is “too late”.

Rachel Carson from Goldman Sachs says the decision to move into online and digital markets is “late in the evolution of the industry”, and means costs will be high. She also thinks that digital downloads will be a massive threat to the company’s new and used business. GAME are currently thinking of closing 85 stores, but Carson thinks this could be as high as 105.

The Goldman Sachs report states there will be no new hardware launches before 2013, and new consoles by then will focus more on digital downloads instead of retail purchases. Software sales are predicted to be direct from publishers and will hit stores like GAME hard.

There is some glimmer of hope in the report, because if any new hardware does become available before 2013 and their online performance improves, things could turn around for the retailer.

Whether you buy from GAME or not, it will be worrying news for the many staff currently employed by the GAME Group. Let’s hope for their sakes things can be turned round.

Do you buy from GAME?