July 2013 was the "worst month in history" for UK games retail, according to a report by industry mag MCV, which claims that "just over 1 million boxed games were sold last month".

The figure allegedly puts sales 40.4 per cent lower than previous month June, and 33.3 per cent lower than July 2012.

Just over £23m was generated at games retail throughout the month, the mag states, "almost half" that generated in June.

July saw few major new releases, with only Mario & Luigi: Dream Team Bros, Pikmin 3 and Dynasty Warriors 8 cracking the top 50. The Last of Us was the top-selling game for the month, followed by Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition and Animal Crossing: New Leaf.

The UK high street has long-suffered from declining sales. Last year, GAME almost faced closure after entering into administration, with entertainment retailer HMV facing a similar situation in January.

But it may not be all doom and gloom for the high street: MCV predicts that over £1bn will be generated by UK retail between now and Christmas.

Source: MCV | Friday, August 9, 2013