The well known UK brick and mortar game specialist retailer GAME has not been able to find a solution to its current financial problems. Today, the retailer"s parent company GAME Group officially announced that there was only one option available. In a statement, the company said:
Further to this morning"s announcement of the suspension of trading in shares of GAME Group plc, the board has concluded that its discussions with all stakeholders and other parties have not made sufficient progress in the time available to offer a realistic prospect for a solvent solution for the business. The board has therefore today filed a notice of intention to appoint an administrator.
The company added in an earlier press release that in the opinion of the GAME Group"s board, it "considers itself to be unable to assess the business"s financial position, and is of the opinion that there is no equity value left in the Group."
The retailer, which operates over 600 stores in the UK under the GAME and Gamestation brands, has been under financial pressure for the past few months. Several weeks ago, it was revealed that GAME was unable to stock new game releases such as Mass Effect 3 due to publishers being afraid that the retailer would not be able to pay back its obligations to those publishers.
Gamesindustry International reports that the GAME Group currently has over £180 million worth of debt. The administrator in charge of GAME Group will now attempt to sell off the company"s assets. However, it is expected that no matter what kind of deal is made, over half of the company"s stores will close.