Retail braces itself for no sleep week

High Street retail is expecting astronomical sales during what some stores have dubbed ‘no sleep week.’

Over the next seven days, Activision’s Call of Duty: Black Ops and Microsoft’s Kinect will reach shelves, with some outlets planning to open round the clock.

And leading figures in the trade have speculated that this could be the most successful week ever for video games retail in the UK.

This is going to be such an exciting period for us and our whole sector – as we can look forward to some of the biggest games releases ever,” said HMV’s head of games Tim Ellis.

With Call of Duty and Kinect out together it is likely that this will be one of the biggest new release weeks in the history of the games industry. There seems to be a conveyor-belt of outstanding product right now. It’s fair to say I think this a particularly good time to be a games retailer.”

GAME’s trading director Adam Davis added: The timing of Kinect in parallel to a rather large software launch makes it challenging for our staff. There will be some tired eyes on the Wednesday, that’s for sure.”

Retailers have seen a significant upturn in sales over the past six weeks, following what has been a tough year for video games.

ERA director general Kim Bayley said: We are excited at the prospects for Call of Duty and Kinect after what’s been a challenging year. Black Ops looks set for a massive first week with strong showings on pre-release charts.”