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THE success of gaming gadget the Nintendo Switch is helping drive a turnaround at retailer Game Digital after it slumped to a £10m annual loss.

Game, which has a branch in Commercial Road, Portsmouth, said the UK console market returned to growth after two years of declines in the second half of its financial year to July 29 thanks to surging demand for the Nintendo Switch.

It added that the bounce back had continued, with sales in the first 15 weeks of the new financial year also ahead of its expectations.

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But the recent sales rebound was not enough to offset a dismal first half for the group, which saw it swing to a £10m annual loss from profits of £1.1m on a comparable 52-week basis.

It saw UK retail underlying earnings slump 89.8 per cent to £1.8m after retail sales by gross transaction value tumbled 13.4 per cent.

But Game gave hope that its trading woes are behind it, with retail sales in the first 15 weeks of the new financial year up 1.8%.

Martyn Gibbs, chief executive of Game, said: “After two years of declines, our core UK console market returned to growth in the second half of our financial year on the back of the launch of the Nintendo Switch.”

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