Readers of Imagine Publishing’s X360 magazine have increased period-on-period for the six months ending June 30 2009.

For the six months ending December 2008 the magazine enjoyed a circulation of 26,068, which has now risen 0.1 per cent to 26,092. This is all the more remarkable when you consider sales in the last six months are typically higher than the first six months. However, year-on-year the magazine’s readership dropped 13.6 per cent.

Meanwhile, Imagine other Xbox magazine, 360, suffered a 11.4 per cent drop year-on-year to 11,518 year-on-year, while period-on-period readership fell by 11 per cent.

“With a decent first half of the year, in terms of game releases, it’s not a surprise that the Xbox mags have shown a slight improvement over this period,” commented editor-in-chief Nick Jones.

“We’re especially pleased that 360 has responded to its move to a three-week frequency and is now selling better than it has in its history.”