GORGEOUS GAMEPLAY: Modern Warfare 2 Compares To None!

Video Games — November 19, 2009 at 16:20 — no comments

The biggest entertainment story of the week wasn’t Jedward surviving the X Factor sing-off or the news that Michael Jackson would be making a 3-D comeback. It was the launch of a video game, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, which has smashed sales records.

Clark Kent says: And a lot of money has been made by the folks from Infinity Ward, but on which console does this newly minted classic reign supreme?

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If anyone still needed proof that video games are big business, this was it: more than 4.7 million copies of Modern Warfare 2, the sixth installment in the hugely popular Call of Duty franchise, were sold on the first day alone, raking in £186 million in the US and Britain combined.

It’s a staggering figure for any entertainment medium let alone a video game, and underscores the fact that gaming is now as big a financial force in the entertainment industry as music and movies. Modern Warfare 2’s first day sales dwarf the best ever opening weekend takings for a film — the $158.4 million earned by the most recent Batman film, The Dark Knight, which hit cinemas last July. However, at £54 a copy, Modern Warfare 2 is considerably more expensive than a cinema ticket.

Still, the game has even heavily outperformed it’s nearest rival, Grand Theft Auto IV, which sold 631,000 copies in the first day of its release last year.

To those in the industry, the success of Modern Warfare 2 is no surprise. The Call of Duty series of visceral, action-packed first-person shooters debuted in 2003 and quickly became a firm favourite with gamers.

“It’s a cultural phenomenon, showing the power of video games as an entertainment medium,” says Mike Griffith, chief executive of the game’s publisher, Activision. “The shattering of these records is a testament to the compelling, cinematic and uniquely engaging experience that this franchise delivers.”

It’s also testament to Activision’s pricing strategy. The publisher tested the loyalty of its fan base by charging about £10 more than gamers are generally used to paying for titles. The move sparked a price battle between retailers, who shaved pounds off the recommended retail price in an effort to entice gamers in to their stores. Some super fans even splashed out on the £99 Prestige Edition of the game, which included a character statue and a set of night-vision goggles.