Every man and his dog knew that thelaunch of Activision’sCall of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 on 10 November 2010 was really successful. In fact so successful that Guinness World Records have just confirmed that Modern Warfare 2 is the most successful entertainment launch of all time.
After only one day the game had generated sales of over $401.6 million (£242.4 million) worldwide, breaking the previous record set by Grand Theft Auto IV, which grossed $310 million (£159 million) in its first day on sale in 2008. The previous record holder was Halo 3 which took in $170 million (£84 million) in its first 24 hours on sale.
“Video game releases such as the Call of Duty series have outperformed the launches of major Hollywood blockbusters for several years and the day-one sales for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 proved once again that video games have become cultural events in their own right,” said Guinness World Records Gamer’s Edition Editor, Gaz Deaves. “The fan movement and hype surrounding this game in the run-up to launch was almost unprecedented in scale; we acknowledged early on that the big question wasn’t if it would break all-time entertainment records, but rather by how much.”
“This achievement is a reflection of the support from our community of fans around the world,” said Creative Strategist, Robert Bowling from developer Infinity Ward. “The Call of Duty series and Modern Warfare have been our passion – we’ve dedicated our lives to giving our best, so it’s an honour to be recognised by setting a new standard among all entertainment properties.”
I think it will be some time before that title is removed from the guys at Activision. Discuss below!
