Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Sets Five-Day Worldwide Sales Record

Activision announced today that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has broken yet another sales record, this time for largest five-day worldwide sales. Estimates show that the game pulled in $550 million during its first week, breaking the record previously held by Rockstar Games’ Grand Theft Auto IV, which earned $500 million in its first five days.

It’s hard to really wrap my head around a video game earning half a billion dollars in a week. Not that these games don’t deserve it or anything, because they obviously do, but that’s a staggering achievement. And analysts predict MW2 will go on to sell 11.1 million copies this year, so check back then to see how accurate this estimate actually was. For perspective's sake, consider that GTA IV has gone on to sell over 13 million copies since it launched in 2008, putting its total gross over the $1 billion mark (based on my own calculations).

Back in January, Kotaku reported that Guitar Hero III had become the first single game ever to pass the $1 billion sales mark. However, that does seem a bit unfair considering the bundles for that game cost significantly more than regular games. But still, combine that with MW2’s success, and it’s clear that Activision’s pockets will continue to be lined with green for some time.