IndustryGamers - Informing the Games Industry

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Exceeds $1 Billion

Posted January 13, 2010 by James Brightman

Back in November, the Call of Duty franchise surpassed $3 billion in sales worldwide. Today Activision Blizzard revealed that Modern Warfare 2 by itself has eclipsed $1 billion in retail sales. This figure comes from the publisher's internal data tracking. Activision did not release unit sales, but Sterne Agee analyst Arvind Bhatia believes the number should be around 16.7 million.

Modern Warfare 2 generated incredible buzz during the holiday season, thanks in part to very strong marketing support. The game had an estimated launch budget of $200 million, but only around $40 million or $50 million was used for the actual development of the title. Activision spared no expense when it came to marketing. The game went on to break entertainment records, generating $550 million in its first five days on sale.

"Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has exceeded our expectations and shattered theatrical box office and video game records," said Robert Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard. "There are only a handful of entertainment properties that have ever reached the $1 billion mark, which illustrates the power of the Call of Duty franchise and mass appeal of this game."

Activision's Guitar Hero III surpassed $1 billion in retail sales back in January 2009. The game at the time, was the first ever single title (as opposed to a whole franchise) to hit the $1 billion mark. It comes as little surprise that Modern Warfare 2 also reached this milestone. Both Guitar Hero and Call of Duty are two of the most powerful brands in all of gaming.

James Brightman has been covering the games industry since 2003 and has been an avid gamer ever since the days of Atari and Intellivision. He was previously the EIC of GameDaily Biz.