The biggest gaming title to hit the markets for the year 2009 is Activision’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and in fact it has proven to be just the game that Activision was looking for to turn around its fortunes. Modern Warfare 2 recorded a landmark $500 million sales figure in just five days of its release. This figure far surpasses all sales outputs put forth by any gaming title ever released and the $500 million mark is also the biggest revenue ever generated by a new release, even a movie for that matter.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is a first-person shooter games designed and developed for Windows, Sony Playstation 3 and Microsoft Xbox 360 gaming platforms. However, the release of Activision’s biggest ever title was marred by a controversy over a feature in the game, where the players are enabled to play in the shoes of a terrorist and gun down civilian targets, in a terror attack on an airport. Still, this minor hindrance could not slow down the increasing popularity of Modern Warfare 2.

Even when compared to the revenues generated by Hollywood blockbusters in their first weeks, Modern Warfare 2 overshadows those numbers. The Dark Knight that raised $203.8 million in its opening week and Harry Potter & the Half-Blood Prince with $394 million in first seven days of its screening, weren’t able to even come close to the $500 million revenue figure generated by Modern Warfare 2.

According to Robert Kotick (CEO, Activision Blizzard),

“In just five days of sell through Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has become the largest entertainment launch in history and a pop culture phenomenon. The title’s success redefines entertainment as millions of consumers have chosen to play Modern Warfare 2 at unprecedented levels rather than engage in other forms of media.”

Via Venture Beat.