There is no questioning the fact that in the past 5 years video games have become big business. In fact, in many instances they have eclipsed more traditional forms of entertainment, such as music and film.
In particular, Activision has recently gotten into the habit of repeatedly smashing the record for the largest entertainment media launches with the Call of Duty series.
With 91.0 million Wiis, 59.9 million Xbox 360s and 56.9 million PS3s out in the wild, it should come as no surprise that games are selling enough volumes to generate more revenue than the movie industry.
The Xbox 360 in particular has shown a remarkable ability to generate massive launches for the likes of Call of Duty and Halo.
These are the five largest video game launches to date:
1. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 6.5 million units, $400 million
2. Call of Duty: Black Ops 5.6 million units, $360 million
3. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 4.7 million unites, $360 million
4. Grand Theft Auto: IV 3.5 million units, $310 million
5. Halo 3 2.5 million units, $170 million
No points for spotting the pattern here. The Call of Duty brand has grown into a powerhouse like none ever seen in the games industry, with each concurrent release showing significant growth despite the fact that the games themselves seem to be losing popularity among the gaming press and core gamers.
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