Modern Warfare 2 blows hole in record book

The video game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is blasting its way into entertainment history.

After hauling in the biggest-ever first-day sales total last week, the game continues to break records.

Activision Blizzard, which released the game 10 November, said the latest game in its Call of Duty franchise made $550 million (£330 million) in worldwide sales during its first five days.

That would put it over the $500 million (£299 million) record set last year by Grand Theft Auto IV, from Take-Two Interactive Software.

Activision didn't say how many units it has shipped. But Lazard Capital Markets analyst Colin Sebastian estimates the company sold between 8.5 million and 9 million copies.

The game is also blowing past records set by other media. After Grand Theft Auto IV comes $394 million (£236 million) in worldwide box office sales brought in by the movie Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince over its first five days, according to Activision.

In its first 24 hours on sale, Modern Warfare 2 made $310 million (£185 million) in North America and the United Kingdom alone, while Grand Theft Auto made that same amount worldwide.

It was also far above the record $155 million (£92 million) opening weekend for the Batman movie The Dark Knight last year.

The game is available to run on Windows-based computers, Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3.