Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Getting at Least Two Map Packs

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is set to be the biggest release of 2009. As such, publisher Activision and developer Infinity Ward is planning to support the game post launch with multiple map packs already announced.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is the sequel to Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, which launched on November 6, 2007 in North America for the PC, Playstation 3 and Xbox 360. Being the fourth title in the popular first-person shooting series, many thought that the latest title will do well on the marketplace.

However, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare far exceeded expectations. The breakout hit managed to achieve a milestone that few games have reached: selling 10+ million copies. That is an incredible achievement for a game that wasn't published by Nintendo. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare was able to accomplish this with its online multiplayer mode. The addicting gameplay is easy-to-grasps but deep enough to keep players coming back for more and telling there friends and colleagues about it.

A map pack for Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare titled Variety Map Pack was released first for the Xbox 360 on April, 4 2008. It would head to the Playstation 3 on April, 24 2008. While the downloadable content costs $9.99 on the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360, PC users got to download the Variety Map Pack for free when it was released for their platform on June 5, 2008.

Just like Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, the Variety Map Pack was a big hit on the market with one million downloads on the first nine days of availability on the Xbox 360 alone.

Seeing the success of downloadable content of the first title, Activision and Infinity Ward decided to bring the feature back to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. This time, however, they are planning to at least double the amount of map packs to be released after the game launches on November 10 for the PC, Playstation 3 and Xbox 360. Like the Variety Map Pack, the first two Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 map packs will be released on the Xbox 360 first.

This poses several concerns for fans of the upcoming game. For one, they wonder why Activision and Infinity Ward couldn't just release the downloadable maps alongside the game when it launches if they already have it planned. Charging extras for the new maps in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 sounds like a rip-off to many. Not to mention that the maps could also splinter the online community.

Even with the controversies, both Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and its map packs well certainly be a hot item.