Analyst Ben Schachter has estimated that Modern Warfare 2 has sold seven million copies on the first day of its release. Considering the game has sold 1.2 million copies in the United Kingdom alone (doubling GTA IV’s release), Schachter has simply doubled GTA IV’s first day tally in order to come up with his own.
“With GTA IV selling-through 6mm units worldwide in its first week,” Schachter said, “that suggests week one of Modern Warfare 2 worldwide sell-through could approximate ~11.7mm. While 2x the week one tally for GTA IV may seem aggressive, the bottom line is that we believe current consensus estimates of around 12mm for the December quarter may end up being conservative.”
It’s hard to argue with statistical facts, however it appears that Modern Warfare 2 has pretty much shattered expectations despite a strong group of people promising to boycott the purchase of the title.