Modern Warfare 2 has become one of only a handful games to take more than a billion dollars in cash.

The game hit the shops in November and made an estimated $550m in its first five days. It entered the same league as Guitar Hero III and World of Warcraft, which have also made a billion. Great news for publisher Activision which penned them.

The first-person-shooter is the sixth installment in the Call of Duty series. It was dogged by controversy for a section, prefaced by a warning screen, where a player joins a massacre of civilians at an airport. Labour MP Keith Vaz said he was "absolutely shocked" by its violence.

Punters seemed to think that if it was enough to shock Keith then they will “ave some of that.” It went on to become the best-selling videogame of 2009 in the UK.