14 DAY TRIAL // Valve has announced that it plans to allow first-person shooter fans to enjoy a free weekend of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, starting today. The free-play window is set to begin at 4 PM Pacific Daylight Time and the Steam announcement does not specify exactly when the free-play weekend will end. Those who are interested in taking part can also preload the game files immediately in order to unlock them when the hour of free strikes. Those who are interested in picking up the game through Steam will need to pay 59.99 dollars.
Modern Warfare 2 has been the biggest success created by Infinity Ward and published by Activision Blizzard. The title launched on November 10, 2009 and managed to become the biggest video-game launch of the year, with more than 14 million copies sold worldwide and about five million of those moved to gamers in the initial 24 hours. The big draw for it is the multiplayer component, which has been enhanced from the first Modern Warfare.
Since release, the game received a new pack of five maps, called the Stimulus Package, on March 30. At the moment, only those who play on the Xbox 360 home gaming console from Microsoft can enjoy it, but a release date will soon be announced for the PlayStation 3 from Sony and the PC. Infinity Ward is also set to put out at least another map pack for the title.
What's a little weird about the free-play weekend announcement from Valve is that it does not come with a price drop or an announcement attached. Free weekends on Steam tend to drive sales up, but this might not happen if players need to pay the same amount of dollars now as in November 2009. Even so, the free weekend is a very good chance to see what the game is all about if they have not done so until now.