"I, being a Pakistani, was so excited at seeing a Karachi map and then immediately so disappointed when I played the map," says the Karachi resident. The map has Arabic written all over, even though that isn't the country's language.

The country of Pakistan has two official lingos: English and Urdu. With somewhere between 60 and 80 million speakers of the standard language, Urdu has more speakers than, say, Italian, Korean or Polish.

"Infinity Ward probably thought, 'Oh hey its a Muslim country so Arabic is the language,'" says Saad.

While Arabic and Urdu use the same script, the words are completely different. For example, the noun "people" is "al-naas" in Arabic (الناس), and "log" or "loug" (لوگ) in Urdu.

"To someone who doesn't know urdu won't be able to tell the difference," Saad explains. "It's like Spanish and English, I guess. Some letters are same, some are different but the words are completely different."

There isn't a single Urdu word on the entire Karachi map and no one writes in Arabic in Pakistan.

Kicking off Kotaku's review of 2009 are the headlines that generated the most heat, if not light, from the preceding year. The conflicts fracture along familiar faultlines - legal claims; violence and in-game content; marketing and etc. And by no means is this an exhaustive list. There were plenty of other decisions, indecisions, gaffes, gambits and shrewd calls made by the games industry - a dynamic capitalist enterprise, of course - and we invite you to continue the discussion of them in our comments.

Knuckleheaded
EA's press promo for Godfather II backfires when the brass knuckles it sends (including a pair to Crecente) turn out to be illegal in many of the states to which they are shipped (including Colorado). It's also illegal to ship them in California, where EA is based. EA asks for all of the knuckles back. Godfather II then backfires when the game sucks.

One Fallujah the Cuckoo's Nest
Konami tiptoed up to the "too soon?" line by announcing "Six Days in Fallujah," a combat FPS based on the deadly 2006 American operation to pacify the region in Iraq. Then developer Atomic Games took a flying leap over the line by mentioning it had consulted with insurgents on the game's initial design. By the end of the month, Konami dropped the project like it was a hot, nuclear-waste infused pop-tart. Atomic continued to insist the project was alive, while shopping it to other publishers. But by the end of the year, Atomic president Peter Tamte seemed to have gotten further with his idea for a "family-friendly" game about Marines pacifying Beirut, instead. That one is scheduled for a January 2010 release. Apparently, in video games, it's all about location, location, location. [Thanks to commenter ashleyillman001 for reminding us of this one.]

Our Legal Team Goes to 11
Activision's lawyers file a face-melting suit against studio Double Fine over Brütal Legend, whose publishing shifted over from Activision to Electronic Arts earlier in the year. Activision seeks to halt the game's release on grounds that Double Fine missed a key deadline when it was accountable to Activision. EA, not sued, still tells Activision STFU, and that they're just jealous in the manner of "a husband abandoning his family and then suing after his wife meets a better looking guy." Double Fine countersues, alleging Activision was trying to kill off Brütal Legend, seeing it as a threat to Guitar Hero. Ultimately, the two sides settle out of court, and Brütal Legend makes its declared release day.

Turn Out the Lights, the LAN Party's Over
StarCraft is a longtime staple of LAN parties, but that tradition will end with StarCraft II. In late June, Blizzard tells Kotaku that the title will not support local area network gaming, and will instead steer players over to "our upgraded Battle.net service." One of the reasons given is that it cuts down on piracy. Predictably, Starcraft enthusiasts head to the Batpoles to draft a petition. Instead of making fist-shaking demands and threatening boycotts, what comes out is more of a polite "please?" The effort has gathered 244,510 signatures to date. But at Blizzcon, executive v.p. of game design Rob Pardo tells Fahey that "Only from the press," is Blizzard still taking flak for the decision. "Everyone else has accepted it."

Edgy Edged Edginess over Edge
Tim Langdell had a terrible reputation within the games industry prior to this year, but his pissing contest with Mobigame over the word "Edge" represents a coming out party. Langdell, excoriated for his aggressive defense of the trademark "Edge," which he registered years ago, has Mobigame's acclaimed title for the iPhone removed from the iTunes App Store in May. The controversy and terrible publicity result in Langdell's resignation from the board of the International Game Developers Association, and ultimately Electronic Arts suing to cancel Langdell's trademarks, over a dispute regarding 2008's Mirror's Edge. Mobigame's game resurfaces as "Mobigame by Edge" later in the year.

Who Sold Out Whom?
At E3 2009, Valve's announcement of Left 4 Dead 2 ignites feelings of betrayal and marginalization in some who bought the original Left 4 Dead barely seven months before. Immediately a boycott group forms on the Steam forums, vowing not to buy or play the new game. Some 10,000 people join it in the first few days. Stern criticisms include: "The fiddle-based horde music is extremely disliked, though the differently orchestrated music is otherwise welcome." In September, Valve shrewdly co-opts the boycott's leadership, flying two of its organizers to Valve HQ to get some hands-on time with Left 4 Dead 2. Both immediately sing its praises. On launch day in November, most in the boycott stick to their guns, but many cave in and play anyway.

Dante's Fiasco(es)
The Dante's Inferno marketing team was apparently on a rampage to execute the most boneheaded campaign of any title in 2009. After sending a bunch of fake religious zealots to E3 to protest the game there, pissing off real religious zealots with the stereotype, they cook up the "Sin to Win" whopper of Comic-Con. Basically, Comic-Con goers were encouraged to "commit acts of lust" by having their photos taken with booth babes, then submit the photos for judgment and a chance to win a "sinful night with two hot girls," plus other amenities. Outrage catches on, and the Dante's Inferno team apologizes. A real booth babe rips them a new one, and a gay man wins a runner-up prize for submitting his picture with a "booth bear."

Made from Scratch
It's a story that combines 2009's trendiest douche moves - lawsuits, and layoffs. In April, Activision is sued by publisher Genius Products and peripheral maker Numark Industries over its acquisition of 7 Studios, conveniently and coincidentally developing a rival game to Activision's own DJ Hero. A court in L.A. orders Activision to give over all the code from the competing title - Scratch: The Ultimate DJ. The two sides settle on a cash-for-code prisoner exchange, and Scratch is rebooked for an early 2010 release. DJ Hero, despite reasonably good reviews and a full-bore marketing campaign, disappoints in sales, which doesn't look good for Scratch next year. Finally, once 7 Studios is no longer useful to this corporate psychodrama, Activision lays off half of its workforce.

Sambo No Amigo
Scribblenauts, the wildly creative DS hit developed by 5th Cell, encounters an unintentional problem with racial sensitivity when writing the word "sambo" creates a watermelon on the screen. In the minor video games market known as the United States, both are overtly racist images with a history going back decades. 5th Cell points out the game is developed for multiple countries and languages, and that the watermelon summoned is in fact a "fig-leafed gourd," by which it is apparently known as "sambo" in Spanish. The game's publisher, Warner Bros. Interactive issues a more comprehensive apology, expressing deep regret for the word's inclusion. Internet tough-guy commenters who don't see what the trouble is with the word "sambo" are invited to say it around their black friends. None has any.

Shut Your Hole
Courtney Love, wife of self-martyred pop star Kurt Cobain, announces via Twitter she's gonna "sue the shit out of Activision," over its insensitive use of her hubby's likeness in Guitar Hero 5 - which includes his avatar singing songs not performed by Nirvana, which means in someone else's voice. Activision's response is all, "Um, RTFA," and points to the contract she in fact signed granting the use of Cobain's likeness as a "fully playable character." Jon Bon Jovi backs Love, saying he nothankyou.jpg'd Activision's offer of an appearance in the same game. Then Gwen Stefani, not one to be out-dramaqueened, and her band No Doubt file a lawsuit similar to Love's. Activision returns fire, suing No Doubt for failure to perform due diligence and breach of contract. Congratulations, everyone now looks bad.

A Lack of Dedication
In October, Infinity Ward community manager Robert Bowling goes on a podcast with hardcore Modern Warfare fans and announces the creation of the matchmaking service IWNet. You then hear the gears turning in the podcast hosts' heads: But ... that ... means the end of ... dedicated servers ... right? Right. Immediately, petitions and boycotts are announced, gathering some 20,000 signatures in the first day. Infinity Ward sticks to its claim that IWNet will be an improvement. By launch day, the boycott is effectively over.

Video About Gamers' Insensitivity Not Acceptable
Philadelphia Phillies pitcher - and noted Modern Warfare enthusiast - Cole Hamels (pictured) reminds us that "grenades are for pussies," in a faux-public service announcement brought to you by "Fight Against Grenade Spam." That, of course, makes the acronym FAGS and all, or at least partial, hell breaks loose. Infinity Ward, the producer of the video, is upbraided not so much for a veiled homophobic slur, but for a clip that portrays the game's community as dominated by uber-macho, insult-spewing assclowns. Infinity Ward removes the video the next day.

No Russian Was Harmed in the Making
Leaked gameplay footage of Modern Warfare 2 shows that players will - in the guise of an undercover mission - join terrorists as they invade an airport, kill and commit atrocities against civilians. Activision immediately points out the mission is skippable, both before it begins and at any point during it, and is "designed to evoke the atrocities of terrorism." The game, already classified for sale in Australia, is the subject of brief demands to have it reclassified and effectively banned, but they go nowhere. The sequence is removed from versions sold in Russia, and modified in the Japanese and German versions so that players shooting any civilians are given a "game over" screen. The Japanese version courts additional controversy when the mistranslation of "Remember, no Russian," - instructions to the terrorists not to speak in that language - comes out as "Kill ‘em, the Russians." In the United States, Totilo goes on MSNBC to plead for national calm and mainstream outrage fails to materialize.Modern Warfare 2 goes on to sell more than 4.7 million copies in the North America and the U.K. - on the day of its release.

Frumps on the Barbie
Australia's lack of an R18+ classification for video games comes back to the fore when Left 4 Dead 2 is refused classification by the nation's Review Board. Valve's reaction is, in order, to be "pretty bummed," then to appeal the refused classification and then finally publish a spitefully power-sanitized version just for Australia, which might as well have been titled Imagine: Zombiez.

Frumps on the Barbie II or: Australians vs. Predator
Luke attempts to set us all straight on what is and what ain't banning in Australia. But the country's image, that it's a nation of pantywaists tenderly sensitive to depictions of certain manly acts - such as decapitations - persists. And it seems to be having a cumulative effect. Aliens vs. Predator, at first banned - oops, I mean, refused classification - is reconsidered and then, amazingly, classified MA15+ making it good for sale. Then the government asks for public input on changes to the country's game ratings system. Finally Luke, waking up today and reading this last paragraph, bludgeons me to death with a didgeridoo, over the Internet, the end.

Our very own Michael McWhertor says it would be cheaper to join the military, but he surely knows that time = money. Some of us don't have spare hours for boot camp, Mike. We've got lawns to mow. Or something.

Here's Complex's breakdown of Soap's gear:

1. G-STAR NEW COLORADO HOODED PARKA $335
2. DQM SPECKLED YARN BEANIE $34
3. DAKINE CROSSFIRE GLOVE $70
4. BURTON CARGO PANT $150
5. ANON HAWKEYE GOGGLE $125
6. NIXON DELTA II SS/PU $350
7. OAKLEY TACTICAL BOOT $130

Head over to the full article for breakdowns of other MW2 outfits, along with links that will allow you to purchase the items.

How To Dress Like You're In "Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2" [Complex]

IW's Robert Bowling updated the Modern Warfare 2 masses on the developer's current plans to fix some nagging problems. He writes, "Update in Test now: 1887s Balanced. Public "private" Match fix. Infinite Ammo fix. Prestige Hack on PS3 fix. Texture Hack on PC fix."

Looks like we can expect few double shotgun wielders in our future and less in the way of grenade spam. When all those updates will go live and onto your platform of choice isn't always Infinity Ward's call. But keep an eye peeled! I mean, stay frosty!

In MW2's multiplayer, the fastest way to differentiate friend from foe is if their name is green (teammate) or red (enemy). These colors also are used to to distinguish combatants on the game's radar. Colorblind gamers are asking for the ability to change friend/foe colorations so they can game without confusion.

The petition points out that Call of Duty: World at War had the option of changing enemy/friendlies from red/green to orange/blue. "The Ghost Recon games have also had a similar feature. With this being such a huge release, this option should come as standard, especially when almost 10 percent of people are affected by colour-blindness in some form."

I realize that when fewer than one in 10 men deal with this kind of vision (and half of one percent of women) we're absolutely talking about optimizing for a minority. The game is built, it's selling like nuts, updates cost money, and I'd be astonished if Infinity Ward rolled a patch for an affected population this small. And honestly, you grow up colorblind, you learn workarounds for the condition (on the traffic signal, top means stop, low means go.)

But, to future devs, red and green are the most commonly transposed colors in colorblindness. Pick a different pair, and you won't have us colorblind tugging on your pants leg with these kinds of frivolous-sounding demands.

For those curious, in that image the colorblind are supposed to see a number 17. Everyone else should see a number 15. I can't see shit.

MW2 Patch for Color Blind Gamers Urged [Game Politics]

Infinity Ward's Robert Bowling - who it appears is now paid to spend the rest of his days answering angry twitter messages - has said "there may be some Mod Tools news coming in the future, I'll pass it along once I have it".

"May" and "future" aren't the most promising of words, but as a signal of intent, it's admirable. Doubt it'll do much to appease the developer's former fans, however. As my grandfather used to say, "no point shutting the gate once the horse has bolted".

[fourzerotwo]

"You're playing a CIA agent, it's designed to show the atrocities," Turner told CVG in an interview, "It's pretty awful and if you fail to see that side of it than you're not getting the whole picture. That being said, I thought it took it a little far; it was pretty out there. But I like seeing that they have guts like that."

Turner did say the mission's scenes, shown in advance of the game's release, were taken out of context. "When the footage got leaked thousands upon thousands of people saw it on a clip not knowing what it was," he said to CVG. "I'm not saying they were overreacting but people were generating these pretty outlandish opinions even though they didn't know what the scene meant in the grand scheme of the game."

Interview: Army of Two: 40th Day [CVG via Gamers Reports]

The First Annual Inside Gaming Awards was held December 11 in Los Angeles to "specifically appeal to the vast community of global gamers and was established to provide an alternative look at the recent year in gaming."

This means that Modern Warfare 2 got the Game of the Year slot instead of Uncharted 2, and in total developer Infinity Ward walked away with six statuettes.

Here's a list of the IG winners (not to be confused with IGA — the Indie Game Awards held at the Game Developers Conference). For fun, compare the alternative winners circle to the VGA winners. Notice anything?

Game of the Year
Modern Warfare 2 (Activision, Infinity Ward)

Best Trailer
Halo 3: ODST (Microsoft, Bungie)

Best Multiplayer
Modern Warfare 2 (Activision, Infinity Ward)

Best Narrative
Brutal Legend (EA, Double Fine)

Best Art Direction
Batman Arkham Asylum (Eidos/Warner Bros., Rocksteady Studios)

Best Animation
Batman: Arkham Asylum (Eidos/Warner Bros., Rocksteady Studios)

Best Game Cinematography
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (Sony, Naughty Dog)

Best Replayability
Modern Warefare 2 (Activision, Infinity Ward)

Best Indie Game
I MAED A GAM3 W1TH ZOMBIES 1N IT!!!1 (Ska Studios)

Most Compelling Character
The Joker – Batman Arkham Asylum (Eidos/Warner Bros., Rocksteady Studios)

Best DLC (best content pack/expansion content)
Fallout 3 – Expansions (Bethesda Game Studios)

Best Downloadable Game (games only available digitally for purchase or free download)
Plants vs. Zombies (PopCap)

Most Original Game
Scribblenauts (Warner Bros, 5th Cell)

Best Control
Modern Warfare 2 (Activision, Infinity Ward)

Best Game Innovation
1 vs. 100 - Massively Multiplayer Online game show with real prizes (Microsoft)

Best Original Score
Modern Warfare 2 (Activision, Infinity Ward)

Best Weapon
AC - 130 - Modern Warfare 2 (Activision, Infinity Ward)

Best Sound Design
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (Sony, Naughty Dog)

Essentially, we're hearing that people are joining MP matches, then finding that there are no ammo counters. It's unlimited ammo. On all weapons. Here's one forum post highlighting the issue, but hit the internet, you'll find dozens more. And some videos. Like these ones.

Like I said, I don't know how this is happening, but word on the street is that it's an exploit - created by modders - that can be "passed" around anyone and everyone who plays against them, as it sticks in their 360's cache. Only, instead of corrupting data, it blows up MW2 maps.

To get rid of the glitch, you'll have to disconnect from Live and reboot your 360.

I'd post more videos, but it seems every single one has awful cheese-metal/pop-rap playing over the top, so I'll spare you the torment. These ones should suffice for now.

Soon as we hear from Activision, Infinity Ward or Microsoft - or find out how extensive this glitch is, or how it's happening - we'll update you. In the meantime, any of you guys run into this? If so, fire off in the comments section, let us know how it went down.

UPDATE - Infinity Ward's Robert Bowling says "It's being addressed" and that "it'll be eliminated soon enough". Far from a concrete timeline for an update, but at least it shows IW are aware of the problem and are looking into it.

According to a new report from Gamasutra on last month's NPD figures, the PC version of Modern Warfare 2 moved "nearly 170,000" copies at retail. That doesn't include figures for Steam, Valve's digital distribution system, which are likely to have been significant—today, over 100,000 Steam users were playing the game online at the same time, but we're not sure how that breaks down to retail and online sales.

Still, at least 170,000 copies to a group of gamers that balked at the lack of dedicated servers and a higher-than normal price tag is.... pretty good?

Regardless of Modern Warfare 2's success or failures on the PC side of things, Gamasutra's in-depth look at November's NPD estimates are good reading for the sales obsessed gamer.

NPD: Behind the Numbers, November 2009 [Gamasutra]

As machinima goes, Modern Warfare 2 Mythbusters: Episode 1 is a straightforward video with minimal editing or effects. I could stand to have some more comical music, but watching a care package kill someone with a riot shield is pretty funny by itself.

Those of you who aren't familiar with MythBusters should check it out. My favorite episode is probably the one where they bust the myth about whether or not a box of tissues in the backseat of a car can kill you in a crash. They try it with a bowling ball and wow — so fatal.

Thanks, Witz!

Modern Warfare 2 is a sexist game. On this fact, I think most people agree because it's a war game, a typical male fantasy. Beyond that, though, the game omits women from its experience almost entirely. If you skip the infamous No Russian level, the only female contact you have is an automated voice telling you all phone lines in America are down. There are no women in the bunkers, no women in the chain of command, and I'm 90% sure that that poor astronaut also isn't a woman.

To be fair, the lack of women in Modern Warfare 2 doesn't seem as blatantly sexist as other video games where big-breasted bimbo women are shoehorned into the story for the main character to drool over. However, excluding women — who make up more than half of the world's population — from the entire cast of characters is still sexist. Like branding every copy of the game with a No Girls Allowed stamp.

Sexist or not, though, Modern Warfare 2 captured the hearts and minds of at least three feminists simply by being a good game. There may have been moments when my friends and I as women felt uncomfortable — like riding in the Humvee in the mounted gun position; there was something a little too butch about that. Overall, though, I had to conclude that we weren't shut out from enjoying this male fantasy. We just have to ask if there will ever be room for us to exist within it.

Originally my two friends and I weren't planning to spend our entire night in playing Modern Warfare 2. It was just an item of curiosity, like stealing my big brother's Playboy magazine to show off at a slumber party. The game had been out for about a week and everybody was talking about it, particularly the No Russian level. So after a gracing the first level with our presence, we decided to keep playing and see what all the fuss was about.

Two days later I still hadn't left my friends' house. Empty takeout containers littered their living room and the fashion magazines and nail polish had been abandoned in the kitchen. We were at the final level and we were screaming our heads off with all the high-octave fervor of preteen girls at a Jonas Brothers concert.

SPOILER WARNING: MODERN WARFARE 2

That moment went something like this:

"Ohmigod, you have to catch him! Don't let him get away!" This was from Felicity,* a girl in her early 20s who works in local government.

"Ooohhh... He killed Ghost!" This came from Tiffany*, a classmate of mine at Mills College — bastion of feminist principle in the West — and the owner of the PS3. She insists she bought it for the Blu-Ray player but we've all seen the stack of PlayStation One games on her bookshelf.

"We know he killed Ghost, we were there! Oh! Oh! Quicktime event!" That was me, the games journalist who couldn't name a single feminist movement leader.

After negotiating who would perform the quicktime event (me, because Tiffany pointed out I play games for a living), we sat back and soaked up the final moments of Modern Warfare 2 almost in revered silence. After the credits sequence ended, my friends and I stayed up late into the night, gossiping, mooning and moaning over every little detail in the game. Sort of the same way we do for movies we like starring people we'd like to sleep with.

"I heart Ghost," I declared. "He can carry me on his back to a helicopter any day."

"Oh come on," Tiffany replied. "You can't even see his face. MacTavish, now he's dreamy."

"The mohawk's not doing it for me," Felicity contributed. "He'd have to wear his snow cap and goggles to bed."

It struck me then to wonder about our behavior. First of all, I thought it was weird that we were lusting after Ghost and Soap as if they were Brad Pitt and Jason Statham. Second, I noticed we had moments of masculinity when our typical female language ("Omigod! Eee!") was replaced by more aggressive language ("Kill that guy! Run and knife! Go loud, go loud!"). Finally, I thought maybe we failed at being feminists. Modern Warfare 2 is sexist but we played it — and not just played it, loved it.

That last point is important because it's part of a catch-22 in the video games industry: Developers don't make games for girls because they assume girls don't play games, and because developers don't make games for girls, girls don't play video games. In other words, if I accept Modern Warfare 2 as awesome despite being not having a single female character for me to identify with in it, will Modern Warfare 3 also lack female characters?

I brought the drama up with Tiffany first. "It is possible to enjoy something despite it being sexist, not because it's sexist," she said. "I think there needs to be a move away from the language that makes some things for boys and some things for girls so we can enjoy things without using gender language."

To me, that's typical "Millsbian" language — it sounds nice, but it doesn't offer any solutions. So I asked Tiffany if she thought the game would be better with a playable female character in it.

Tiffany said no, she didn't want to play as a woman, she just wanted to see women. The non-playable character women in No Russian don't count because they offended her (and me). Here's why: they all seemed to be wearing the exact same purple shirt whereas the male NPCs had a variety of outfits. It's like the developers had no idea what women wear and copy-pasted one character model into the level to save time.

Above: Spot the women. Now spot the women without purple shirts.

Felicity mentioned the purple shirt ladies as "not real women" too, but she didn't seem nearly as offended by them as Tiffany and I were. She's inclined to forgive Modern Warfare for not really having women in the cast because she prefers that to Japanese role-playing games where all the girls are cutesy, skinny and have huge tits.

"I would have been OK with some of your radio commands coming from women, though," she said. "But I'd be more worried about having a playable female character because it might seem more like they shoehorned a woman into the game."

That made me think of the first Modern Warfare. In that game, there is a female helicopter pilot in a combat situation. For the majority of the level, she's helping your male character out — then at the end, just as you're about to escape a nuclear blast, she gets shot down and your character goes back for her and dies trying to save her.

This triggers my feminist rage in two ways. First, it's inadvertently suggesting that men wouldn't go back for other men on the battlefield — only for women (and from there, it's not much of a stretch to conclude that women shouldn't be on the battlefield). Second, it's implying that women can't drive. Seriously, why couldn't some of the male pilots get shot down?

I give Modern Warfare 2 credit for not repeating the female pilot nonsense. But at the same time, I feel like they wasted an excellent opportunity to give me, Tiffany and Felicity a female character we could easily relate to without feeling like she'd been shoehorned in: the D.C. Invasion levels. You really think the U.S. Army would care about the no-women-in-combat-zones rule when the enemy is in the White House? You would see every able-bodied adult on the battlefield at that point.

That's ultimately what I'm asking for from Modern Warfare 3: room to exist within the male fantasy. I don't just want to lust after Ghost and Soap — I want to imagine myself there with them. I don't just want to know that women are in the Army by hearing their voices on a radio — I want to see them fighting for their country the way I would if the enemy were at the gates and my country needed me. I want developers to know that I play video games too, so they should pander to me as well as men.

*Names have been changed.

Modern Warfare 2: Ghost #2 (of 6)
Written by David Lapham. Drawn by Kevin West.

Summary Via Publisher Wildstorm Entertainment:
Sgt. Riley – codenamed "Ghost" – has found himself in many a sticky situation while serving in the S.A.S. But never has a mission fallen apart so fast. On his first Joint Task Force mission, a combination of betrayal and bad luck has landed him in the hands of a blood-thirsty Mexican drug czar. Could things possibly get worse? Absolutely, yes.

The best-selling Call of Duty video game series continues its comics debut in this 6-issue miniseries!

Dante's Inferno #1 (of 12)
Written by Christos Gage. Drawn by Diego Latorre.

Summary Via Publisher Wildstorm Entertainment:
Based on the upcoming EA video game, this classic epic poem is brought to life as never before, courtesy of writer Christos Gage (WILDCATS, X-Men/Spider-Man) and hot new artist Diego Latorre. Dante Alighieri is re-imagined as a holy warrior who has returned from the Crusades to find his beloved fiancée Beatrice murdered. When her soul is ensnared by Lucifer, only Dante has the strength and courage to break open the gates of hell and save her. But at what cost to his own immortal soul? And is Dante himself pure enough for this impossible task? Find out in this sizzling new 6-issue miniseries!

In the section "No Russian", the player is told, "Remember, no Russian." Here, this means "Do not speak Russian," a plot point for this scene. However, in the Japanese version, this is localized as "Kill 'em, the Russians." Players, it seems, will not be able to kill anyone in this scene. Actually, that's not entirely true.

If players do shoot civilians in the Japanese version, it will automatically be "game over". It is possible to kill civilians in this mission in the Western version of MW2. This holds true for the game's bonus content as well.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has also been similarly censored in Germany.

According to MW 2's Japanese publisher Square Enix, the game does not have an English language track. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 goes on sale in Japan tomorrow.

Thanks Lenny for the tip!

IW's Robert Bowling says that the 1.06 upgrade, which fixes not only the javelin glitch but also the care package glitch as well, is currently in Microsoft's hands, awaiting final certification.

So it shouldn't be too far away!

[fourzerotwo @ Twitter]

Robert Bowling, the Infinity Ward community manager, tweeted that 1.05 fixed some matchmaking issues. Update 1.06 is "still coming down the pipeline," he says. It'll clean up the Javelin exploit, and also fix areas where players could get stuck in world geometry, such as on the rocks Afghanistan.

My guess is 1.06 will be delivered ASAP but there's no word on when that'll be, specifically.

Robert Bowling on Twitter

Acti says the 8 million highly irregular, untrained MW2 fighters outclass:

• The active-duty forces across all 28 member countries of NATO.
• China (pardon, Chiner for you United Kingdomians) 2.3 million strong.
• The Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines (what a great place to start ...) by more than 6 million.

You get the idea. Who else? We put the question to Kotaku Jane's Defence and Fighting Ships:

• More than 30,000 times the size of the American force at The Alamo.
• More than 13,000 times the size of the similarly ill-fated Light Brigade at the Battle of Balaclava
• More than 37,000 times the size of G.I. Joe's entire roster.

In short, a lot of people are playing this game, in numbers that could easily overwhelm more courageous, better trained forces. If they were fighting on a teevee.

A Sony rep has told CVG "I don't believe we are banning people for using the glitch". If they're not banning people outright, makes you wonder what they are doing. Simply watching? Placing marks next to people's names? Tutting endlessly?

Sony NOT banning for MW2 Javelin glitch [CVG]