According to SimplyGames MD Neil Muspratt, the release date for Modern Warfare 2 has been one of the most disregarded in the history of UK games retail.

"So far it appears that the street date of Modern Warfare has been one of the most commonly broken in the history of UK games retailing. We only got our stock on Saturday and have had to pay for every copy to go out by courier in order that it reaches people tomorrow."

"We've seen dispatch notes, delivery reports and hundreds of cancelled orders from people who received their copy early."

Cipolletta called publishers to consider "categorising" their customers as a result.

"This may be something that Activision and others can control. We feel that there are currently enough specialist retailers and etailers to supply and cover the market, and publishers do not need supermarkets and similar to promote such titles as this and FIFA."

"Publishers may need to begin categorising their customers and supplying the right product to the right ones. For example, a mass market title like Professor Layton may be more oriented to a supermarket, whereas a 'hardcore' title such as MW2 might be better suited to specialist retailers, otherwise we may find ourselves in a position where there will be less unit sales, which will hurt publishers and their investments as a result.

"I hope publishers are looking into this and make changes where appropriate."

Source: gamesindustry