Footage leaked from France again depicts the player in Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 playing as a terrorist shooting innocent civilians at an airport checkpoint.  A realistic terror attack government agencies defend against in modern times.  Can you say hype, controversy, and cold feet for retailers?  The controversy heating up around COD:  Modern Warfare 2 is spreading and we are waiting for Fox News to make a report.  Fox News hyped reports about video games past involving controversial sex scenes in Mass Effect which was widely debated by parental groups.  The noted scene in the Modern Warfare 2 has already hit a sensitive nerve in Australia in which a governmental lobbyist group may be seeking a ban on the game.

Activision Blizzard Entertainment notes that Modern Warfare 2 could be the most lucrative launch in its history. Additional attention from controversial scenes could enhance the presence of MW2 outside of the gamer geek realm.  Other controversial titles like Rock Star’s Grand Theft Auto:  San Andreas “hot coffee” sex mini game and Bioware’s Mass Effect bi-sexual cut scenes increased those games rankings for several weeks after release.

Activision in a statement released on Wednesday said the footage from France was taken illegally and is not ”representative” of the overall gameplay experience for Modern Warfare 2.  They said the scene in question was only supposed to show the ”atrocities of terrorism”.  The airport scene is part of a plot line where players can help defeat terrorists by infiltrating a Russian terror organisation.    Before the scene begins players are warned the content could be disturbing and have a chance to bypass instead of playing through the part.

It’s a very cinematic experience. “You get to play from multiple perspectives and get a broader picture of what this conflict is, and see that it’s much more than just winning a war with a bullet.”

- Infinity Ward