While 
the videogame industry relies heavily on the holiday period to help boost publisher profits, some companies may find coal in their stocking this year.
Some titles are sure to be certain hits, but the evolving nature of players and some less-than-stellar lineups could leave some publishers who are typically strong holiday performers out in the cold.
A 
15-year old from Columbus, Ohio was rushed to an area hospital Tuesday after collapsing during a marathon session of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 that lasted between four and five days.
Tyler Rigsby was admitted to the Ohio State University Medical Center, suffering from dehydration. Hospital officials say he was released later in the day.
While 
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 won’t hit store shelves for more than six months, it’s already setting records.
Amazon reports the game, which was just announced this week, is on track to become the most pre-ordered game in its history, outpacing Modern Warfare 2, Black Ops and…um, well, a bunch of other Call of Duty games.
Gaming’s an 
expensive hobby — and all too often, it’s questionable whether you get your money’s worth. Even if a game is plenty of fun, it’s a bummer when an experience is over in a few hours with no replay potential.
But the real gems race in the other direction, offering gameplay that keeps you coming back and enough content to keep the experience fresh even after many hours have been logged.
Activision’s “Call of 
Duty: Modern Warfare 3″ has joined the billion dollar club — after just 16 days on store shelves, setting yet another entertainment industry record.
James Cameron’s “Avatar” was the previous record holder for a property to hit the $1 billion sales mark. It took a day longer than the action/shooter video game to achieve that, however. (“Black Ops,” the previous game in the “Call of Duty” series, took six weeks to hit the number.)
The launch window 
has been a rocky one for Activision’s Call of Duty Elite, but even with a few bugs remaining, the publisher is ready to start ramping things up.
This Friday, members of the subscription service will get the chance to see the first installment of Friday Night Fights, an original entertainment series that’s produced by Ridley Scott and Tony Scott’s RSA Films.
The records keep tumbling for Modern Warfare 3.
Activision’s action shooter has set a new standard for the entertainment industry, earning more than $775 million in five days, beating all gaming, theatrical and book sell-through totals. The previous record, not surprisingly, was last year’s “Black Ops” installment of the Call of Duty franchise, which took in $650 million.
It’s a three-peat.
Modern Warfare 3, the latest installment in Activision’s juggernaut shooter franchise, has set a new entertainment industry record for the biggest product launch of all time, selling 6.5 million copies in the U.S. and U.K. in its first 24 hours and earning $400 million in the process.
For the third year in a row, the “Call of Duty” video game franchise has set entertainment industry records, once again claiming the crown for the biggest product launch of all time.
Activision reports “Modern Warfare 3” sold 6.5 million copies in the U.S. and U.K. in its first 24 hours on shelves, earning $400 million. That tops last year’s $360 million haul from the series’ “Black Ops” installment and the $310 million earned by 2009’s “Modern Warfare 2.”
There’s little doubt that today’s launch of “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3” will set new entertainment industry records for first week revenues. But to put things in perspective, here are a few numbers – some hard, some estimated by analysts –showing how big of a monster this franchise has turned into.
Chris Morris: Journalist 