Battlefield: Bad Company 2 sells 5 million

Even before Battlefield: Bad Company 2 went on sale on March 2, analysts were expecting it to be a hit. That objective was quickly accomplished, with publisher Electronic Arts announcing the critically acclaimed game had sold--not shipped-- 2.3 million copies globally in just two weeks.

Further evidence of the game's success surfaced in April, when the March NPD report revealed Battlefield: Bad Company 2 had sold a combined 1.276 million units in the US alone. Today, as part of its annual earnings report, EA announced that the title, developed by its Swedish studio DICE, has sold over 5 million units worldwide to date. The M for Mature-rated game is available on the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC.

Part of Bad Company 2's success is due to the fact that DICE supports dedicated servers for the PC edition of the game. EA played up the difference between the game and Modern Warfare 2, which abolished dedicated servers in favor of IWnet, widely believed to be a precursor to a subscription-based service for the game.

A direct sequel to the 2008 console exclusive, Bad Company 2 picks back up with the derelict B Company, a fictitious unit of the expendable misfits and outcasts plucked from the US military's ranks. Destructible environments, a core component of the original game, were again front and center in Bad Company 2, thanks to further revisions to DICE's proprietary Frostbite game engine. The game also emphasized vehicular combat, with 15 different rides to choose from. The game is being supplemented with downloadable content as well.