Medal of Honor tops 1.5M worldwide, gets free DLC

With the NPD Group clamping down on its sales figures, it's now up to publishers to tell the public how their games are selling. Electronic Arts rose to that task today, announcing that the recently released first-person shooter Medal of Honor has sold through more than 1.5 million copies worldwide in its first five days on sale.

The game sold well in the UK, topping the Gfk-ChartTrack list in its first two days on shelves. It also caused a bit of controversy in the country when UK defence secretary Liam Fox called for a ban on the title because it would let gamers play as Taliban soldiers in multiplayer. Outrage along those lines was part of the reason EA gave when it renamed the faction in the multiplayer mode as simply the "Opposing Force."

In addition to the sales figures, EA detailed new benefits for the game's Online Pass holders. Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 gamers who purchased the game new (or bought it used and paid the $10 fee for an Online Pass) will be able to download a new Clean Sweep multiplayer mode starting November 2. EA described Clean Sweep as a team-based elimination mode that will be playable on two all-new maps (Bagram Hangar and Kyber Caves) and two redesigned maps (Diwagal Camp and Kabul City Ruins).

It is not clear if the Clean Sweep mode will be made available to owners of the PC version of Medal of Honor. As of press time, EA representatives had not returned a request for clarification.

The first installment in the series not to be set during World War II, Medal of Honor follows a group of elite commandos called Tier 1 Operators during operations behind enemy lines in Afghanistan. For more on the game, check out GameSpot's review.