Leading US retailer GameStop began selling copies of Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 this weekend ahead of the highly anticipated shooter’s official release on November 10.

The company’s management said that it had authorised select stores to begin selling reserved copies of the game in order to counter a loss of sales to other retailers who had broken the title's street date.

“This past weekend, GameStop made the decision to break street date and sell reserved copies of Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 in select markets where other retailers had broken street date. Our decision followed many conversations with Activision and was an effort to protect our customer base,” the retailer’s VP of corporate communications, Chris Olivera, told Kotaku.

Numerous retailers across the US and Europe began selling Modern Warfare 2 this weekend, according to multiple internet reports, but GameStop is by far the largest to go against Activision’s wishes.

"Activision has not given any retailer permission to sell Modern Warfare 2 prior to the Nov. 10 street date. The company fully supports the Nov. 10 street date," the publisher said in a statement.