NYTimes.com - Can D.I.Y. Supplant the First-Person Shooter? Thanks j.c.f.
Video-game companies were once nimble trailblazers born in the countercultural spirit of the 1970s. But it didn’t take long for the industry to grow into a kingdom of conglomerates, spending tens of millions of dollars on big titles. Soaring development costs squeezed out small publishers and stifled creativity. “There are some great mainstream games, but they are getting to be fewer and further between,” says Rob Auten, who used to run video-game production for 20th Century Fox. “Our industry is probably more risk-averse than Hollywood. It is extremely difficult to break the patterns of the establishment.”

GameCritics.com - Now about that terror attack level everyone's talking about.
It's the game groping for an argument that games can be affecting and relevant art. In the end, Modern Warfare 2 is definitely art, but it's as confused, awkward and juvenile as several other titles you can mention.

Still, I believe it was a brave decision on Infinity Ward's part to portray this horrific act ripped straight from the headlines. Today it evokes most recently the tragic shooting at Fort Hood, where a seemingly disgruntled Muslim Army major opened fire at dozens similarly lined up as in the game, killing 13 people.