Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is set for release on Nov. 8, but the PC version of the game is already in the hands of pirates, according to this VentureBeat report. The PC version of the game (or at least the single player portion of the game) is being sold from pirate circles around the country. Apparently the pirated version of the game originated from a shipping warehouse (run by a huge shipping company) in Fresno, California. An unnamed employee at that warehouse stole one of the discs and started sharing it. Oddly enough VentureBeat reports that the employee was only able to steal Disc Two of the two-disc set that makes up the full PC game.

While this news is probably not welcomed by Activision, it seems to be a regular occurrence right before new Call of Duty games are released: last year Call of Duty: Black Ops was leaked prior to launch, and the year before Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 was being available illegally prior to its launch.

VentureBeat points out that Activision is investigating the situation and is catching up with some of the people that might have a pirated version of the game in their possession. They point to a post on Craigslist yesterday from an alleged MW3 pirate who warned others not to buy MW3 before the release date because “they will come get you.” The post says “you will be fined $5,000? and it could result in permanent banning from online play. Then the person adds, “I already went through it.”

Source: VentureBeat