$15 Modern Warfare 2 map pack detailed

This month, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has been in the news due to the dramatic firings of Infinity Ward cofounders Jason West and Vince Zampella. However, last week saw the game itself make headlines with the announcement that its first map pack would be released at the end of the month. The cheekily titled "Stimulus Package" will first arrive on Xbox Live and will be released on the PlayStation Network and on the PC at an unannounced later date.

Over the weekend, Infinity Ward spokesperson and "creative strategist" Robert Bowling was on the podcast of Xbox Live director of programming Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb. While on the show, he revealed that the Stimulus Package would command a premium price of 1,200 Microsoft points or $15. That's $5 more than the popular map packs released last year for Call of Duty: World at War.

In addition to the price, a description of the Stimulus Package was posted--and quickly pulled--from Xbox Live Marketplace. Before it was taken down, the summary revealed the maps contained therein, as seen in the summary below:

The Stimulus Package delivers 5 additional action-packed multiplayer maps featuring a variety of locations: "Bailout," a multi-level apartment complex; "Storm," an open industrial park littered with heavy machinery; "Salvage," a snowy junkyard fortified by stacked debris and crushed cars. Two legendary fan favorites from Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare return, including "Crash," a war-torn urban environment; and "Overgrown," which features a massive dry creek bed.

[UPDATE] In the wake of Activision's announcement, a group of gamers angered by what they perceive as an overly high price have started a petition asking Activision to lower the Stimulus Pack's cost. It can be found at http://www.petitiononline.com/codmw2mp/.