Call of Duty 4 more popular on LIVE than Halo 3

Master Chief's latest knocked off top spot for the first time since its release.

According to figures released by Microsoft, for the week beginning January 14 Halo 3 was not the most played game by Xbox LIVE users. Instead top spot went to Activision's Call of Duty 4, the first time since the release of Halo 3 that Bungie's FPS hasn't been top of the pack.

Halo 3 is followed by Guitar Hero III, Gears of War and Rock Band, the latter impressive because its availability is limited to North America gamers.

Metal Slug 3 was the most purchased Xbox LIVE Arcade title released during the week, ahead of Boogie Bunnies, Omega Five, Tron and ever-present UNO.