Activion's Call of Duty XP convention is underway. The keynote had some interesting info, and the fans really responded to a few things. By far the biggest cheer came when Infinity Ward Community Manager Robert Bowling announced that Last Stand -- generally considered a cheap perk for gutless noobs -- would no longer be in the game. Ominously, the biggest jeer came when Kanye West -- who will be performing at the show -- was mentioned by one of the speakers.

News Blips:

New Strike Packages will completely rework the kill streak structure for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. Today, at the COD XP opening ceremony, Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer emptied a knowledge-filled clip into our brains regarding the three Strike Packages that gamers can choose from. Each one supports a different play style. Here is a quick overview:

Assault: “[Assault] is the familiar kill streak system that you know and love,” Bowling said from COD XP's main stage. It has an unlock tree similar to Modern Warfare 2 and Black Ops. Get enough kills and players can call in UAVs, airstrikes, and attack choppers.

Support: Support rewards players for helping the team win. Getting assists and capturing objectives is just as good as kills for unlocking the next strike chain. Support is also beneficial for reckless play styles because the kill streak doesn’t reset after death.

Specialist: Under the Specialist Strike Package, every level in the strike chain will unlock an additional perk. Start with three perks, and then -- after enough kills -- the Specialist will have every perk in the game. “This is the greatest test of individual skill in a Modern Warfare game,” said Bowling. Forget the airstrikes and UAVs. These perks will only help the player who earns them.

Activision funded fan filmmakers to shoot Find Makarov: Operation Kingfish. Usually, when gamers take their love for a franchise to the point of manufacturing their own creations, the owners of those properties enlist an army of lawyers to shove cease-and-desist notices into every conceivable orifice of said fans. The minders of the Call of Duty series, however, decided to take a different route. Activision hired the team behind FindMakarov.com to create a new movie and then premiered it during the Call of Duty XP keynote. While Activision has done a lot to rub consumers the wrong way, at least -- in this one instance -- it's done some good.

Mirror’s Edge 2 in development at DICE. The first Mirror’s Edge certainly had its fans, but a sequel didn’t look likely. The promising first installment had a few rough edges, but most critics and gamers considered it a fine game. Unfortunately, it didn’t fly off store shelves in a way that would ensure the survival of the series. And yet, here we are. According to Xbox World magazine, the developers are hard at work on the second game staring free-running parcel-delivery girl Faith. DICE will use the same engine that powers Battlefield 3, so expect beautiful animation and graphical fidelity when the parkour-filled videos for this one inevitably begin squirting out of EA. [Sillegame]

Got any hot news tips? Send 'em over to tips@bitmob.com