Modern Warfare 2 players have devised an ingenious trick to rack up thousands of XP in seconds

Modern Warfare 2 players in the game's multiplayer have discovered a tricksy way to rack up thousands of XP in no time at all: all you need is an enemy tank, a suppression mine, and an abundance of confidence.

First documented on Reddit, the trick requires you to climb atop an enemy tank—one with an open hatch—and dump a suppression mine smack-dab behind the turret. The mine will activate and repeatedly suppress the tank's inhabitants while they drive around, accruing a whole bunch of XP for the player that dropped the mine.

how_to_farm_weapon_xp_fast from r/ModernWarfareII

It's easier said than done, to be fair: climbing on top of an enemy tank in the middle of a game of MW2 paints a pretty big target on your back, and getting the mine to land in just the right spot takes a bit of finesse and luck. More than a few players in the comments on the original Reddit thread reached the conclusion that it might have been more efficient to play the game normally, since it's so difficult to clamber aboard an enemy tank and drop the mine in the right spot without getting sniped or run over.

Still, if you manage it, the potential rewards are significant. Plus, the rolling ticker of XP gains that flash up on the screen when you manage it has an almost Cookie Clicker-like intoxicating effect. And what are games for if not making numbers go up? If you want to try it out for yourself, you're better off doing it sooner rather than later. I don't imagine this is a trick Infinity Ward will want to leave in the game for long.

Modern Warfare 2 had a good launch weekend after releasing last week, despite a few crashes and a bug where a yawning black void gradually expands to consume your entire field of vision (which I think the devs should leave in). The meta has yet to settle, but player are already making great use of overpowered sniper rifles and the anti-camping drill charge to ruin each other's day. Oh, and an Amsterdam hotel is considering legal action against the game after disapproving of its inclusion in one of MW2's levels. Ups and downs, I suppose.