Hugely known Hollywood composer Hans Zimmer has given his full thumbs up to videogames as a legitimate art form, "absolutely".

Movies and theatre have "found their own place" as art, and so has videogaming. Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 his first game project.

"Absolutely," he told USA Today, reports Eurogamer. "That we can't question anymore."

"When movies first came out, maybe they were in black and white and there wasn't any sound and people were saying the theatre is still the place to be. But now movies and theatre have found their own place in the world. They are each legitimate art forms."

"And now this new thing, it's interesting," he added. "We still call it a game. The word has a slightly sort of downmarket quality, that word. It is a trivial word."

Zimmer is no new kid on the block as his works have been included in over 100 blockbuster releases, but now he's popped the videogame composer cherry.

"This is the first time I even stuck my toe into these waters," he said, adding that he's waited until it reached a "certain quality" before undertaking anything in the industry. Zimmer feels the excitement surrounding the arrival of Modern Warfare 2, rivalling red carpets.

"There is a community out there that is interested in this game: people talking about it and being excited about it coming out just like I see when I work on a big movie," he said.

"You can feel it in the air. Something new is happening. You feel it as an undercurrent in society. It is like this swell of excitement. I feel the same thing about some of these games."

Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 is being released on Xbox 360, PS3 and PC November 10th.