Halo 3 Reaches $170 Million In First Day Sales

[Spartan_X]

Halo 3 Reaches $170 Million In First Day Sales

Halo 3 Reaches $170 Million In First Day Sales Microsoft has announced that its Halo 3 has sold an estimated $170 million in its first day, making it "the biggest entertainment launch in history," noting that it has now beat out opening day theatrical releases of Spider-Man 3 and novels like Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

The sales are generally in line with analyst expectations, with Lazard analyst Colin Sebastian estimating sales would quickly reach $200 million.

Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter stated that he anticipates that the title will be September's top release, expecting sales of over 3 million units in its first 12 days.

The game took more than 1.7 million copies in preorder sales, Microsoft says, surpassing the previous record-setting pre-orders for Halo 2.

The release has garnered praise from retailers as well, with GameStop merchandising VP Bob McKenzie saying in Microsoft's release that the title is expected to be "the biggest video game title generator in GameStop's history."

Again labeling the release a "pop-culture phenomenon,? Microsoft Game Studios VP Shane Kim said, ?Not only is Halo 3 setting sales records, it?s also redefining entertainment. Within the first 20 hours alone, we?ve seen more than a million Xbox LIVE members come online to play Halo 3 ? that makes September 25 the most active Xbox LIVE gaming day in hisSource:>Source: Gamasutra

--------------------------------------------Edit:>Edit: Official Press Release.

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Microsoft today announced that the Xbox 360 exclusive game ?Halo 3? has officially become the biggest entertainment launch in history, garnering an estimated $170 million in sales in the United States alone in the first 24 hours. The Xbox 360 title beat previous records set by blockbuster theatrical releases like ?Spider-man 3? and novels such as ?Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.?

?Halo 3? is the conclusion to the epic trilogy and picks up where ?Halo 2? left off, answering questions around the fates of the beloved protagonist Master Chief and his artificial intelligence sidekick Cortana as they struggle to save humankind from destruction at the hands of the alien coalition known as the Covenant. In addition to the rich storyline, ?Halo 3? continues the franchise?s grand tradition of delivering innovative online multiplayer experiences via Xbox LIVE, the world?s largest social network on TV.

?Halo 3 has become a pop-culture phenomenon,? said Shane Kim, corporate vice president of Microsoft Game Studios. ?Not only is ?Halo 3? setting sales records, it?s also redefining entertainment.

Within the first 20 hours alone, we?ve seen more than a million Xbox LIVE members come online to play Halo 3 ? that makes September 25 the most active Xbox LIVE gaming day in history.?

Retailers have also expressed their excitement about the launch of ?Halo 3.?

Bob McKenzie, Senior Vice President of Merchandising for GameStop Corp commented that, ?With consumer demand for Halo 3 and related products, we expect it to be the biggest video game title generator in GameStop's history."

?The initial demand we?ve seen for ?Halo 3? has been astounding, and the game is on track to become the number one gaming title of all time. ?Halo 3? is a genuine entertainment phenomenon and our customers have responded very enthusiastically to the release,? said Jill Hamburger, vice president of movies and games at Best Buy.

Developed by Bungie Studios, the ?Halo? franchise is exclusive to the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system and optimized for the Xbox LIVE? online entertainment network. The more than 7 million Xbox LIVE users will get a continually evolving gaming experience with ?Halo 3.? Its online multiplayer and cooperative gameplay for Xbox LIVE Gold users, the much-talked-about Saved Films feature that enables players to capture and save their favorite moments on their hard drives, and Forge, an innovative map editor that enables infinite customization options are just some of the new features to experience.

More than 10,000 retailers hosted Midnight Madness events to celebrate the launch of this third installment in the billion-dollar franchise. In New York, Seattle, Miami and Los Angeles, Microsoft and retail partners hosted marquee launch events that featured contests and appearances by local celebrities and professional athletes who are fanatical about the ?Halo? franchise, including Ludacris and Zac Efron and Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates.

More than 1.7 million copies of ?Halo 3? were preordered in the United States before a single store opened its doors at midnight, Sept. 25, making this the fasting pre-selling game in history, surpassing the previous record-setting pre-sales of ?Halo 2.? Well beyond just a U.S. phenomenon, the launch oSource: was a worldwide celebration that released in 37 countries and available in 17 languages.

Source: Gamerscore Blog

Edited September 26, 2007 by Spartan_X

[Alan-]

Wow, that's a whole lot of Halo.

[theyarecomingforyou]

Wow. I'm not surprised though.

[Noveed]

WOW! thats all i can say, congrats to bungie and MS, i wonder how much they get in 1 week?? :o The US did get Halo 3 one day before the UK so im wondering what the Global intake will be.... $$$+???+???

[zerolimit]

wow! crazy thats awsome though great game!

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

For The Win! :cool:

Awesome news :)

[SnowRanger13]

As expected. I know many people that got a 360 for this games release, one of those being me.

[Barney T. Administrators]

Thread cleaned

[planetik]

It beat Spider-Man 3 and Harry Potter? No way.

[DrCheese]

It beat Spider-Man 3 and Harry Potter? No way.

ya, remember that a game is like 5/6 times as much as a ticket for a movie

[spenser.d]

It beat Spider-Man 3 and Harry Potter? No way.

I'm not even sure Spiderman 3 made $170M in it's first weekend, much less the first 24 hours. And Harry Potter cost about 3x less than Halo.

You guys can call them fanboys, but no matter how you cut it, Halo is one of those franchises that stands out from the rest, for whatever reason or another, and just like, say, Mario, it'll probably still be played for many, many years to come, more than any other game out there. (Yes, I just compared the epic-ness of the original Mario to the epic-ness of Halo, and I do think it's a good comparison).

-Spenser

[AlphaPrime]

I wonder how many of the $130 LE were sold.

[fkid]

What's your point stifler6478? Businesses measure success through profit, not exactly the amount of customers they have. It's all about the amount of money people around the world were willing to spend. No point in pretending it's not a tremendous achivement. Biggest entertainment launch in history? Yes. In need of future game updates? Yes.

[Deathray]

That's insanely impressive. I wonder how many copies will be sold by christmas and stuff... just imagine if everyone xbox 360 owner buys halo 3... that would be glorious to see

[spenser.d]

What's your point stifler6478? Businesses measure success through profit, not exactly the amount of customers they have. It's all about the amount of money people around the world were willing to spend. No point in pretending it's not a tremendous achivement. Biggest entertainment launch in history? Yes. In need of future game updates? Yes.

:blink: I wasn't pretending it wasn't tremendous. I'm a Halo fanboy if there ever was one, and I'm not afraid to admit it. The guy was just surprised it beat out those two so I explained why. Chill out.

-Spenser

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

:laugh: (Y)

TD mate, I think you might be...

Work it out :p

[Nicholas-c Veteran]

queston... does every store phone MS and say "we sold ...." ?

if not then how can they telll... :huh:

[Randolph]

Bungie must be looted with $$$$ right about now. (Y)

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

TD mate, I think you might be...

Work it out :p

The stench grows every day with this'un!

BTW, treadmilling on water? :unsure:

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

The stench grows every day with this'un!

BTW, treadmilling on water? :unsure:

Pffft. GET IT RIGHT, or you ruin the joke :cry:

"Treading on hot water"

* Spoiler added in respect for those who wish to work it out themselves :p

** lol, treadmilling on water... you crack me up :laugh:

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

Pffft. GET IT RIGHT, or you ruin the joke :cry:

D'oh of course lol

[x-scratch]

whoa thats alot of money i wouldnt mind having 1 million of that money

[BreakingBenjamin]

workers at bungie must be freaking happy with the money they're going to get :p

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

D'oh of course lol

Oh boy, Barney is going to have his work cut out for him again :/

[Sethos]

whoa thats alot of money i wouldnt mind having 1 million of that money

Yeah i feel you, because 1 Million worth of Halo 3 money is like ... KABLAAM in real-world money.

:p