Halo 3 Records More Then $300 Million in First Week

Redmond—Interactive entertainment will never be the same, with the launch of one title that has changed the way the world thinks about video games. Halo® 3 has captured the attention of consumers worldwide and has made history as one of the biggest entertainment launches of all time.

Fans get their hands on the first copies of Halo 3 at Best Buy in New York City. .

Microsoft today announced Halo 3 has officially become a global phenomenon, garnering more than $300 million in sales in the first week alone. The critically-acclaimed Xbox 360 exclusive, which was released worldwide on Tuesday, September 25, is the fastest selling video game ever and one of the most successful entertainment properties in history.

Sales of the Xbox 360 console saw a sharp increase, more than doubling compared to the weekly average before the launch of Halo 3. With games like Halo 3, Madden NFL 08, Mass Effect™ and Rock Band, Xbox 360 has the greatest lineup in the history of video games and the only console where consumers can play all of the year's biggest blockbusters.

"Halo is truly a cultural phenomenon and the launch of Halo 3 is an important milestone for Xbox 360 and for video games as a narrative art form," said Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates. "Halo 3 embodies our vision for the future of entertainment, where the world's greatest creators deliver a new generation of interactive storytelling."

Online Phenomena
Halo 3 is quickly staking its place as the most popular Xbox LIVE® game in history with members gathering in record numbers to play on the world's largest online gaming and entertainment network on TV. More than 2.7 million gamers have played Halo 3 on Xbox LIVE in the first week, representing nearly one-third of the seven million Xbox LIVE members worldwide. Within the first day of its launch, Halo 3 players racked up more than 3.6 million hours of online game play, which increased more than eleven-fold to more than 40 million hours by the end of the first week—representing more than 4,500 years of continuous game play.

The excitement builds in Seattle as the launch approaches.

Since Halo 3 launched, gamers have unlocked more than 30 million achievements. In its first week alone, Halo 3 drove a record number of Xbox LIVE Gold Memberships as hundreds of thousands of new members gathered online to collectively compete and complete the game.

Biggest Entertainment Launch in History
To date, over 20 million copies of the games in the Halo trilogy have been sold worldwide. The record week one sales comes on the heels of the previously announced $170 million in sales in the U.S. within the first 24 hours of the game's release, which marked not just the biggest videogame launch, but the biggest entertainment launch in history. The Xbox 360 title beat previous U.S. sales records set by blockbuster openings for entertainment events like the release of Spider-Man 3 and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

Additionally, more than 1.7 million copies of Halo 3 were preordered in the United States, making it the fasting pre-selling game in history, surpassing the previous record-setting pre-sales of Halo 2.

-Xbox.com
©2007 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved

The Ultimate Halo Package

To benefit the Boys & Girls Club, Microsoft is offering the ultimate Halo® 3 package to one lucky winning bidder on eBay. Check out what's included:

Bid on this massive Halo 3 package.

• The ONLY Xbox 360™ Limited Edition Halo 3 console that has been personally signed by Bill Gates.
• The ONLY Limited Edition Halo 3 Zune 30 GB media player personally signed by J Allard.
• The entire Halo Trilogy: Two copies of Halo 3 (Legendary Edition and Standard Edition), plus the Halo Triple Pack for Xbox® (Halo: Combat Evolved, Halo 2 and the Halo 2 Multiplayer Map Pack)
• Xbox 360 HD DVD player.
• Rare special aluminum storage case with over $400 worth of accessories (two Limited Edition Halo 3 Wireless Controllers with an exclusive Todd McFarlane Collectable Figurine, Messenger Kit, HDMI AV cable, extra 120 GB hard drive, and a Halo 3 T-shirt).

(For tax purposes, the total retail value of this package is about $2,000.)

You can own this one-of-a-kind console.

Don't miss this opportunity to own this unique collection! All auction proceeds from this Ultimate Halo 3 Package benefit the Boys & Girls Club. To bid for the package, click here.

Halo 3 Launch

New Yorkers were the first consumers in the U.S. to get their hands on Halo® 3 after hundreds of eager fans lined up ahead of the midnight extravaganza at Best Buy near Times Square.

The first two in line at Best Buy in New York City finally get Halo 3.

In addition to day-long activities, some fans in line had the chance to play Halo 3 against on-site celebrities, with a new personality arriving every hour. A number of Bungie team members, local professional athletes, and celebrities were on hand for launch activities and there was a surprise spectacle at the stroke of midnight.

Seattle fans couldn't wait to get their hands on the action-packed Halo® 3, and hundreds of eager hometown Halo fans turned out for the midnight extravaganza at Best Buy in Bellevue, Washington.

A lucky Halo 3 fan rewarded for his commitment.

Microsoft chairman Bill Gates was on hand to give out the first copy of Halo 3 at the store, where the crowds mingled with some senior Microsoft executives, the Bungie Studios team and local professional athletes.

Adding to the excitement were contests and prize giveaways in the run-up to the 12:01 A.M. launch.

With the biggest entertainment launch in history, more than 10,000 retailers hosted midnight madness events, giving fans the opportunity to be a part of history in the making.

In New York City, customers at Best Buy near Times Square were among the first in the U.S. to get a copy of Halo 3.

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