Halo 3 sales top USD 300m

By GamesIndustry International Published 5 October, 2007

Bill Gates quite chuffed.

Microsoft has revealed that global sales of Halo 3 have reached over USD 300 million in its first week of release, GamesIndustry.biz reports.

And the company claims that according to retail sources, sales of Xbox 360 hardware have more than doubled compared with the weekly average.

"Halo is truly a cultural phenomenon, and the launch of Halo 3 is an important milestone for Xbox 360 and for videogames as entertainment and as an art form," commented Bill Gates, chairman of Microsoft.

"Halo 3 embodies our vision for the future of entertainment, where some of the world's greatest creative minds will deliver a new generation of interactive storytelling," he said.

Microsoft stats reveal that more than 2.7 million people have played Halo 3 over Xbox Live in the past week, with the first day of release seeing a total of 3.6 million hours of online play, increasing to 40 million hours by the end of the first week.

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Comments (33) Latest comment 5 years ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Xerx3s #1 5 years ago

    Lol at the people being desperate enough to vote this a one.

  • Rich72 #2 5 years ago

    Tea and crumpets?

  • Steroyd #3 5 years ago

    What a bunch of bullcrap from Bill Gates sure Halo's numbers are impressive but the amount of people that went and bought it compared to how many people would watch Harry Potter or Spiderman there's no contest.

    Plus it's only one game you can count how many titles sell this fast on your bare hands.

    Halo 3 a milestone for videogames my ass doubt you'll ever see another game sell like Halo and get such public media attention EVER.

  • onyxbox #4 5 years ago

    I noticed that HALO 3 was at number 3 in Tesco's charts last night when I went for some milk, bread, 3 cans of dog food, a pizza and a tin of Heinz sausage and spaghetti.

  • Twincoil #5 5 years ago

    "Halo 3 embodies our vision for the future of entertainment, where some of the world's greatest creative minds...."

    ...bitch rape the populus for another quick buck?

  • Twincoil #6 5 years ago

    "I noticed that HALO 3 was at number 3 in Tesco's charts last night when I went for some milk, bread, 3 cans of dog food, a pizza and a tin of Heinz sausage and spaghetti."

    Tesco: the authority on chart sales

  • onyxbox #7 5 years ago

    "Tesco: the authority on chart sales"

    i was surprised nonetheless

  • GitSomE_UK #8 5 years ago

    I'm more surprised that Heinz do sausage and spaghetti now as well as sausage and beans.

  • Frumper #9 5 years ago

    Yeah, but I think Tesco had Halo 3 at number 1 last week - before it was released.

  • Steroyd #10 5 years ago

    No i'm not bitter, just the videogames industry isn't going to move jackshit if it's only Halo that gets this type of media attention and "blockbuster" sales.

    Infact I am bitter, I'm bitter that mainstream bullcrap outsells artistic stuff like Ico and Sotc, i'm annoyed that something with the word 50 cent outsells a fun game like Resident Evil 4, I'm pissed off that Capcom closed down Clover Studio's when they made stuff like Viewtiful Joe and Okami, I hate how the Wii's minigame compilations and stuff spits right in the face of Bill Gates quote.

    Fine I am bitter at the Videogames industry.

  • agparrot #11 5 years ago

    I have Halo 3 and am loving it, but what are people's thoughts on whether this is a system seller?

    'more than doubling' the weekly average hardware sales doesn't seem like an awful lot, and presumably that is a spike that will slope away back down towards the weekly average within a few weeks.

    I really can't be bothered to look up what the weekly average is, but surely this translates into a few tens of thousands of consoles at best, perhaps a 'system seller' for a short amount of time, but not anything that will change the 360's base demographic significantly.

    Which is a shame because everyone should try Halolll online at least once, it really is a lot of fun.

    Can't wait to get back to my own internet connection for more games on it.

  • Wash #12 5 years ago

    "...bitch rape the populus for another quick buck? "

    you dont have to buy it?

    Is funny seeing the bitter fanboys... Whereas you may be dissapointed 50cents game sold more than resi 4, which in itself has had a boot 5 different releases no?

    Halo deserves to sell well, its a well made and rounded game, with lots of features.

    Nobodies bitchin aboot record sales for this years fifa are they?

  • Hypnopedia #13 5 years ago

    Steroyd does have a point with regards the hype well OTT for an "OK" game, but I can't help but feel that I'd be bitter if "LocoRoco Cocoreccho!" was the only thing I thought was worth owning for my PS3...!

    Or is your list out of date??!!

    ;D

    /runs....

    And yes I'm just kidding...

  • Steroyd #14 5 years ago

    Is funny seeing the bitter fanboys... Whereas you may be dissapointed 50cents game sold more than resi 4, which in itself has had a boot 5 different releases no?

    Bitter Fanboys? Where?

    I'm talking about 50 cents bulletproof which launched around the same time as RE4, didn't know there were others.

  • Skooch #15 5 years ago

    "What a bunch of bullcrap from Bill Gates sure Halo's numbers are impressive but the amount of people that went and bought it compared to how many people would watch Harry Potter or Spiderman there's no contest."

    @ Steroyd: It is true that comparing revenue streams from a game that cost £40 with a cinema ticket that costs around £6 is an unfair comparison in one sense, but then you have to consider the tens, if not hundreds, of hours gamers will put into a single game like Halo 3. If you worked out the cost per hour of entertainment Halo 3 would win hands down against Spiderman and Harry Potter. Surely that is a better measure of an entertainment products' success?

  • Steroyd #16 5 years ago

    Yeah but many many more people are watching Spiderman or Harry Potter compared to people who buy the Halo game that's the point, as big as Halo is in the Videogames industry it's still a small niche in the entertainment industry, and an already established franchise isn't going to change that.

  • hula hoops #17 5 years ago

    I think you are a sad person if you take what Bill Gates said as more than a pinch of salt. He is a businessman and a salesman, he sells stuff and would probably say that his stuff is better than anything else in this world. Nobody needs to tell anybody that is crap but you would do the same if you are in his shoes (or in any other businessman/salesman's shoes).

  • Miths #18 5 years ago

    "Infact I am bitter, I'm bitter that mainstream bullcrap outsells artistic stuff like Ico and Sotc, i'm annoyed that something with the word 50 cent outsells a fun game like Resident Evil 4, I'm pissed off that Capcom closed down Clover Studio's when they made stuff like Viewtiful Joe and Okami, I hate how the Wii's minigame compilations and stuff spits right in the face of Bill Gates quote.

    Fine I am bitter at the Videogames industry."

    Wouldn't it make more sense to be bitter at the immense amount of gamers (and the population in general if we move past video games) who really don't want innovation and creativity, but merely more or less bland entertainment? :)
    Personally I like both depending on my mood on any given day :).

  • Fairlane #19 5 years ago

    Yhe question you guys should ask yourself is - does the movie studios or software companys pay off their shareholders in dollars or in the number of tickets/games sold ?

  • belziah #20 5 years ago

    With the current £ to $ exchange rate that means the sold 20 copies.

  • kangarootoo #21 5 years ago

    A couple of thoughts.

    1. Whenever news of this sort turns up there is always someone suggesting the public got shafted, or conned in some way, or generally that something underhanded has taken place. The possibility that a load of people simply bought a product they liked and were happy with their purchase never seems to be on the menu.

    2. There is also lots of talk about how video games are never going to move on if games like Halo are so popular, as if that is the GAME's fault. People buy what they like. If the majority of gamers liking Halo is a problem for some people, I'm not sure how that venom can be directed at Halo itself.

    Some might suggest that we stop making games like Halo, start making other types of game, and eventually force public opinion in the direction we would like it to move. That sounds like censorship and the beginnings of facism to me.

    I say let the buying public decide what they like, as they have always done.

    Edit: Miths put it very well. If you are going to bitter at anyone, be bitter at gamers (but preferably just chill out and realise this stuff is not worth being angry about).
    Edited by kangarootoo at 05/10/07 @ 13:22

  • login_name #22 5 years ago

    "Halo deserves to sell well, its a well made and rounded game, with lots of features."

    Exactly, and that's all it is. It is not an important milestone for videogames as entertainment and as an art form and it doesn't embody our vision for the future of entertainment, where some of the world's greatest creative minds will deliver a new generation of interactive storytelling.

    I actually like Halo 3 but I can't stand all this hype bullshit. It really isn't that good. There are some pretty bad and unpolished parts of Halo 3, in fact some of it is down right awful and archaic (friendly AI for one). It's an ok game packed with decent features, end of.

  • aldo_14 #23 5 years ago

    Yeah, but I think Tesco had Halo 3 at number 1 last week - before it was released.

    Most instore charts are paid advertising nowadays anyways, methinks.

  • Twincoil #24 5 years ago

    ""...bitch rape the populus for another quick buck? "

    you dont have to buy it?"

    I did and I love it. Doesn't stop me from being cynical though:)

  • lambtron #25 5 years ago

    @Kanga

    No - to stop making the games would not be enough! We must cleanse the earth of all those who do not want arty, niche games! Some may argue that wiping out the vast majority of the world's population in order to maintain the integrity of our chosen artform is going too far - but it is a price worth paying. Quickly my brethren - to arms!

    ;)

  • VMerken #26 5 years ago

    "Halo is truly a cultural phenomenon, and the launch of Halo 3 is an important milestone for Xbox 360 and for videogames as entertainment and as an art form."

    ORLY mr. Gates?

    [link url=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/zeropunctuation/2304-Zero-Punctuation-Halo-3
    ]http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles...[/link]

    Until this point, I could care less about the Halo series, which comes across to me as a well-executed collection of "meh". Calling it "art" and a "cultural phenomenon" is pretty much bloated hyperbole. A game such as Bioshock hits the mark a little closer, I'd say.

    I do acknowledge that it is an astonishing commercial success, though. And there's nothing wrong with that. Job well done! I just hope that the above reviewer's worries don't come true and that we'll be looking at a generation of "Captain Bland's Monotonous Adventure"s in the future.
    Edited by VMerken at 05/10/07 @ 21:08

  • Nikanoru #27 5 years ago

    ^ True. It sold a whole fucking lot. But that's all. It's nothing special, just another shooter, and calling it a milestone for the artform is patting themselves on the back WAY too much.

    The only milestone Halo 3 set was a milestone for advertising.

  • subtlesnake #28 5 years ago

    Shock horror - people complaining about PR on the internet! What else do you expect MS to say?

  • Apologie #29 5 years ago

    Halo3... there are a lot of nostalgia around gamers nowday's, i mean..., it's hard to let go last gen.

  • VMerken #30 5 years ago

    @Subtlesnake
    I know, it's just that I get so frustrated when PR goes through the roof, spouts bloated hyperbole and repeats it often enough until people believe it.

    This is just my little crusade for anti-PR: how about just sticking to the facts, please and stop inventing/looking for euphemisms and favourable associations which have nothing to do with the topic at hand?

    Hmm... maybe if I turn that into bloated hyperbole and repeat it often enough, people might believe it... =)

  • Skurmedel #31 5 years ago

    Jesus of course Bill Gates say something like that, he's making money out of it. You wouldn't hang around telling people your product is crap?

  • Nikanoru #32 5 years ago

    how about just sticking to the facts

    Hah, you're talking about corporations here. Fat chance.


    Jesus of course Bill Gates say something like that, he's making money out of it. You wouldn't hang around telling people your product is crap?

    Yeah true, but you know, McDonalds' wouldn't tell you that their burgers are better than the second coming of Christ itself, and try to actually be serious when they're saying it. There's hyperbole, then there's "I was promised 72 virgins but all I got was an FPS".

  • TedMoseby #33 5 years ago

    I too was surprised to see Sausages and Spaghetti. Needless to say, I've bought some.