Halo 2 passes original with 6.4m sales

By Tom Bramwell Published 24 January, 2005

Better than Halo, you might say.

Microsoft has announced fresh sales figures for Xbox exclusive first person shooter Halo 2, revealing that the sci-fi sequel has now outsold the original Halo and racked up 6.4 million sales worldwide.

The enormous success of the game, developed by Microsoft-owned studio Bungie, comes mostly from North America, where 4.4 million units have been sold in the USA alone, and pushes the franchise past the 10 million mark.

In fact, the Halo franchise has now sold 12.8 million units overall, counting sales of both Xbox titles and of the first game on the PC - and Halo 2 was the second biggest selling game of the year in the USA in 2004, just behind Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

Crucially for Microsoft, Halo 2 is also helping to drive Xbox users online - the company reports that subscriber figures for Xbox Live have now topped 1.4 million users thanks to no small extent to heavy online activity on Halo 2.

Picture of Tom.

About Tom Bramwell

Tom is Operations director of Eurogamer Network and Editor-at-Large of Eurogamer.net. He joined the company in February 2000.

Read more articles from Tom by visiting the Tom Bramwell archive page.

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Comments (52) Latest comment 7 years ago

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  • space_ace #1 7 years ago

    now port it to pc so we can ridicule it officially

  • Lutz #2 7 years ago

    "heavy online activity"? No shit, AFAIK, it takes up 90% of all games played on XBL...

  • space_ace #3 7 years ago

    dunno... is it?

  • MonkeyMatters #4 7 years ago

    I'm sorry to say that I was hugely dissappointed with it. The single player was a waste of time to be honest. The multi is bloody great though....yet I still prefer pc online fps'; UT being my favourite.

  • IronGiant #5 7 years ago

    XBL would be a barren wasteland right now without Halo2..

  • barnard666 #6 7 years ago

    yeah its a good game, online its an awesome game, maybe the single player isnt as good as HL2, but dont forget its still probably better than doom3, so hell its the second best FPS franchise in history! but still the best on any console.
    I dont think the online thing will be half as good on PC, xbox live is a really well thought out system...
    its just a shame that after all their hard work sony are going outstrip the xbox 2 with the PS3...or at least thats how it looks from here...

  • onyxbox #7 7 years ago

    XBL would be a barren wasteland right now without Halo2..

    I totally agree. XBox Live is like soooo last year.

  • #8 7 years ago

    Genji... The Single Player for Halo2 was at BEST "Just an average shooter".... I don't give a rats ass what the online game is like... I'm not paying to play ANY game online. MS can whistle for their XBL subscription.

    HL2 (and I'm only 1/3 thru it) pisses over any other FPS game I've played... makes H2 look like it's a kids game. I'm not talkign about the graphics etc (although they DO piss on the H2) because the hardware platform is different... the GAME itself is just úber so so many other reasons, PLOT and imersion included.

    That it sold 6.4m copies is a testamount to the marketing and advertising departments, and while the engine itself is Okay (what they do on the hardware given is an acomplishment no question) it was a terrible mistake to make you swap the player over and over and over and.... I mean, who am *I*? The Arbiter, the Chief? What where they thinking when they decided to go for that 'plot'? And that 'ending'... I mean WTF? MS must have put a gun to their heads! Bungie used to be a proud games producer, now they're MS drones... There is no question that MS will USE the sucess of Halo to leverage more sales on XBOX2 by forcing players and fans to get a new console to find out what happens next.

    90% of online activity? What did you expect? it's the only thing worth playing online that has been recently released (in the last year say) and an xbox exclusive (cause lets face it, if it's on the PS2 or PC you're going to play it on that and not pay an XBL sub each month on top of your internet bill)...

    And have a LOOK at how many ACTIVE XBL players there are... Not that many huh? Especially when you look at WoW as an example of how many (and WoW is USA onlyu ATM... Don't forget!)

  • phAge #9 7 years ago

    I disagree.

  • Kami #10 7 years ago

    I agree. While Halo 2 does pale in comparison gameplay wise to HL2, multiplayer wise to UT2004, and graphically to Doom 3 and now Resident Evil 4 (which pisses all over H2's graphics from a great height), it's not a bad game. It's a good game, but the potential was there for so much more. Maybe that's the problem some people have with Halo 2. Too much promise and such little delivery. The story was a little limp, the gameplay a little tried-and-trusted-and-safe. Maybe the problem lies more in the fact that the game did not live up to the hype and the promises made.

    That said, I DID like Halo 2. Not as much as I liked HL2, or Metroid Prime 2, but I liked it nonetheless. It deserves a place in the market purely because it didn't turn out like a big steaming pile of crap. For that I'm sure as hell thankful.


    ... as for Nintendo being "So last century", wait until you get the chance to play RE4 on the 'Cube. So last century? Don't make me laugh. RE4 alone is worth getting a 'Cube for, and there's a small matter of the new Zelda game as well, and Starfox too. A good lineup this year for 'Cube, and I'm hoping it does pretty well because of that. Of course it's not going to outsell PS2, and maybe not even X-Box. But when the game quality is so damned high, I can't really complain.

  • IronGiant #11 7 years ago

    "A good lineup this year for 'Cube, and I'm hoping it does pretty well because of that"

    No chance. The cube is dead. Nintendo though are very much still alive.

  • Tweakmonkey #12 7 years ago

    A zombie is dead too but look how they keep coming back!

  • Lothar Hex #13 7 years ago

    Am I the only one who thought Half Life 2 was rather dull?

    And before anyone asks, yes I own the game *holds up his copy*. Apart from it being dull I thought, the physics engine, while impressive, is not the Gods gift to gamers that some people seem to think it is.

    "Wow look at these boards breeak relistically when I smack my way through the 500th one so I can finish the damn level."

    "Watch those barrels roll realistically!" Ok....and. Why am I supposed to be impressed by barrel rolling?

    Gravity Gun was fun for a while though. As for the plot, the way it you were put into the game, not cutscenes everything viewed through your eyes, is a good approach. Ironically though it also makes it dull in some way because Gordon Freeman has no chracterisation, but then again you're supposed to BE Gordon. However the actual story is easily taking more than artistic licences from Orwells "Big Brother" with a sprinkiling of "War of the Worlds". Halos 2 story fell flat in some areas because it was trying to be too epic and the ending was shite, Half-Life 2's was just dull.

    And does anybody find it odd that Djini is pissing over Microsoft, yet he is most likely using it to run the computer he's posting here with, not to mention the fact he probably uses it to run his copy of Half-Life 2?

    I don't like Half-Life 2, but others do. Fair enough. I prefer Halo 2 because in my eyes it isn't dull and the story (including the books) is quite interesting. What I think is daft is saying that Halo 2 isn't a good game because Half-Life 2 is "better". And if we're talking about games living up to hype, neither H2 or HL2 did.

  • fergal_oc #14 7 years ago

    Djini likes talking through their bottom obviously! Next time please do us a favour forget to breathe while ur ranting!

  • Kami #15 7 years ago

    Hex, you're not the only one. I have to say, I was also disappointed with HL2. It's no doubt a fabulous game, but as you said - it can get repetative. And I was so angry when I reached the end. "NO! It can't end yet! YOU (insert a long string of bad language and expletives here)!"

    The gameplay, however, was more intuitive than Halo 2. I think thats my main crunch point on the HL2 vs H2 argument. Gameplay wise, I just found HL2 delivered more than H2 did. However, I by far and away preferred Metroid Prime 2 to either of these games.

  • The-Bodybuilder #16 7 years ago

    "Am I the only one who thought Half Life 2 was rather dull?"

    Trust me, you're not the only one.
    I think the 'problem' with HL2 is the HUGE amount of nerds that play it. No offence to HL2 lovers, but it really erks me when people tell me I SHOULD like HL2 because of its "fantastic physics". As great as they are (even with the puzzles), I just don't care for it.

    Anyone here in EG (and in some cases, the staff) would think it's a sin to like Halo 2.

    The real question should be why some people feel they must be 'gaming prophets' and preach the gospel of HL2.

    I like HL2, but I don't think it's the greatest thing since slice bread.
    But then again, I am also beginning to like the nokai ngage QD.

    " wait until you get the chance to play RE4"

    Funnily enough, that IS what I'm doing. I'm waiting for it to come out on either xbox or ps2.

  • drumbaby #17 7 years ago

    Hurrah, I'm NOT going mad! Nice to see there's others who saw through the Emperor's New Clothes.

    I couldn't even bring me myself to finish HL2. After Nova Prospekt I took a long hard look at the game, and realised I'd come half way without having any fun at all. It cost me $70, was supposed to be the next big seminal thing, but damned if I was going to waste any more time on it.

    I'd give it a 7, and that would be for the innovation. Knock 3 points off the perfect 10 score some mags gave it, for total lack of fun factor.

  • eleven63 #18 7 years ago

    All I know is that in my local games shop (Camden, London), the Xbox shelves are stuffed with 2nd hand H2, including Platinum editions in shiny boxes (and mine) – haven't seen one GTA:SA yet – thought that H2 was going rock, kick ass and generally piss over all games forever!!! – or maybe it was just dull, dull, dull, dull, wonderfully duuuulll, dull, dull dull dull, dull, dull ,dull dull wonderfully duuuulll

  • Lothar Hex #19 7 years ago

    Exactly drum. Halo 2 may not be perfect (and a different "style" of game from Half-Life 2) but at least I was never bored playing it.
    Edited by 1 at 24/01/05 @ 14:59

  • UncleLou #20 7 years ago

    I am quite surprised actually that Halo 2 has sold more copies than Halo 1. Seeing that Live still seems to be a thing only a tiny minority is interested in, I doubt it was its major selling point. So who would buy Halo 2 without having played Halo 1? Especially as it's still the same generation of consoles. Strange.

  • Lothar Hex #21 7 years ago

    Well Sonic 2 sold more than Sonic 1 when it came out :p

  • Tweakmonkey #22 7 years ago

    I thought the sales figures were strange too, but then I suppose not many people actually bought Halo because it was bundled wasn't it?

  • Lothar Hex #23 7 years ago

    Microsoft never said that downloadable content would be out 2 months after release. Bungie have said they'll release some when they finish it. Though apprantly according to Bungies posts on their websites we should be seeing some soonish.

  • tengu #24 7 years ago

    Halo 2 passes out... gets felt up by Killzone in it's sleep...

  • Truthsayer #25 7 years ago

    Oh look, a mildly positive post about an Xbox title and IronGiant starts pouting and typing sad and pathetic nonsense. How predictably lame.

  • Truthsayer #26 7 years ago

    And have a LOOK at how many ACTIVE XBL players there are... Not that many huh? Especially when you look at WoW as an example of how many (and WoW is USA onlyu ATM... Don't forget!) A million XBL vs 600,000 WoW. Two completely different platforms and games. Can you say, apples vs oranges? If you could get over your issues you might have a more objective point of view, but then you'd realise that there are more important things to worry about anyway.

  • Truthsayer #27 7 years ago

    Oho, zinged by someone called 'STFU', shamed I am, shamed.

  • Lothar Hex #28 7 years ago

    As you should have out grown puberty by now?

  • Lothar Hex #29 7 years ago

    Sorry, I don't accept gifts from people who think that saying something positive in a sarcastic way is a decent insult.

  • Lothar Hex #30 7 years ago

    Your grasp of irony is not very impressive, but meh. I must now end this conversation because I subscribe to the theory of intellectual osmosis. As such I must now move away from you before my IQ starts to drop.

    Though I bet you'll come up witha witty barb about how my IQ is so low it can't drop any further or some such comment. Either way I'm done.

  • Pots #31 7 years ago

    Djini> "I'm not paying to play ANY game online. MS can whistle for their XBL subscription."

    oooo miaow! I'm currently on my 4th 2 month free trial. Microsoft havent seen a penny of my money yet :^D

  • #32 7 years ago

    For the guys who are talking about me compairing H2 and HL2 please realise I didn't start that argument or the comparison.

    Further, without compairing H2 to ANYTHING, I can tell you categorically that I was *so* happy to crawl through all the Cut&Paste levels just so I could say I'd finished it, I didn't even notice how utterly crap and ripped off I was that the game was terminated without an ending. As another poster said, the game is DULL...

    Face it... This game got massive hype which is does NOT live up to (blame the publishers), and unwarrented reviews. It's got a confusing storyline, the constant flip-flop of arbiter and Chief does NOT help immersion and is confusing, the much hyped 'dual weild' is a non-issue (Great, hold 2 needlers... Who gives a f**K?) and is a symptom not an innovation. It's also got terrible flaws, mostly due to over-reaching the hardware capabilities (and hats off to them, they done their hardest).

    There is nothing ground-breaking with this game, and it's not all that 'playable' as a game... In short it's got no 'essence' - No 'soul'.

    Havge no illusions... There is a reason why so many copies where bought in the first 2 weeks, then it suddenly dropped in the charts... The first two weeks, people bought it based on hype and infomercial reviews, after that people started hearing that the game stank and they should avoid getting it...

    Also, have no illusions that MS made it well known to Bungie that this game was to be on shelves for Christmas 2004, knowning they had to do something to steal some thunder from Sony or make even bigger fools of themselves than they already had in their desperate big to own the space under your TV.

    Bungie, and the Halo Franchise is being used to try to occupy the living room and 'entertainment delivery' system. MS wants this, So does Sony (and so it seems does Apple (Mac Mini + Ipod)).

    When you lok at the bigger picture, you can see when you play the game and it lacks polish and feels rushed, why this game was rushed and what *is* actually hanging in the balance that the sucess or failure of the XBOX means to a company like Microsoft...

    And those who are bleeting that HL2 is Meh or whatever... Who are you telling this to?
    Edited by 1 at 25/01/05 @ 10:01

  • IronGiant #33 7 years ago

    "Oh look, a mildly positive post about an Xbox title and IronGiant starts pouting and typing sad and pathetic nonsense. How predictably lame."

    oooohhh, listen to her.

  • Lothar Hex #34 7 years ago

    Djini, I'm telling it too the people who seem to think Half-Life 2 is the greatest game ever created an to the ones who seem to think because of Half-Life 2, Halo 2 is not a great game. I think Half-Life 2 is dull and dosen't have anything groundbreaking. The only thing I see Half-Life 2 having that other better and more fun games don't is better graphics.

    And I do want to add that you seem to hate MS for some reason, however I bet the computer you're using to post this on runs on Microsoft software.
    Edited by 2 at 25/01/05 @ 10:22

  • #35 7 years ago

    I have an axe to gring with MS because I know it was them that made Bungie rush this game. Bungie used to be a VERY PROUD Dev team... I can't fathom why they released this half-baked kak other than at their bosses (MS's) insistance.

    the other thing I have against them is charging for XBL... It's a joke IMO. They're just trying to claw back all the losses they are making with each console sell... But they are charging the very people that are using (thus supporting) their platform... If MS want to make a loss on each sell, don;t then scrimp and charge their customers for USING the console... It'll make people leave it for PS2 or PC which do NOT charge...

    You want to tell people about HL2... Is this the thread to do it on? Lets keep it on topic huh? LOL

    Yeah I know, I'm a hypocrite...

    HL2 dull and nothing groundbreaking... Dull? Maybe for you... Not groundbreaking? Comon... Grav gun?

  • EVERYGAMER #36 7 years ago

    Bungie, and the Halo Franchise is being used to try to occupy the living room and 'entertainment delivery' system. MS wants this, So does Sony (and so it seems does Apple (Mac Mini + Ipod)).


    one word STEAM :X

  • Lutz #37 7 years ago

    A Halo 2 vs Half Life 2 debate! How original!

  • Lothar Hex #38 7 years ago

    No, the Grav Gun isn't that origional. Other games have let you pick up boxes, barrels and such and throw them at the enemies before Half-Life 2, such as Psi-Ops, and the Jedi Outcast games let you throw enemies around too.

  • Truthsayer #39 7 years ago

    IronGiant, hilarious. Is it the Sony branded dildo up your ass that makes you funnier than usual?

  • IronGiant #40 7 years ago

    whoa, get the nets ready i've caught a whopper.. we're gonna need a bigger boat!!

  • Truthsayer #41 7 years ago

    Do you have Asperger's or something?

  • IronGiant #42 7 years ago

    Anyway, what exactly have i said that you find so objectional oh truthful one? That XBL would be a helluva lot quiter without Halo2, do you not agree then? enlighten me with your wisdom.. or bore me with more childish insults, the choice is yours.

  • drumbaby #43 7 years ago

    "No, the Grav Gun isn't that origional. Other games have let you pick up boxes, barrels and such and throw them at the enemies before Half-Life 2, such as Psi-Ops, and the Jedi Outcast games let you throw enemies around too. "

    And it's a shame HL2 had to make such a meal of its use. Fine, it's a novel new feature in an fps game, but why dumb down all A.I. to facilitate player experimentation, and channel the player like rats in a linear maze to the next kooky physics puzzle, thus buggering all level design?

    Good A.I. (for the time) and more hub-based level design were part of what made HL1 such fun. It had the simple story, well told, the day in the life thing (no cut scenes required) and brilliant sound and visuals that HL2 has (credit where its due). But it was also fun in the combat sections, and had a strong sense of exploration to the levels. It also saved the flabby bits (Xen) for the end game, where as HL2 smothered you with padding for the entire first half...driving and more bloody driving. No thanks.

    This is where HL2 not only fell down, but imho, broke every bone in its body in the process...and all because they wanted to make such a big thing of that bloody gravity gun gimmick. HL1 was a balancing act of the most exquisite kind. Innovation matched with doing the more traditional aspects of the fps better then anyone before it. HL2 just had a big billboard in nearly every map saying 'Source Technology: License It Here'.

    Yeah, I'm still angry about it. Buying an uber spec' PC specifically for a game that took so long to arrive and then turned out to be that mediocre and lifeless can do that to a man.

    When people have a go at DOOM 3 for being little more than a tech' demo...that makes me smile. Sure it was a simple game, but its gameplay wasn't driven by the tech'. The tech' enhanced the mood of a basic premise...a basic premise which called upon dynamite visuals and sound to make it more immersive. Perhaps the technology was the most impressive thing on display in DOOM 3, but its gameplay wasn't dependent on it. HL2 was totally driven by the tech', in that without the physics thing it was less than nothing, with all the compromises in basics like A.I. and level design the grav gun's implementation wreaked on it.

    Interesting, at least to me, is that the upcoming DOOM 3 mission pack is including a grav' gun. 'Including' rather than 'ramming it down your throat'. A cynical ploy to ape the innovation of HL2, perhaps? Or an attempt by another company to use physics again in gameplay, but with a little more restraint?

    Personally, I think the latter...but if it's the former, well, more power to them for not going so overboard.

  • Truthsayer #44 7 years ago

    Clearly you don't use XBL, otherwise you'd know that certainly the hype behind Halo 2 has swelled Xbox Live usage, but there was plenty of PGR2, SC:pT, Burnout 3 (quality of EA's network notwithstanding), SW: Battlefronts and others. Far from a 'wasteland', just people playing different things. Stop exaggerating just because you don't like it yourself. Try marking your 'opinions' for what they are.

    Basically, stop being a dick.

  • The-Bodybuilder #45 7 years ago

    I've said it before and I'll say it again...

    WHAT IS IT ABOUT THE WORD "HALO" AND ARGUMENTS?

  • IronGiant #46 7 years ago

    I have an XBox and i have used LIVE, as i expected you bored me with an insult. Move along now and try to get out more, you may develop some interpersonal skills.

  • Truthsayer #47 7 years ago

    Maybe it's faulty or something? Have you really ever found no-one to play with on Live?

    Or are you just full of shit, as per usual.

  • Truthsayer #48 7 years ago

    I forget PES4, no-one plays that either do they? I've probably missed a couple of other very popular Live titles in my haste to answer your ridiculous lies as well.

  • IronGiant #49 7 years ago

    Haste to reply? Good grief haven't you got anything better to do? get a grip, you're gonna fall out your pram.





  • Truthsayer #50 7 years ago

    Pathetic. No justification for your statements. Away, foul troll.

  • IronGiant #51 7 years ago

    Well if you didn't come across as such an abusive moron then i'd debate.

    How come you didn't attack Lutz for his comment?

  • Kami #52 7 years ago

    By the way STFU, I'm neither a Halo 2 nor a Half Life 2 fan. I'm a MP2 fan. I found it much more inspiring, despite the fact that it was still very samey to the original. Both HL2 and Halo 2 are gathering dust in the cabinet - possibly doomed to never seeing the light of day again. MP2 has almost been permenantly wedged in my 'Cube. Or it WAS until Friday, when I got RE4, which pisses over HL2 and Halo 2 from an enormous height IN MY OPINION (there, stated as opinion).

    If people are happy though, I can't fault it. If they're happy, so be it. I may not think Halo 2 was a great game, but it was definately a good one, and if people like playing it online via Live, so be it. There are worse games out there...