Its not something to be too surprised about when we consider the international success of the franchise, however I think there are still many sceptics out there that don’t believe that Halo 3 will be as successful in South Africa due to the market not really experiencing its predecessors Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2. Microsoft South Africa just released the following press release regarding the international sales.
Johannesburg, 4th October 2007 — 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.
Microsoft Corp. today announced that “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 in South Africa on Wednesday 26th September, is the fastest-selling video game ever and already one of the most successful entertainment properties in history.
Initial reports from retailers worldwide show console sales have more than doubled compared with the weekly average before the launch of “Halo 3.” With games like “Halo 3,” “BioShock,” “Mass Effect” and “Project Gotham Racing 4,” Xbox 360 has the greatest line-up 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 entertainment and as an art form,” said 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.”
“Halo 3” is the conclusion to the epic trilogy and picks up where “Halo 2” left off, answering questions about 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 multiplayer through four player co op.
Developed by Bungie Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios, the “Halo” franchise is exclusive to the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system. “Halo 3” was released in 37 countries and 17 languages. To date, more than 20 million copies of the games in the “Halo” trilogy have been sold worldwide.
Record week-one sales come 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 video game 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 such as the release of “Spider-Man 3” and “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.” In addition, more than 1.7 million copies of “Halo 3” were pre-ordered in the United States, making it the fastest pre-selling game in history, surpassing the previous record-setting pre-sales of “Halo 2.”
It would be great if we could see press releases from Microsoft about how well Halo 3 is doing in the retail channel locally and what the effect is on local console sales.
[tags]Halo 3[/tags]
Halo 3 lived up to it’s promise I think. From watching a few of my friends play it, I think MS pulling out all the stops to make Halo 3 the absolute climax of the series as it was meant to be 🙂
I think Halo 3 is the best game evr created… the graphics are intense…. MS did live up to its promises… and the multiplayer feature up to 16 players is someting to admire…