[GameSpot] - Halo Hits 81 Million Copies Sold Ahead Of Halo Infinite's Release

[343iBot]

Ahead of Halo Infinite's release in December, Microsoft has announced new statistics about the sci-fi shooter series that speak to its size and scale.

More than 81 million Halo games have been sold since the franchise debuted in November 2001. Microsoft did not provide a sales breakdown by game, but the company said 2015's Halo 5: Guardians was the "biggest Halo launch to date." For comparison, Activision has sold more than 400 million Call of Duty games, while the GTA series has passed 355 million sold. The Halo series is exclusive to Xbox platforms and PC, while those franchises are multiplatform.

Microsoft also announced that Halo has generated more than $6 billion+ in worldwide product sales, a figure that surely also includes merchandise. Additionally, Microsoft said more than 3 million people played Halo: The Master Chief Collection on Xbox One and PC during launch week. This is presumably a reference to each game's respective launch weeks, as the game launched on Xbox One in 2014 before coming to PC in 2019.

The game had a very rough start on Xbox, but 343 has steadily and impressively supported the game over time, and the company plans to keep the updates coming even as Halo Infinite launches (though the frequency of updates will slow down).

The original Halo: Combat Evolved was a launch title for the original Xbox back in November 2001, so the 20th anniversary is right around the corner. Microsoft is holding an anniversary video broadcast where it will look back and celebrate Xbox and Halo, among other things. For more, find out how to watch the 20th anniversary Xbox event and what to expect.

In addition to Halo Infinite, Microsoft is working on a Halo TV show starring Pablo Schreiber as Master Chief--it's set for release in 2022 on Paramount+.

View the full article