Halo 3: ODST drops 2.5 million, Halo: Reach confirmed as prequel

USA Today reveals Bungie's latest generated over $125 million in under a fortnight; 2010 game will chronicle siege of fortress planet, as expected; Halo franchise sales top 27 million units.

Though there was little doubt it would sell well, Halo 3: ODST is now officially a hit. Microsoft told USA Today that the Master Chief-less expansion pack to the 2007 smash hit sold over 2.5 million copes in the two weeks after its September 22 launch. The company did not specify if those sales were global or just in the US, where the similarly Xbox 360-exclusive Halo 3 has sold nearly 6.3 million units. To date, some 27 million Halo games have been sold worldwide.

Microsoft did say Halo 3: ODST has generated $125 million in revenues for its Entertainment and Devices division. The game should put more wind in the financial sails of the department and its Microsoft Games Studios label, which will release Forza Motorsport 3 on October 27. During its 2008 fiscal year, the E&D division eked out a second straight profitable year, with net income of $169 million.

USA Today also got some new information on Halo: Reach, the fifth Halo game from independent studio Bungie, which broke away from Microsoft in 2007. As suspected, the game will be set before the events of the original Halo, when the alien fundamentalist empire of the Covenant launched a massive attack on the United Nations Space Command (UNSC) fortress world of Reach.

"It's a prequel to Halo one," Frank O'Connor, creative director for Microsoft Halo label 343 Industries, told the newspaper. "[It] is a chronological prequel but it is not a prequel in the directions the Star Wars prequels were to the [original] movies. It will [only] cover events in and around the planet Reach."

The aforementioned events were also the subject of the first novel based on the sci-fi shooter series, author and Gears of War co-writer Eric Nylund's Halo: The Fall of Reach. That novel chronicles both the origins of Halo series hero Master Chief and the sinister origins of the SPARTAN program, which turned him into a supersoldier.

205 Comments

  • demonfox13

    Posted Nov 4, 2009 11:33 am PT

    Rofl another Rehash Halo game, just like the idiots that bought ODST (a freakin expansion with a s....t story, no master chief, no upgraded graphics little to nothing new), they will probably eat this one up too. Halo 1=greatness, halo 2=dissapointment, halo 3= back to the basics and then some that brought it to greatness again, halo odst=M$ way to get into the ignorant fan's pocket. Bungie should turn around and expand on another great (and nostalgic) game that would be worthy of a series...wait for it....ONI! Great story, gameplay, etc. They have pumped so many Halo games that are subpar moreso than the mario games from nintendo (i know i'll get the fanboy thumbs down, but the true fans of Bungie and the better Halo games agree with me). On the 360 alone you got halo3, halo odst, halo wars (EPIC FAIL RTS, this game doesn't hold a candle to starcraft), and halo reach now coming. ROFL, i can't wait for halo: barbie deluxe edition, Halo Bros., Halo Kart, and perhaps a Halo spin off that plays like Final Fight, to catch the old school type hardcore fans.

  • PieCrusher

    Posted Oct 23, 2009 10:49 am PT

    Heh i got ODST for $50, new from amazon.com

  • genjuroT

    Posted Oct 19, 2009 8:07 am PT

    @Koushin

    i stand corrected,sry.but that makes me realize one thing in 2001-2004, i enjoyed cod1 and its expansion much more than halo

  • Gundamforce

    Posted Oct 15, 2009 12:50 am PT

    ODST is a great game despite it's price tag. And every Halo fan knew that Halo Reach was going to be a prequel anyways.

    @ ThreeVo
    Infinity Ward bribed Zero Punctuation.

  • wombawat

    Posted Oct 12, 2009 11:54 pm PT

    wow halo reach a prequel? what a suprise

  • DisturbedClown

    Posted Oct 12, 2009 4:32 pm PT

    Another reason I'm quite glad I don't play online much anymore. Everyone is complaining or bragging about one thing or another. "Ohno, it's not perfect." "It's great, Stfu."
    /Sigh. If you dis/like it, move on. Insulting a game isn't going to help.

  • kerrman

    Posted Oct 12, 2009 2:45 pm PT

    People are still complaining about ODST being a "60 dollar expansion pack", lol. Wow, seriously, this game is worth your money. Unless you don't like Halo, in which case you won't friggin buy it anyways! So stop complaining! Jesus.
    As for Reach being a prequel.. that's not news. Reach gets glassed before the beginning of Halo 1. There's no way it wouldn't be a prequel :S

  • GotRice24

    Posted Oct 12, 2009 2:38 pm PT

    Think of Halo as Bungie's Mario. How long has Mario been around and people still eat it up? Its M$'s mascot. So stop hating. Everyones got to make money somehow.

  • otaku_momo posted Oct 12, 2009 5:56 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    otaku_momo

    Posted Oct 12, 2009 5:56 am PT (hide)

    good job M$, you tricked 2.5 million idiots into buying an expansion pack for $60.

  • shani_boy101

    Posted Oct 11, 2009 6:06 pm PT

    More like Halo: Reach for your Wallets!!

    lol but seriously, Bungie will be making Halo games until every last one of them dies of exhaustion.

  • joma666

    Posted Oct 11, 2009 2:45 pm PT

    halo is becoming the next sellout series...
    like mario they will put the name on the box, add a couple meaningless ideas
    millions will buy it

  • xxscammersxx posted Oct 11, 2009 8:12 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    xxscammersxx

    Posted Oct 11, 2009 8:12 am PT (hide)

    I've got an xbox, but I'm not going to buy this rip-off of a game. Maybe once the gameplay changes I'll buy the Halo games again. As of now, it's the same gameplay repackaged over and over. I'll spend my money on a half-decent game, thank you very much.

  • macca366

    Posted Oct 11, 2009 7:25 am PT

    Congratulations bungie on your first big success after the cut from microsoft ^ ^

    I've been debating whether to buy this game, its always a pleasure to play a Halo game but it really does look more like a top-quality rent, unless firefight is better than I think it is. Bring on Reach

  • Wookiemonster12

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 9:58 pm PT

    @9thedevilmaycry
    no u dont need halo 3 to play odst

  • 9thedevilmaycry

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 3:37 pm PT

    hope we see master cheifs face in reach

  • 9thedevilmaycry

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 3:34 pm PT

    probboly halo 3 ODST its sales went down because it wastnt much different to halo 3
    i dont have it but do u need halo 3 to play it?

  • rpawloski2458

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 8:15 am PT

    Halo ODST is, for me, the ultimate rental. The single player campaign was very good, but it was also extremely short, while the firefight mode is a blast... for a little while. Definitely worth playing, but worth buying? Only if you don't have Halo 3 and need the multi-player maps.

  • Thatguysawesome

    Posted Oct 10, 2009 7:45 am PT

    Goldeneye Rules!!

  • cjasko94

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 10:00 pm PT

    I bought this game.....sooo boring now. Firefight mode.. meh wasn't too special. Was fun while it lasted. Just like Nazi Zombies, Horde mode ect. Note---I love how people are downing if they say something against bungie and halo....like seriously wtf. it's our opinion.

  • godzillavskong

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 9:06 pm PT

    Why do people click on this topic just to post negative posts? I think the game is pretty good. Maybe not the greatest game, but you can tell it has a high production value, and most importantly, it is really fun. I wonder if the same people who post negative posts on this site, go to other websites of their disliking, only to post negatively there as well? If you don't like the game or franchise, don't buy it! That simple.It must get tiresome clicking on every article about Halo, just to spend negative energy dissing it.

  • godzillavskong

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 9:06 pm PT

    Why do people click on this topic just to post negative posts? I think the game is pretty good. Maybe not the greatest game, but you can tell it has a high production value, and most importantly, it is really fun. I wonder if the same people who post negative posts on this site, go to other websites of their disliking, only to post negatively there as well? If you don't like the game or franchise, don't buy it! That simple.It must get tiresome clicking on every article about Halo, just to spend negative energy dissing it.

  • prioritymail posted Oct 9, 2009 12:58 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    prioritymail

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 12:58 pm PT (hide)

    Boooooooo!

    Why did fan boys everywhere buy this shell of a game?

  • cajunstrike posted Oct 9, 2009 11:05 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    cajunstrike

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 11:05 am PT (hide)

    Agreed. Not at all surprising...

  • AlphaCommando posted Oct 9, 2009 6:59 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    AlphaCommando

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 6:59 am PT (hide)

    Bungie? Making another Halo game? HOW UNEXPECTED!!!

  • rickster34

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 5:19 am PT

    Ill buy any halo game, maybe not an rts type
    but ill buy anything else halo so
    im sold

  • bennae66

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 1:20 am PT

    i like halo, i dont worship it but it is the premiere 1st person shooter to me. (eyyyyyooooooooo! to borderlands....) reach looks cool and i like the darker tone set by this prequel. i havent read the books, i wont read the books. i diddnt mind odst. i was going to return it after finishing but decided to keep it for one reason: for people that diddnt download expansion maps for halo3. when we do our next lan, i wont have to compromise on levels since they can use my odst disk. naturally i got and paid for said levels. back on topic: bring on reach, and may eyyyyyyyyyoooooooo! keep me company in the 1st person world till then.

  • Jaguar_Shade posted Oct 9, 2009 12:45 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Jaguar_Shade

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 12:45 am PT (hide)

    If you're scanning these comments and just thumbs downing them for no reason at all other than you're immature and don't like competition...

    Get off the internet!

  • Spectre-123

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 12:13 am PT

    Did anyone actually doubt it was a prequel? I thought it was blatantly obvious ...

  • wondernova posted Oct 8, 2009 9:04 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    wondernova

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 9:04 pm PT (hide)

    i feel somewhat proud to be an avid "xboxer" who has never played a halo game

  • Blade8Aus

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 8:33 pm PT

    @cod2-thepope
    have i seen you before? but you are absolutely right

  • KittyHeart

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 6:53 pm PT

    it sound like a lot fo people who said they wouldnt pay 60$ for an halo 3 expansion pack changed their minds, did n they? lol

  • COD2-The_Pope

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 6:47 pm PT

    @true Blu3: And Halo was only innovative for the consoles.
    Now I'm not saying it wasn't innovative, i'm just saying it wasn't innovative for the PC, as there were already a few games which had already made their mark on the PC. Consoles are what benefited from Halo.

  • True_Blu3

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 6:08 pm PT

    @Blade8Aus

    By each game's innovatory schemes, you should never compare then to each other. Half-Life was innovative by its level design ideas. Every moment in that game was a biological or physical obstacle that opposed Mr. Freeman by his knowledge and stamina. You didn't just kill people, you survived cliffs, electric water, sense-limited aliens, and surprising causes from explosions. Half-Life was innovative, but not gameplay wise.

    Half-Life felt like you were an Unreal tournament player on steroids. You ran unfathomably fast, has incredible accuracy for your guns, and leaped like you were on caffeine. Half-Life did nothing for shooters, gameplay wise. But it made developers think twice before making a mindless corridor shooter.

    As for Red Faction, I really don't know how that game was innovative. It was a Half-Life clone with a useless geo-destroying system that worn out its welcome after the third level. While fun, it was incredibly repetitious.

    Return to Castle Wolfenstein has great multiplayer, but it's single player was horrible. And a lot of people would agree.

    Unreal was an innovation is graphics design and AI, but it had nothing going for it with its lack of story and derivative ecuses in trying to rap up tension.

  • Blade8Aus

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 5:55 pm PT

    @True_blu3
    ever played half life, unreal, red faction, return to castle wolfenstien and more?
    the reason they have only two weapons was more for control than realism i think
    not everybody likes the armor and health system for one i hate it
    honestly if it was made for pc rather than console no one would care about it

  • Putty121

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 5:44 pm PT

    I thought this was obvious to those who cared. Maybe not! Anyway, I'm excited. Good news.

  • True_Blu3

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 5:28 pm PT

    @ThreeVo

    People like you will never understand what made Halo: CE such a unique title, and an original franchise. Without Halo, the shooters that we currently play would continue to have players carry four rocket launchers, three sub machine guns, and a melee weapon that we would never use.

    We would carry grenades in our inventory, and never use them. We would be stuck in levels with 1 health while having no med pack in sight, making us restart the whole game all over again. Without Halo, FPS stories would continue having their lame "portal opens, monsters release" concepts.

    Without Halo, Crysis and far Cry wouldn't be what they are now. But that's fine. People didn't own Xboxs at 2001 and never witnessed how incredible Halo: CE back in that day. You just continued playing your strictly designed FPSs that were all the same for ten, grand spanking years.

    Genres have to change, sir. And Halo changed it, and it's quite sad that we will never witness such a change for a very, very long time.

  • ZeerusX posted Oct 8, 2009 5:08 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    ZeerusX

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 5:08 pm PT (hide)

    Halo: Reach confirmed as prequel...

    WOW. BIG NEWS. lol

    Because walking around on a ball of glass with no life on it would be fun...

    Anyways, why is this news? 2.5 million for a name that is a household term? BOOOORRRRING.

  • ThreeVo posted Oct 8, 2009 4:56 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    ThreeVo

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 4:56 pm PT (hide)

    the world needs more of this man, seriously

    http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/zero-punctuation/8-Halo-3

  • ThreeVo posted Oct 8, 2009 4:50 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    ThreeVo

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 4:50 pm PT (hide)

    @TheArcade

    Halo revolutionized the Genre?! Let me inform you on somthing cause apparently you dont understand.
    At no point was anyone including myself attacking the setting and theme of halo.. including its style of weapons and visual appeal.. what you just said was such a piss poor reply that i dont even know where to start..

    the weapons are phenomenal? LOL, by what standards.. so are the weapons from starwars back when they were introduced in the 70s, u see my point.. Im talking about the game as a game.... not the concept designers and by the by Unreal had all those weapon concepts (give or take) years before halo was released.

    Ands its Halos shantastically low standard learning curve that allows good players and bad players to mesh so well... "experts"? lol u want competitve fps gaming... your not going to do it on a console sorry. And if u really think that marketing wasnt the primary cause for its success then im just going not bother reading these posts anymore

  • long0110

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 4:48 pm PT

    Congrats to Bungie an xbox fans. Im from the few people who hasent had the pleasure of playing a Halo game yet cause i only own a PS3. But from wat i read and saw of the game i know its one of the top games out there. I hope to all the xbox 360 fans out there good luck with the last instalment of Halo and i looking forward to joing you online when i get my new Elite next week and getting all the halos in on go. Peace!

  • Strategygamer22

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 4:21 pm PT

    I really hope that this game follows the first book exactly. The first book is amazing, and stands strong on my bookshelf alongside classics such as The Divine Comedy and epic fantasies like The Legend of Drizzt series. Unfortunately (or fortunately, considering how dull the second book was), they can't really continue making games of the book after "Fall of Reach", because "Flood" on up is the story of the games greatly fleshed out.

  • feryl06

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 4:06 pm PT

    Can we see Master Chief again in another game showing his origins? Hope so...

  • thundaro

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 4:04 pm PT

    @ baystatethrashr

    I am aware of when the 2 came out, red faction in May and Halo in November, that was not the point, the point was that the argument was wrong

    now onto your other point, the grenade button, while awesome for halo is actually something that was done before, b/c it was just a replacement for an "alt" fire button, not a big deal, but many other games had weapons with alt fire at the time that effectively acted like a grenade, all Bungie did was make it be an actual thrown grenade instead of some sort of launcher or some other kind of attack, the same could be said for the melee but again the point is the same, yes many games copied it, but that is only b/c of how simple it is, which is sort of a bad thing, when you look at how simple SOOO many games have become, but that is just my opinion so w/e, the point is still the same, nothing "revolutionary" just a compilation/mix-up of other set-ups

  • Tsuchikage

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 3:56 pm PT

    Congratulations Bungie on making another great Halo success.

  • insanitycheck10

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 3:50 pm PT

    yeah i love this game on the ps3

  • Gothic-360

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 3:37 pm PT

    @Col-Struckin:
    Because most of the people complaning here doesn't own a 360, and maybe had never played a Halo game. And instead of trying to understand why ppl like halo they think is more easy to hate on it.

  • jcouch2020

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 3:32 pm PT

    i wish ''if's and buts'' were candy and nuts, then we would all have a merry christmas

  • joevit posted Oct 8, 2009 3:31 pm PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    joevit

    Posted Oct 8, 2009 3:31 pm PT (hide)

    my 7 year old wants this game so he can own you and tea bag you all. LOL.

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