Halo 4 Breaks Records; Sells $220 Million on Launch Day

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Last Tuesday marked the release of the fifth installment in the Halo franchise of video games, Halo 4. While the series is no longer spearheaded by famed developer Bungie, it was still able to soar to new heights this week, nearing $300 million in global sales and achieving $220 million of that number on launch day alone. The last installment of the series, Halo: Reach, was released in September 2010 and was the previous record holder for launch day sales, selling $200 million.

“We’re thrilled that ‘Halo 4′ has emerged as the biggest U.S. entertainment launch of the year,” said Phil Spencer, corporate vice president of Microsoft Studios. What is yet to be seen, though, is how the game will do in comparison to Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, which is scheduled to release this Tuesday, November 12th. With Call of Duty being the best selling title on the Xbox, it will be interesting to see these two renowned first person shooters compete for sales going into the holiday season.

Halo 4 has been met with generally positive reviews across the internet, receiving a “Metascore” of 87. Most dedicated Halo fans were worried of how well the series’ new developer, 343 Industries, would be able to capture the essence of Halo. The general consensus is that they have done so successfully and have created an experience that lives up to the — more than a decade old — Halo game legacy.

[Reuters]