According to a news story on the official website of developer Microsoft-owned Bungie, a total of half a billion games of
Halo 2 have now been recorded on Xbox Live. The figure is clarified as being a total for actual games played, not individual player sessions.
Halo 2 was released in North America on November 9th, 2004 following a record 1.5 million pre-orders. At the time, Microsoft gained significant press coverage by proclaiming that the game sold 2.4 million copies in its first 24 hours for a revenue total of $125 million – more than the total opening day gross the for the Spider-Man 2 movie. The game went on to sell more than 7 million copies worldwide, and became the best selling game on the original Xbox.
The game has continued to be popular following the release of the Xbox 360, as one of the few games to be prominently advertised as backwards compatible with the new console. As such, it has until recently remained the most commonly played title on Xbox Live.
At the same time, Bungie has released a new video on their website entitled ‘The Making of the Halo 3 Trailer’. The documentary features unused footage from the trailer, which became the most popular download on Xbox Live during the E3 week, and comments from Bungie staff. The video is expected to be available via Xbox Live within the month.
