ODST reaches 2.5 million sales; Haloverse expansions detailed

by Griffin McElroy on Oct 8th 2009 10:28AM

After yesterday's full-fledged assault on mainstream gaming news coverage, we were refreshed to read this great USA Today report on the current state of the Halo franchise. Sure, it further promotes the tired opinion that Bungie's ever-popular shooter is set to overtake the Star Wars franchise in the cultural marketplace. However, it backs up that assertion with startling figures: According to the report, Halo 3: ODST has sold 2.5 million units in the past two weeks, bringing the total sales for the entire franchise up to a cool 27 million.

Additionally, USA Today further supports its thesis by compiling a list of the future franchise spin-offs, including -- *deep breath* -- Halo: Reach, the Halo: Blood Line comic series, Halo Legends, Halo Waypoint, the Halo: Evolutions novel (and another heretofore unnamed book trilogy), and more McFarlane toys. Some may accuse this franchise of succumbing to over-saturation -- we think it crossed that bridge around the time it got its own Mountain Dew.

Source

Tags: 343-Industries, bungie, Bungie-Studios, FPS, halo, halo-3-odst, halo-legends, halo-reach, halo-waypoint, Microsoft, Microsoft-Game-Studios, odst, Xbox-360

Reader Comments (68)

If it's overdone/milked, its Microsoft's fault. Granted, didn't Ninty do the same thing with Mario?

When Master Chief gets his own cereal/live action TV show/movie, let me know.

A live action TV show featuring the UNSC traveling the universe a la "Stargate" would be FUCKING AWESOME.

Did you just say halo was milked? You crazy!?!

If you think halo is milked then by gods name Mario, Zelda, Sonic, Kirby (the list could go on) must be milked dry.

I didn't say it was milked, but lots of other people will.

Sorry, didn't read your post correctly... X_x But still...

look at ratchet n clank games

Ratchet and Clank......................... .....1)>(2002)
Ratchet and Clank Going Commando..................(200 3)
Ratchet and Clank Up Your Arsenal.................(2004) <
Ratchet and Clank Size Matters.................2)> (2007)
Ratchet and Clank Future Tools of Destruction.....(2007)
Secret Agent Clank......................... .......(2008)
Ratchet and Clank Future Quest for Booty..........(2008)
Ratchet and Clank A Crack in Time.................(2009)< ;

its get ugly in point (2), 5 games in 3 years, hows that sounds too you?

Yes we can have a show featuring Sgt Avery Johnson kcking covenant butt as a zombie given he's dead.

I still the way they killed him off was pathetic. Guy goes from being near Captain Scarlet like to dead in two blasts.

Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo all have multi entry franchises. For some reason though everyone needs to be reminded that Sony franchises are milked just as hard as everyone else's (most worse than Halo by the way).

so much for justins "it will bomb, 100k units max" on the podcast

Call me when Halo has 6 movies, about 100 video games, a failed holiday special, thousands of books and comic books, and a decent storyline. Oh, and like a thousand toys too.

Halo has always had a good storyline...

Halo's storyline is much better than the last three shitty Star Wars films. Then again, so is a storyline from a two part episode of Blossom. Better acting, too.

They've had more "universe expansion" books released since Halo 1 came out than Star Wars had in the same time period. Same with video games (not to mention the Halo games sold a bajillion times better). Give it time.

Also, Game Fuel Mountain Dew > Burger King glasses with mediocre artwork.

OK, but first I'll call you when Halo is 30-years-old. Star Wars isn't really a good comparison, boyo.

Also, Halo has a good storyline?! Space marines running through samey corridors shooting things is a good storyline now?

The Fullmetal Alchemist guy:

You haven't played the game? Just read it on Wikipedia or something, it really is more than guys running through halls.

-_- if you say you HAVE played the games, though, then we have more important issues to work out.

what Fullmetal Salchemist was trying to say is the story takes a far backseat and many ignore it. People play Halo for other reasons. The story is nothing special.

Good for you if you read the books, congrats on being a loser.

It still needs that damn movie to get off the ground. As massive as Halo is, people that don't game don't really know about it beyond seeing a commercial once or just hearing about it. A movie would change all of that, though.

And the guy who did District 9 needs to be the director. Seriously, I think Halo could potentially be the first really good movie adaptation of a video game.

Halo could easily be a great new sci-fi/action movie series. There are lots of games that could be great films (I would kill for a Mass Effect trilogy), it just takes some talented people behind it and they need to treat it seriously.

The guy who did District 9 was going to be the director, that's where D9 came from.

I guess a lot of people like Halo...

Enough to pay full price for a 6-7 hour campaign and 3 new Mythic maps to the same multiplayer as in Halo 3.

So? I've paid more for less before.

People seem to forget about the endless hours they put into firefight mode, which is a major part of the odst disk.

Hell, as long as the final product is good and not a thrown together piece of shit, I'm satisfied with more Halo(Although it does disturb me a bit).

You haven't really made it until you've had your own Lego game.

Better luck next time Master Chief.

@ Chris D. you talk too fucking much. Seriously dude I cant read a thread without your ugly face popping up at least twice. Your opinions aren't that great and you obviously don't work in the industry so keep it to yourself a little more.

Didn't IGN or one of the gaming magazines do a Lego Halo preview for April Fools? It actually looked like a ton of fun!

Overtake Star Wars!?! WTF are you smoking Griffin?? lol....Star Wars has been around for 3 decades!! if anyone Thinks Halo will be around longer than that and can spawn MULTIPLE BILLION DOLLAR MOVIES they have GOT to be on something stronger than heroin.....

That said anyone with a brain knows that MS won't stop making Halo stuff until a Halo title sells less than 1 million in a month...

Read more closely, Chris. Griffin did not make the ridiculous claim about Halo overtaking Star Wars.

You can never have to much Halo. It's too awesome.

I don't think it has been milked at all. How many Mario themed games have been released just since Halo CE? They release games with more gaps in time between titles than most gaming series (including the beloved COD or Madden/sports series). The difference is Halo has the story and mystique (and the Chief) to back up each and every game, and no game has ever felt rushed (some may say Halo 2 but I, and millions of others, enjoyed the hell out of that game).

The "problem" is every Halo game gets hyped out the ass (rightfully so), and if you let yourself get overwhelmed by it, you will end up hating the franchise and everyone involved with it. I for one let the hype drag me in (like it's designed to do) and go along for the exciting ride.

PS - I miss Game Fuel; I thought it was delicious AND stimulating =0)

FYI, the Horde WoW Game Fuel is the same flavor as the Halo GF

Halo is the Celine Dion of video games.

Master Chief is French-Canadian?

I'll give him 2 points for not using a Kanye reference.

Who cares about comic books and such. Just bring on the games.

Just two weeks after release, and I've already got ODST coming to me in my Goozex queue because people are dumping it by the truckload (I started out number 50 in line).

I haven't played it, but it seems like a lot of initial users are underwhelmed by it, or at least found very little to do with it after playing through the campaign once.

Who's buying Halo to play the campaign and then get rid of it? The hell?

As someone who hasn't played Halo and doesn't like FPS games but does like Firefly and the sci-fi genre, I could see it happening.

Maybe I'm just a sci-fi nut, but I love the Halo universe. I've read all the books, have the graphic novel compilation and am seriously looking forward to the comics/books/anime.

Problem is they tell too much stories by other media, but in actual games Halo 2 & 3 's plot feel incoherent and MacGuffin driven.
ODST had a decent start, but toward the end I feel like "meh?", shame. It could be better if it was aimed to be a main title in the first place

Shut up Cody.

hah nice

Halo hasn't reached the point of oversaturation until my mother knows what it is.

Having an article about it in USA Today might change that, but not until it hits the front page, or is the lead story on the network news.

She doesn't watch movies, but she knows what Star Wars is.

It's funny seeing a Joystiq blogger get his panties in a bunch because *gasp* a SOFT DRINK was made with a Halo graphic on it!

It makes the hundreds of hours I've spent playing Halo 3 MP so... meaningless now.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, the only way I'll EVER be convinced that the Halo franchise is being milked is if we start seeing Master Chief Happy Meals.

That's funny, so does a thin, jaw-line douche moustache like yours Cody.

2.5 million? Holy shit. Those polls done asking people what they were planning to buy gave me the tip off that it would sell well but....2.5? F*$k me. At 60 dollars too.....good lord....

1 year...cost almost nothing....with sales as high as titles with 3-4 year development times...

I don't even know what to say.

Have a seat over there.

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ODST reaches 2.5 million sales; Haloverse expansions detailed

Reader Comments (68)

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