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Halo 3 Preorders Reach Over Four-Million in North America

xe360.com — While Spider-Man 3 is breaking records at the box office, Halo 3 is apparently breaking records of its own—before it is even out.

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  • strictnein, on 10/12/2007, -3/+23"According to Gamestop officials, over four million preorders have been made for Halo 3 on Xbox 360."

    If that is true that would be insane. Assuming an average of $65 / game (lots of Collectors and Legendary editions will be sold, so this is probably low) you're talking $260 million.
    • mageofdeath, on 10/12/2007, -7/+35I wouldn't place too much faith in gamestop, these were the same guys telling me to pre-order oblivion or else I wouldn't be able to get a copy on release day...
      I just walked into a circuit city and picked one up, no pre-order...
    • R34C7, on 10/12/2007, -14/+1Aww, now I will never get Halo... Or a Wii
    • thatsmyaibo, on 10/12/2007, -2/+21I'll wait and get it at Fry's. Games usually go on sale on release there and I will not give anymore money to Gamestop.
    • Konrad9, on 10/12/2007, -6/+17This number is not true.
      Each Gamestop would need > 1000 preorders per store to be true.
    • real2, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10Gamestop owns Gs stores + EB stores, so that 1000+ preorder might be alot smaller.
    • Zoxy, on 10/12/2007, -3/+9@konrad9
      Exactly I think they have around 3600 stores in the US. So if even if that have 1000 preorders per store that would mean that they had another 400,000 preordered online to equal 4million.

      I know that Halo will sell well but damn that.
    • mrASSMAN, on 10/12/2007, -9/+1Considering the last Harry Potter book has gotten 'only' 1 million pre-orders (on amazon), I find this very difficult to believe.
    • Warpstone, on 10/11/2007, -1/+7Who cares about how many stores they have? Most people probably preordered it online. It beats having to go into the store and having to talk to any of the people that actually work there. /shudder
    • strictnein, on 10/11/2007, -0/+6I would assume that a significant number of people preorder online. I don't go to Gamestop or EB Games. I find the experience there to be grating.
    • CanadianGeese, on 10/11/2007, -2/+3I have mine preordered. Halo 3 is going to crush some records.
    • ilyag, on 10/11/2007, -1/+2For someone who is un-initiated into the world of Halo, because I never owned the original Xbox, what exactly is the appeal of these games that would put them above something like Unreal Tournament 3 (also a future 360 game)?

      Right now, I'm more interested in Unreal Tournament 3 than Halo 3, but I'm curious if Halo has any advantages. All I know is that, online, they're basically nearly the same exact kind of gameplay experience. I'd like to know which of these two has a higher chance of being the better game.
    • adamnikyo, on 10/11/2007, -1/+6"online, they're basically nearly the same exact kind of gameplay experience."

      That's not true. Unreal is faster paced. Halo feels a more realistic pace, to me. I also love the way the weapons handle, and the huge outdoor worlds.
      The thing that sucked me into Halo originally was the co-op campaign. Then I got hooked on the way it plays. Then I really started to appreciate the story.
      Then I started playing multiplayer with friends. Then I started playing online. I've never had an online experience that comes close to Halo (2).
  • stung47000, on 10/12/2007, -9/+16I put in my pre-order. Yes I am a consumer whore, or at least a Halo whore. =)
  • Okari, on 10/12/2007, -79/+13Wow, 4 million pre-orders for a highly overrated game.
    • CaptainNoPants, on 10/12/2007, -15/+47wow, you've already played it???


      STFU
    • LaueOfficer, on 10/12/2007, -20/+4*sticks your ass with a plassie*

      bitch
    • EochaidRiata, on 10/12/2007, -5/+15Hey look at how much hype Killzone 2 has generated, and that is a sequel to a mediocre game which we haven't even seen a screenshot of yet.

    • BlueIndependent, on 10/12/2007, -28/+1WERD. True or not, there will be plenty of people willing to preorder and buy this lame piece. Count me among the Halo haterz. It's a lame series in all but hype.
    • blizzardice, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4lame ps3 owners
  • fuzzboxer, on 10/12/2007, -3/+15Gamestop is notorious for making pre-pre-orders. I'd wager these are being made before any shipment details are headed their way. I don't put stock in these numbers...yet. Still way too early.
    • spookyttws, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5I get the appeal of pre-orders, but (for the most part) don't see the point, especially with games. Most big box stores have more than enough, and youre Gamestops/EB/whatever tend to over estimate the amount per shipment. It's a very large disappointment when you pre-order a game 2 weeks in advance (or months) and show up to receive a rain check for the following Tuesday.
    • xnacoder, on 10/11/2007, -1/+3Well, shockingly, my local EB games sold out of GRAW 2, and there are no other games store in walking distance. I guess preorders have some small, miniscule purpose in some situations.
  • DanaLL, on 10/12/2007, -89/+8What the hell else are you going to buy on the 360?

    The crappy DVD drive, lack of standard harddrive, and weak graphics have ruined GTA IV.
    Mass Effect is now being called Mass Downgrade, yet another UE3 marketing bullshot fiasco for the 360
    Forza damage control photomode shots look like a joke compared to GT real in game 1080 60fps graphics

    No dedicated servers
    P2P networking with the usual laggy online play
    Only 16 players total per game
    Graphics look like a complete joke
    50 dollars a year just to be allowed to play the game online

    Bungie already stole the backlash grenade, you might as well either save your money and keep playing tired old Halo 2 or actually play a real next gen game, Resistance. 40 players per game, dedicated servers for lag free online gaming, insane graphics that never drop frames no matter how many players on screen, the best weapons of any online game, scalable maps, the best party system there. And it doesn't cost a single cent to play.

    Halo 3 has turned out to be so much of a joke you have to wonder if have the hundreds of millions to spend buying reviews and media hype that Bungie just doesn't see any reason to even try.

    • HawkTail, on 10/12/2007, -10/+35That has got to be the stupidest thing i have ever read. I hope Sony pays you well...
    • nreynolds, on 10/12/2007, -10/+18don't worry, this is just a new username this guy made. Someone used to post this exact comment in every Halo related article possible.

      why don't people realize that 360 and PS3 are both good and both fun?
    • kinseyincanada, on 10/12/2007, -19/+5ok the whole comparison of graphics between the 2 systems is crap, the PS3 came out year after the 360, and as of right now it doesnt hae nearly the better graphibs, but in a years time it will be better than the 360 by far because with a year more development it damn well should.
    • scottie924, on 10/12/2007, -4/+12Your PS3 probably cost you about $800? I won't pass that amount spent until at least 2011. So you did pay.
    • spookyttws, on 10/12/2007, -1/+24I've got no beef with Sony, I loved the PS1 and totally respect the PS2, but current gen? Umm....Crackdown, Dead Rising, Gears of War, Elder Scrolls IV, Lost Planet, now Halo 3...And you've got Resistance. And don't go and say "The 360 had a year head start". Yes they did, and they did a great job with what they created. It's been 6 months since the PS3 launched, no one cares about graphics anymore.
    • mrASSMAN, on 10/12/2007, -2/+25That's ***** hilarious. It's as if you've been brainwashed.
    • xnacoder, on 10/11/2007, -0/+6What's up Paizuri?

      Obviously people with Xbox's disagree with you, since statistically, XBoxers buy lots of games. I just picked up fight night round 3 the other day (a game that a lot of people probably never heard of) for $20, and it's been taking all my time :) My XBox has long taken over my PC (which can stomach probably all current games) as my primary gaming platform, mainly because of xbox live.

      If you are going to argue in favor of a console, be careful about doing it buy bashing another one. It will often make you look stupid and invalidate otherwise good points.
    • SpItFiRe3297, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4***** 360 bashers, they bash the multiple great titles for 360 but they only come back with 1 title for ps3, resistance, and I've heard this 40 player crap is lame anyway.
      An article in game informer a while back even said that the levels are so ridiculous you can't even find any of the other 40 players so ***** that game.
      Play Halo 3 when it comes out, don't judge it before then.
    • blizzardice, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3you can put more that 16 people in a game
    • Darcy, on 10/11/2007, -0/+2DanaLL, I've just read your almost identical comment on slashdot about 30 seconds ago, I also saw a very similar comment on a forum yesterday. Are you planning to visit has many online communities as possible in the hope that someone will take your word for it? You're not working for anyone are you?
  • TheFlood16, on 10/12/2007, -3/+12I preordered my Legendary Edition at my local gamestop. I used to love going in there, the people were nice, they always got preorders on time or early, etc. But they've been ***** up lately. Late shipments, they "accidentally" created 3 accounts to my name, thus confusing my prorders and worrying me that I won't in fact get that Legendary edition. I mean I can't even exchange games for credit on preorders without something ***** up.

    anyway, about the 4 million, I can believe that.
    • dRuNk3nIrIsHmEn, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Do you live in my town??? The exact same thing has happened here lately too
    • Tikkimann, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1"If this is all true, it is very likely that Halo 3 will outsell even Halo and Halo 2 combined"

      Damn straight. I'm pretty sure this is how it went in terms of sales:

      Halo 1: 5 mil sold
      Halo 2: 1.5 mil preordered, 8 mil sold
      Halo 3: 4 mil preordered, ??? mil sold

      If the stats are true, and the sales:preorders ratio stays similar to what it was for Halo 2, then this game will outsell the 360, as is.

      If it's true.
  • masterskill, on 10/12/2007, -3/+15http://nikon.bungie.org/news.html?item=18556

    ehhhhh...
    • EochaidRiata, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7They also started taking pre-orders online in June 2005.

      4M is extremely impressive if true, but I wouldn't be surprised if the actual figure were half that.



  • wageslaven, on 10/12/2007, -13/+4Halo 2 sold 8 Million copies on XBox 360... with the Xmas 2007 sales, I'd bet this will easily go over 10 Million before end of 2007. Maybe as much as 12 Million.
  • wageslaven, on 10/12/2007, -13/+5Halo 2 sold 8 Million copies on XBox... with the Xmas 2007 sales, I'd bet this will go over 10 Million.
  • jdoc, on 10/12/2007, -14/+4Buried as inaccurate, as one fellow digger pointed out.
  • identifiedlogo, on 10/12/2007, -7/+1Man! the network would crash the night Halo3 is released. Halo fanboys will overload sockets. Sadly i'm going to be there,....WHOS the jaggernutBi***
  • relic2279, on 10/12/2007, -5/+11Overrated? The game isn't even out yet to use that type of insult. I think people are banking on
    the fact that the first two were fun, so must a next gen version. They say "assumption is the mother of
    all ....." Well I think it'd be a safe bet to assume this game will be worth the $65.

    I don't understand how even teenage sony fanboys can justify dogging a game that isn't out yet. And based
    on past successes with this particular franchise, how they can even look in it's general direction.
  • ortucis, on 10/12/2007, -13/+7Well it's great the Microsoft is doing so much publicity for Xbox 360 games on Digg as well.

    http://digg.com/users/XboxEvolved/news/dugg
    http://digg.com/users/Timmaay/news/dugg
    http://digg.com/users/AnAccount/news/dugg


    Either that or all three are one of the biggest Microsoft fans ever (just saying because I don't really enjoying seeing news about same game posted 3 times in every page.. and I don't like to ignore them :P ).
    • relic2279, on 10/12/2007, -7/+6Oh like Sony doesn't do the same thing... laff
  • HappyScrappy, on 10/12/2007, -7/+24*****.

    This must count retailer orders for units to put on shelves.

    There's only about 5 million XB360s in North America, there's no way 80% of people already preordered a copy. Doubly so no way they all ordered through Gamestop.

    Get off the crack pipe.

    Halo 3 might sell 4 million copies in the NA by the end of this year. But not all as preorders.
    • knodi, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9There are more then 5mill (VGCharts is not correct) but your right 4mill way to high.
    • Warpstone, on 10/11/2007, -4/+6There's over 6 million people on Xbox Live. The Microsoft reps have said about 60% of the people with a 360 play online, so it's safe to say there's still more than just 5 million 360 owners out there.

      And why is 80% of all 360 owners ordering this game so hard to believe? When the Wii was released, about 75% of the poeple who bought one also bought Zelda. Halo is a flagship series for the Xbox console and one of the main reasons a lot of people bought an Xbox in the first place. 80% is a high number, but it wouldn't surprise me.
    • HappyScrappy, on 10/11/2007, -1/+2Live includes original Xbox owners too. Also, MS doesn't break down the accounts. It's very likely there are more than one silver account per machine. Additionally, 6M Live users is worldwide, how do you speak of the number of units in North America from that?

      80% of people preordering the game many many months in advance is completely absurd. End of story.
    • swoosh_bnd, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1Actually, I know for a fact that my friend preordered about 4 copies of the game. So a lot of these might just be Halo fanatics like him.
  • MrSteamTank, on 10/12/2007, -6/+1At the very least halo 3 will be a pleasing 720p halo 2 with a dozen or so new weapons, vehicles, a new playable campaign and great online.
    That in itself makes it worth $70(thats what they cost here in Canada). Halo 3 may not be a revolutionary game but I'll buy it because it has an excellent online component.

    Honestly, I'm more hyped about unreal 3 than halo 3 but both series still rock even though they may have problems. Personally, I love the unreal series because the weapons are actually mostly balanced. My big qualm with halo in general was the sniper rifle, the plasma sword, the rocket launcher were pretty silly in how strong they were.

    The sniper rifle had too many rounds in it's clip for how fast it can kill you and given the rather slow overall movement of characters in halo. The plasma sword and it's teleport charge attack was also rather silly and the rocket launcher having 2 shots in a clip is simply crazy for how big the AoE is on the weapon.

  • 4eloBek, on 10/12/2007, -12/+0im not one of them, i pirate :p
  • RayBan, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4If I'm reading this article correctly, it seems to me that they just called some GameStops in the Greater Cincinnati area to verify this data. I really don't believe this number at all. It's just way too many pre-orders. None of my friends have pre-ordered yet, nor have I and to have numbers so large, I would expect 1 out of my 15 or so friends with Xbox 360's to have pre-ordered it. I call BS. Honestly, you would have to be an idiot to even consider these numbers true. I highly doubt if I called my local GameStop they would be able to verify how many pre-orders have been made thus far. Plus the article list employee speculation that many pre-orders are being made by those who don't even own a Xbox 360. These are low level employees that are providing this information. Do you really believe they can actually provide sensitive information, such as un-disclosed sales records, on a multi-million(billion?) dollar company?
    • SpItFiRe3297, on 10/11/2007, -2/+0They have access to the archive ***** for all the Gamestops in America, so yes.
  • axiomata, on 10/12/2007, -3/+2I'm sure I'll be buying this game once it comes out, but I don't understand why people are in such a rush to preorder it. If I invested that $65 bucks instead of putting it down now for the preorder, I could make a good $5 bucks by the time it was released.
    • stgeorge, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Who plunks down the full amount years in advance? I pre-order strictly online and not a penny leaves my credit card until it is shipped. For those who pre-order at a store, they typically take $5 or so, not the full amount.
  • knodi, on 10/12/2007, -5/+2HOLY ***** 4 mill preorders. crazy.
  • tachyon17, on 10/12/2007, -5/+2There is only 1 million preorders on the new Harry Potter book anyone in their right mind knows there's not 4 million preorders on this damn game
  • xTRUMANx, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Wow, congrats to bungie if the pre-order figures are legit. But it gives some more weight to the theory that alot of people who would buy a 360 for halo have already bought one (assuming those who preorder probably own the 360). I'm now more interested in how much of an impact 360 sales would receive after halo is released: Moderate or huge nonetheless.
  • Deltablade, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3To those who pre-ordered Halo 3:

    Hope you can wait patiently until September. ;)
    • strictnein, on 10/11/2007, -1/+2Or October or November or December. "Fall 2007" encompasses those months as well (well, most of December)
  • dagger57331, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1For those of you saying that Gamestop would need to average 1,000+ preorders per store since they only operate about 4,066ish I think I read in another article. that is valid however, my guess is that their PR is just leaving out the fact that "a great deal of the preorders are actually from Gamestop.com, ebgames.com, etc.." Adding in the websites makes it seem extremely plausible. It's halo 3, people are somewhat lazy, and we love the interwebz, so go preorder it on your computer is the best of both worlds there..
  • BobsYourUncle, on 10/11/2007, -0/+2I went the trade-in route. Blockbuster offered the Collector's Edition for 4 games plus $10. So I picked up a couple bargain bin games and got Collector's Edition. Then I realized I wanted Legendary Edition; that helmet thing is very cool. So I might end up buying it anyway (if I can even find it). Regardless, I've got a copy in my name guaranteed. Blockbuster seems to be a few days behind release date, but it was worth it to get the game for only $25.
    • tacroy, on 10/11/2007, -0/+2Hey, do you have more info on the blockbuster trade in thing? Is there a website? Thanks.
    • BobsYourUncle, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1@ tacroy
      Probably not what you want to hear but I don't think they offer it anymore. I only know of the offer in Ontario (Canada). Not sure where else it would have been offered.
      The link to the deal was here: http://www.blockbuster.ca/promotions.aspx#halo3 but there's no mention of Halo 3 anymore. I assume it's over or you might have to ask.

      EDIT: The offer also used to be some of their in-store flyers. Maybe you could find mention there at your local store. Just a thought.
    • tacroy, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1Thanks for the help!
  • xnacoder, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1I don't believe the claim, but I wouldn't be surprised if it becomes the most pre ordered game in NA history. Xbox live has something like 6 million users, most of which live in NA, and every person I've talked to is picking up Halo 3.
  • SEOforGoogle, on 10/11/2007, -1/+2Proud Halo Collector's edition pre-order Whore ;)
  • MrHawkins, on 10/11/2007, -2/+3I preordered my Legendary Edition in November. [/Halo Fanboy]

    To Danall- I looked at your profile, and flipped through some of the stuff you've posted. Hay, Sony fanboy! GTFO our non-Sony threads. I'll make it no secret I hate Sony (I'm an anti-fanboy) but you won't see me flaming the fact that Halo 2 looks better than Resistance in a Sony. You don't see me flaming Sony's sucky, content-free online service (Captialism much? People want money, so they go where it is. Sony is where it isn't.). If I want to flame Sony, I won't do it in a Sony thead. We'd appreciate a little respect here in OUR excitement.

    kthnxbai, tool.
  • edrift101, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4Is bungie shipping 4 Million+ copies of the game on it's release?

    If not and your local EB Games clerk tells you that they can't fill your pre-order... Punch them in the face.
  • rowlodge, on 10/11/2007, -2/+1i just have 2 games halo 2 and moto gp 06, you have to factor in a lot of geeks who collect these games and don't play them that much.
  • frepnog, on 10/11/2007, -1/+0Halo - 5 million copies
    Halo 2 - 6.4 million copies
    Halo 3 - ?

    I will bet money Halo 3 will sell somewhere around 7 million copies.

    4 million preorders sounds crazy but not really when you think about the fact that MOST xbox 360 owners will buy it.
  • graywolf323, on 10/11/2007, -0/+2http://www.gamespot.com/news/show_blog_entry.php?topic_id=25623668

    GameSpot already proved this false in their Rumor Control
  • AfroRyan, on 10/11/2007, -1/+2Yeah...that's completely inaccurate. From HBO:
    "Okay, at the prompting of Kyle Carmitchel, I did a little research... and this seems really, really, unlikely. According to Gamestop themselves, they operate 4,066 stores in North America - to hit that 4 million mark, these stores would have to AVERAGE 1,000 preorders each. In what I'll freely admit is a totally unscientific study, I called the 6 Gamestops within 25 miles of my home, and asked 1) how many preorders they had already for Halo 3, and 2) how this number ranked in that store's preorder history. Answers ranged from a bit over 100 to just over 200 for question 1, and "near the top" for every store for question 2. It's popular, folks... but 4 million North American preorders is not a reasonable estimate."

    I work at an EB's myself, and we've got about 120 preorders (counting all versions).
  • Darthstudmaster, on 10/11/2007, -1/+0This may be a bit random, but I think they should do away with mothers day, fathers day, valentines and make a "gamers" day on the release date of the 3 biggest games of the year. This way, I wont have to worry about going to work with blood shot eyes and passing out from lack of sleep. Because when Halo 3, GTA 4 come out, I am playing them 24hr straight. Its just a must. I dont know how many pre orders there are (doubt 4 mil) but I bet those who did not will have a hard time getting a copy. It will be like the Xbox 360 and nintendo wii shortage. The shortage may not last as long, and as always, you can buy your 300$ copy on ebay. But most xbox 360 owners want the game, because its those types of games the 360 owners are after. Otherwise we would be happy with our Wii wii. Links/videos like this just fuel the fire to want the game(youtube):

    http://youtube.com/watch?v=dyzMD8yrD1w
  • BearinG, on 10/11/2007, -0/+0I never pre-order games as I always get a copy the day of the release without it anyway. And the only time that I DID pre-order it, It arrived late and other stores had them already on shelves.

    ok fine, it wasn't Halo 3...
  • 2school4cool, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1Am I the only gamer who doesn't worship Halo? Do not get me wrong, Halo 1 was a lot of fun. But Halo 2 didn't do anything for me and the third installment doesn't seem worth the money. I'll just have to play it at a friend's house and see. Maybe that will change my opinion. (Although the videos I have seen do look very nice) Maybe it is just because I'm a girl. Who knows?
    • ThinkRad, on 10/11/2007, -1/+2I gotta say, in almost 3 years of playing Halo 2 on Live, I've come across maybe 3 girls playing it. Big time sausage fest. In other news, I put down my $25 for the Legendary set about 2 months ago and couldn't be happier. Normally I don't pre-order games or consoles, but I read that the Legendary edition would be a limited run, so I was compelled.
    • shaselai, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1i have no interest in Halo either. It doesnt appeal to me at all. I really don't see what was so great about it. The story was alright but predictable.
  • crispydumpling, on 10/11/2007, -1/+0The game will be great...no doubt. But this is not news, it is hype. The full article at Gamespot states that no Store locations would confirm the number of Pre-orders. This is a bogus article. Read it and weep.

    http://www.gamespot.com/news/show_blog_entry.php?topic_id=25623668&sid=6170547&om_act=convert&om_clk=newstop&tag=newstop;title;5
  • Echuta, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1I probably won't be picking it up. I might rent it though. I thought Halo was great. Halo 2 was a decent game but it felt really poorly managed. I know it's a tough thing to do but man, there was some really obvious stuff they missed. I'm interested to see how it turns out though. Maybe after the 100th patch Halo 3 will be playable.
  • xiojqwnko, on 10/11/2007, -0/+0Preorders? Selling out? Well damn, I'll just have to download it.

    Just kidding, I was going to download it anyway.
  • PultheTapeworm, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1danaLL you post the same comment on every halo 3 and 360 story get a ***** life and a 360. ps3 fan bitch!
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