Halo 3 ODST Sells 2 Million Units In First 24 Hours
by Ashleigh Lyons, posted on 23 September 2009 / 36,501 Views
Halo 3: OSDT launched yesterday, 22nd September 2009 in most major markets but Japan. Sales expectations for the title were mixed - on one hand it is a Halo title, but at the same time ODST has seen a fair amount of criticism for being charged at full price for what many believe is more of an expansion than a full game. With a critic review average of 8.7 and many reviewers commenting that ODST is indeed worthy of the price tag of a full game, did the sales live up to that of a Halo game?
As reported earlier in the week, final Halo 3: ODST preorders stood at around 1.35m in the Americas - lower than Halo 3's 1.95m but still impressive. Preliminary data is now in, and we can exclusively reveal that day 1 sales in the Americas were just over 1.5 million, with a further 500,000 sold in Europe and other regions. Total Halo 3: ODST sales stand at around 2 million worldwide (vs nearly 3 million for Halo 3's first day back in 2007) - generating over $160m in total revenue. Bungie leaderboards show over 950,000 users have already signed up with ODST.
So how does ODST compare to Halo 3? Sales are down around 30% on day one, but ODST still sits in an pretty exclusive club of games that can sell over two million units in a single day - ODST is selling about on par with another big Xbox360 title - Gears of War 2 and should reach sales of 6-8 million before Halo Reach arrives.
It is still too early to see whether ODST will move much hardware. Conventional wisdom will suggest not really since the game will be selling primarily to those who already own Halo 3 but there will be a small boost associated with the high profile release of the title and general marketing buzz.
Stay tuned to VGChartz for more updates as new data arrives and the final week one figures next week.
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182 Comments
.....and to people thinking people will not be buying an xbox 360 for halo odst needs to realize the halo fanbase is growing.
once again people don't understand the reason why halo sold so well is because microsoft waits till 360 fans are dying for a new exclusive game cause 360 has no good games right now so what does everybody do go get halo because they think it's the next big thing out when i herd it's not better than the third.
@aznable on legendary you CAN die from just one shot in Halo 2, from the covenant sniper rifle thingys, even if you have full health.
I wasn't really trying to say sales=/=quality, but I guess that fits in. But yeah, word of mouth really contributes (like Uncharted, although it had a poor launch, it sold well in the long run). And indeed, many people who hate haven't even tried the online for themselves. If you can somehow ignore the immature community (which is a little hard for me, tbh), it's actually lots of fun. That + its sales is why it's in the MLG (and of course Ms sponsorship).
@ps3ftw no ones into killzone 2 that's why they havnt sold fuck all halo odst destroyed it in 24 hours lmfao
They overtracked it. Halo ODST sold under 300k because everyone hates Halo now. They're all into Killzone 2 now.
Congrats to Bungie and Hopefully this game can pull more 360 sales
@huaxiong90 Agreed that having good sales doesn't prove a game is good, particularly if it's marketed well. But you don't sell 10m copies of a game just because its marketed well... word of mouth will squash your sales after a short period of time... so it IS an indicator of how much people liked the game. Also, I think a lot of people who aren't into Halo online and Halo parties don't really "get" why Halo 3 sold to such a high percentage of the user base when it was released. I remember going to a Halo party shortly before the Halo 3 launch and listening to how pumped everyone was about getting a new Halo, one that was actually built from the ground up for the 360, to refresh the existing Halo 2 gaming that was starting to get stale. It's like seeing a great movie and then waiting in long lines when the sequel finally comes out. I didn't really give a rat's patootie whether or not Mt. Dew bottles had Halo ads on them, I wanted a new, fresh version of Halo. That's it. Massive Halo 3 sales were MS/Bungie's to keep or lose... they didn't create that fire, they only fanned the flames among Halo enthusiasts. It's like saying that people would not have gone to The Empire Strikes Back if Lucas hadn't promoted it heavily. Bull *cough* pucky. :-)
Why does every 360 exclusive that sell very well end up being trolled to hell by fanboys? Butthurt or what?
you dont get killer by one hot of sniper rifle in legendary difficulty. ok mekaha i do like just halo:ce...it's weird you dont like the other halo games beacause they ineriht a lot from CE with little enanchements
@evilronnie42 why is it trolling? why is it that to this day, I STILL play Halo1, but I played Halo2 once through and never played it again? What fun is it when you're on legendary diffuculty, and you can get killed with one hit by a sniper, like in Halo 2? I didn't find that fun at all Some of the new vehicles in Halo 2 were interesting when you first try them, but that wore off real fast For me, I was burned once with Halo2, twice with Halo 3, but I won't fall for the hype a third time. I will not buy ODST
@makaha firstly your trolling, 2ndly halo was fun, just i guess you wasnt any good at it anyway firefight is brill, kinda hooked to trying to get that blooming recon.lol
@crumas2 ahhh, a 360 fanboy 711 did have those Halo 3 drinks, didn't they? I don't recall LittleBigPlanet having that I ain't no PS3 fanboy, I don't even have a PS3, but my friend does, and LBP and Valkyria Chronicles are awesome games, much better to me than Halo 3 ever was I mentioned below that Halo 1 is one of my all time favorites, but I was burned once with Halo 2 and again with Halo 3, which I think is one of the most overated and overhyhped games ever. I played Halo 2 once through and Halo3 once through and at the end when you're driving the warthog and everything is falling apart, I was thinking "what a rip-off of Halo1" and I never played Halo 2 or Halo 3 again. Granted I don't play online, I much prefer co-op with a friend, actually split-screen co-op Of course Halo 2 and Halo3 had that, but it was just the same rehash as Halo 1, except the weapons balance was off, and it just was boring to me, I can't even remember the storyline in Halo 2 and 3. Earth Defense Force 2017 was MUCH more fun than Halo 2 and 3. Which brings me to another point, Halo 3 sold gazillions, but it doesn't make it a better game than LBP, which saw mediocre sales, or Valykyria Chronicles which sold like 1/1000 as much as Halo3 but is 10 times better. A great game is a great game regardless of how much it sells. Another example is MadWorld on the Wii.
@piggy: firefight is where Halo 3: ODST truly shines, in my opinion.
I haven't seen any ODST trailers here on UK TV neither have I seen any celebrities celebrating the release of this game like Halo3.. But anyway I did get this today not expecting much but came away really liking this more over halo 3.. halo 3 single player bores me silly... but this is much more atmospheric and the ODST's really give this a "human" feel to the game.. really good game on its own right. Not tried firefight yet..
Ok, I like that you calmed down a bit. I respect that. :-) Glad there are some people who will gladly listen to reason, and not run their mouths off just to boost their self-esteem. About Halo 3, this is what I've been saying, people bought Halo 3: ODST because they loved Halo 3 (I own a copy myself along with the ODST controller, Halo multiplayer is very addictive). But why do you think Halo 3 got such strong sales? One factor was the brand name that Halo 1 and 2 achieved. But the mass advertising helped even more. And it payed off. That's all I was saying, bro. As for LBP and MGS4, I still honestly don't see how they were advertised anywhere near Halo's level. Halo 3 had its own Mountain Dew, and there were paint jobs on so many things on the streets I can't even count how many, and the TV was flowing with Halo 3 ads. One thing that really hurt MGS4 sales was the hefty price tag of the PS3 (and it wasn't doing so well at the time). But 4.2 million and 2 million copies sold for the 2 mentioned games isn't pathetic. Those are actually good numbers. This is the other problem: Halo 3 sales made people elitist. What we should care about is whether it's profitable or not, and I'm fairly certain MGS4 and LBP achieved just that. And again, the tanking PS3 sales at the time contribute to the sales of LBP as with MGS4.
Bottom line_______________ is that Halo and to a certain extent Gears of war are sales MONSTERS, and they have sold incredibly well without hardly any bundles (just limited edition bundles or timed bundles). People continue to curse both games (Halo more due to higher sales) but their cursing gets them nowhere, if anything all you are doing is keeping these 2 FANTASTIC franchises in the spotlight. So thanks for the extra exposure Non Halo, Gears fans ;-)
@huaxiong90 By stating that "It's the marketing of Halo 3 (without the ODST) that counts", I don't think you really understand why ODST sold 2m copies in 1 day. It's not because MS marketed Halo 3 out the wazzoo... it's because millions of Halo 3 players loved the game so much that they decided to buy the next Halo installment. Simple as that. And LBP was VERY heavily marketed... I could barely turn on the TV or open a magazine without seeing an LBP add for weeks before launch. Halo 3 ads were the same way, but I think people who say LBP wasn't heavily marketed compared to Halo 3 are primarily trying to explain away only 2+ m sales on a PS3 exclusive that was supposed to be the best thing since sliced bread. It has sold less than 1/4th as many copies as Halo 3... that's pretty pathetic. Even the mighty MGS4 has sold less than half the copies of Halo 3, and I saw MGS4 adds about every 15 minutes on some stations prior to launch.
It's funny, you're the second guy to jump on the whole "You guys keep saying Halo sucks" bandwagon when I never even spoke ANY ill-words about it.
@crumas2: Are you telling me Halo 3: ODST will move consoles significantly? It would make sense for Halo: Reach to move consoles, but Halo 3: ODST? Every body who bought ODST more than likely owns Halo 3 (and as such, an Xbox 360), and a contributing factor to Halo 3 sales was its marketing. And if you think LBP and MGS4 were advertised on the same scale as Halo 3, you're blind. Furthermore, I defended Halo 3: ODST as a reasonable purchase if you can scroll down a few posts below yours, so it's not "eating" at me (I'm a gamer, I play games, not consoles). So once again, your point is moot.
@huaxiong90 You can keep telling yourself that MS marketing of Halo before ODST was responsible for the extraordinary success of ODST, but that will simply introduce people to the brand, not make it have legs. That comes with general satisfaction of the user base. I know it eats at PS3 fans to see the Halo franchise succeed again and again, but no one outside the PS3 fanbase is really buying into the arguments that Halo 3 and Halo ODST aren't great games, they're just living off MS marketing past or present. Sony spent a bloody fortune marketing MGS4, and THAT should have been popular in EU as well as America. Same with LBP. You guys just keep on trying to explain away how good the Halo franchise is... I'm going to get some popcorn and enjoy the show. :-)
i can only imagine the amount of money activision will spend with CoD:MW2... ten times sony did with lbp because it will sell ten times than lbp... lol. someone would say to sony to spend more money in marketing their titles instead gave them aways for free with bundles. real # of lbp copies sold? maybe 800k
@ crumas2: Moot point. It's the marketing of Halo 3 (without the ODST) that counts. It was HEAVILY advertised compared to LBP. Not only that, but 4.2 million isn't something to look down at, and you're ignoring the fact that most Xbox 360 owners who wanted the game couldn't afford a PS3, so they just had to move on. It was marketed much better in Japan than the US or Others regions. Neither MGS4 nor LBP were marketed anywhere near the likes of Halo 3.
@crumas2 "LBP had much heavier marketing than ODST, yet it has sold only 2.3m copies TO DATE. That's right... ODST sold almost as many copies in 1 day as the legendary LBP has sold over many months. The often lauded MGS4 has only sold 4.2 m copies to date, yet was very heavily market" u basically can't validate that statement when 360 currently dominates america's market no matter how big or small the installed base is. So marketing plays a minimal role when huge chunk of fans are already up among the current userbase, particularly America. Sony doesn't need any better marketing as such. They need to be conistent.
just take the preorder numbers in America, the franchise is blessed. or else numbers wud've been only close to like most of other previous million grossers...but I don't think it's going to push the H/W sales.
I have to laugh at all the "marketing" of Halo:ODST comments, as if that's why it sold 2m copies in 1 day. It's true that it would likely have done worse if there were no marketing, but most people, myself included, who have played Halo 1, Halo 2, and Halo 3, would have purchased this title just to get the new campaign, firefight mode, and the improved-graphics version of Halo 3. Here's a serious question for PS3 fans who keep saying this game only sold amazingly well because of MS marketing: LBP had much heavier marketing than ODST, yet it has sold only 2.3m copies TO DATE. That's right... ODST sold almost as many copies in 1 day as the legendary LBP has sold over many months. The often lauded MGS4 has only sold 4.2 m copies to date, yet was very heavily market. And you can't explain away the gaps by saying the installed base of the 360 is bigger... it IS bigger, but not nearly by enough to explain this sort of difference.
@Kyuu: It's not so much marketing support. Halo is a strong brand name, and it will sell. As for Forza selling close to GT, it's possible, but would need heavy advertising, because GT, like Halo, is a very strong brand name. I have tried ODST myself, and the hate needs to cease. Sure, it's not too different from Halo 3, but firefight mode is addicting.
I got my copy in Japan where there is absolutely no love for the game. I know quite a few gamers here and hardly anyone even knows the series. And thats not to say they are entirely against shooters. Thought they dont embrace them like in the west, there is a small following for a few titles like Left For Dead, Modern Warfare, Lost Planet. Anyhow I am pleased with the game.
just to put things in perspective though-- sales of: Wii Fit 22 million Nintendogs 22 million Wii MK 17 million and many other Nintendo titles these put everything, including Halo, to shame Nintendo owns all!!!!
sebnod: Even if Halo 3 sold in US 50% less than it did the game would still hit 6ml WW. Almost 3mln people bought Halo 3 outside US, ODST sold 500k outside US in 24h. Not only in US people love Halo, so don't talk nonsense.
oh god I can't stop laughing at killzone 2 performance compared to this. Killzone 2 is a better game than Halo in my book but ... I hate to say this. but Microsoft is getting marketing so much better than Sony. Sony really need to do something. Now I'm thinking Forza 3 might perform closely to the GT5.
@XanderZane I'll say the same thing to you as I said to LtSombreChief: sales do not equate to quality Valkyria Chronicles had poor sales, but it is one of the best strategy/RPGs ever who cares about sales? a great game is a great game
Why do ps3 fanboys still say how odst is an expensive dlc when in fact it became more of a full game not very long but a game none the less, when in fact ps3 fanboys ran out and brought the most expensive demo of all time gt5 prog £30 here.
LtSombreChief What has sales have to do with the quality of a game? Look at Madworld on the Wii, it's a fantastic game but it has poor sales. You're ignorant if you think the sales determines if a game is great or not. Valkyria Chronicles is one of the best strategy/RPGs ever, but it has poor sales. LittleBigPLanet has one of the highest scores on metacritic, 95 I think, but it only has mediocre sales relatively speaking. But so what, it's still a great game.
Maybe it's just me, but as time went on, the series just became too much of the same thing. Halo 1 was the best, in fact, it's one of my favorite games of all time. I STILL play the campaign co-op with my friend, and it's STILL fun. But to me, Halo 2 was a little bit of a let down, I played it once through, and never played it again. It was the same with Halo 3. I had much more fun playing Earth Defense Force 2017 than Halo 2 or Halo 3 I guess nothing can compare with the first time you encounter the Flood in Halo 1. What a great moment in gaming history. But playing Halo2 and Halo3 it was like, I've been there, done that. So much so, that I'm not even going to bother playing ODST.
Sony Fan boys: we are mad because we don't have any games that sold 2 million copies in the first 24 hrs so were just going to talk trash about it even though we wish we had a game like it but the only descent shooter we have is killzone 2 but hardly any body bought it too bad
whats up with sony fanboys bashing halo yet again you bashed halo 3 halo wars and now halo odst i can expect the same thing from you all when reach comes out
TheTruthHurts! i could have not said it better myself odst was amazing and despite the fact that ps3 fan boys wanna bash it is fine they can talk when 1 of there games sell 2millon in 24hours
@ sebnod.....keep on hating bud, thats all you know how to do. I am 31 years old, and guarantee I have been gaming longer than you, so dont negatively comment on gamers like XanderZane simply because he supports a great game on a great console. Halo is a fantastic series, and hasnt killed my brain. I enjoy my PS3 exclusive, but I am not blinded by fanboyism, so as not to recognize a fantastic series such as Halo. So........... for us Halo fans we will continue to enjoy a fantastic series. The future of gaming still looks bright. The sales continue to speak a thousand words, and completely drowned out your unintelligent hate.
Wow, $60 for a new campaign and rehashed multiplayer maps people own already (besides the 3 extra ones, which Bungie is not releasing as DLC, wonder why?)...expansion packs sure are expensive in Microsoft's camp. Slap "Halo" on anything and its a guaranteed sell for 360 owners. Halo 1-3, Halo Wars, Halo 3:ODST, Halo Reach...is that all MS has to offer? No new IP's with fresh ideas? Pfft...
always funny xanderzane, this is not jealousy this is reality. Your are probably too young to understand. Without USA, Halo is nothing, just remind that. I prefer PS3 exclusives, need brain: Heavy Rain, Last Guardian, Uncharted 2. They will not have 10 millions as Halo3 but are far far better than him, for sure. M$ killed your brain, good luck for future of gaming.
chrisrulz555 says: Around 70 people lined up outside my local EB to pick it up at midnight, about 8 of which also picked up consoles. Pretty good for whats basically an expansion pack. ******************************************* How many people lined up for Killzone 2? I know I didn't. LOL!!
There will awesom be haters of Halo dominance. Nothing new. I think they are all jealous. This is the game that should have went up against Killzone 2 and as we can already see. Halo: ODST is the clear winner in sales right out of the gate.
@aznable you defnately on crack! reviews?? check out Killzone 2 review scores! You never played the game so stop been a blind fanboy MS doesn't love you the way you love them! It's all about games the 360 had them all when it came out but since 2008 the PS3 is the machine with better games, free online,blu-ray, wifi, and reliable hardware! I love MS too the 360 is stil worth for Halo and Gears but the truth is out there!
@cliffyboy Yep... we 360 idiots all glom onto underrated games like Halo because that's all we got and we were too stupid to buy a PS3. LOL!
@Tzymische Many people are buying the collector's edition to get the controller (I did). That edition is $100.
reviews and sales says the opposite zedux; about the engine...how many games use the same engine? a lot... call of duty MW e WAW use the same engine and no one said they where the same game. the weak poijt of halo:odst is the lack of a new multiplayer...that's all
aznable! are you on crack?? you need help body! trust me! I love Halo but Killzone 2 is a much better game than any Halo game!
to haters... halo is a far better game than killzone. guerrilla spent a lot of money and time to bring one of the worst and boring single player experience ever created
Bring on your hatred, do not hold back! If you do, Halo might sell even more!
In Poland ODST in every store is for 50-52$ :D Bought it today. Great firefight.
All that proves is dumb people will buy shit products. Well done fuck wits. M$ and Bungie are drinking champagne and whoring it up right know. Infact I can hear a massive order for whores going in right now, topped off with expensive food and a holiday to the Bahamas. Save your money and spend it on your own whores, expansive food and drink.
killzone 2, 4 years to make, 8 months old 1.9m sold. halo odst, 14 months to make, 24 hours old 2m sold lmfao :)
Lol at the haters. Well done Bungie, bought it for £30.00 who pays full price these days?
can someone explain to me - how 2 mln units (less than 60$ per unit) makes 160 mln $ ?
Wow, 160 million dollars in 24 hours. Congratulations Microsoft and Bungie for making another successful product.
it seems like the halo franchise is microsofts ancor that keeps them afloat, cuz without halo i don't know what yall would do. halo is soo overrated, it's basically what got the first xbox started, but of course odst will sell alot cuz thats all yall have unlike ps3 they have lots of terriffic games coming out
CatFangs806: MW2 will sell much better on X360 alone than ODST. In US preorders were already the same and in EU MW2 had probably more than ODST in EU and it is still a way to go. First week for ODST - 3-3.5mln WW / MW2 - 4.5-5mln WW on X360 alone.
@ecc why do you care if gaming is messed up just because people buy full priced expansion you didnt buy it so SHUT THE FUCK UP about it and wait for you Modern Warfare 2 which i hope its good which is gonna be another been there done that kinda game
Around 70 people lined up outside my local EB to pick it up at midnight, about 8 of which also picked up consoles. Pretty good for whats basically an expansion pack.
got it and beat it. fun game. it's a great game that is worth the full price tag. not just a simple expansion pack.
Great result for Bungie. I'll be interested to see if it does end up between 6 & 8 million. At a guess I'd say ODST will have a front loaded sales pattern. Day 1 is ~67% of H3, I think that's as close to H3 as it will get. Its sales will drop to a lower baseline than H3 and it will get there sooner. I would say ODST will end up at about 50% of H3 LTD sales. So 8 million is only likely if H3 gets to 15 or 16 million, 6 million is fairly plausible since 12 million is definitely doable for H3.
And so much for Halo ODST no living up to the sales hype...and this is an expansion (or so haters would like us to believe)...The game is going to do 6-7 million LTD and and wouldn't be surprised to see Halo Reach do 5 million in week 1.
No. Modern Warfare 2 will sell more on 360. Last week, ODST and Modern Warfare 2 had about the same number in pre-orders. Modern Warfare 2 still has a month and a half till it releases, and you can expect more pre-orders in that time. Plus the non pre-order sales that it will accumulate in it's first week. The types of legs that these two games have will determine which will sell more, though.
WTF...halo ODST sells in 24 h, like killzone 2 in 7 months..? ,Ouch! lol..Sorry is funny ..
I just can't understand why people like halo...it's not that good...
I just finished it solo on heroic, gonna go full 4 player Co-Op (on legendary) over live in a few days. The campaign is definitely better than Halo 3s and its a good thing they skipped dual wielding and brought back the pistol. It makes it feel like Halo 1 which is still the best. I just miss fighting elites and big open environments (its there but not in the same way). Melee weapons i miss though and the health system even though its in Halo 1 i still prefer the Halo 2/ 3 way. The multiplayer is basically the same game that Halo 3 is plus 3 maps, which is a downer. They could at least made like 20 new maps or something and it would have been the best "expansion" ever.
"Snake612 says: Those are some pretty huge sales. Halo 3:Reach will probably sell more under 24 hours." LOL Halo 3: Reach. Somebody didn't do their research
Why can't folks just give props where props are due? It sold 2M. Congrats, Bungie. If you don't like it, so what. Give respect where respect is due. It sold. Whining about it won't make the sales stop, vanish or evaporate. Big deal? Folks would have been screaming at the top of their lungs had KZ2 or any PS3 title. I haven't played it yet, but if any other game had this kind of numbers - and the numbers aren't all in yet - you'd give it props. Well, it has impressive numbers. Good job.
it's selling more in a day than most other games do in a lifetime. nice
I agree with Vergis, I have a 360, but I don't like halo game, I know is a good game, but not that great, i prefer modern warfare 2.
Impressive 1st day numbers... Well deserved! Love Firefight and playing as an ODST made me realize how tough Chief really is... Love the change though. Also, glad they brought back the Halo 1 pistol (Head shots are awesome!). Congrats Bungie!
@ Darthdevidem01 You are right GT shouldnt be in with MGS and KZ. But remeber GT3 and 4 didnt get near 10 mill till PS2 had sold about 80 million. If 360 ever got that much sales I'd hate to think what Halo 3's numbers would be. 20 million?
Man, this series truly is the FPS master. People say about Halo 3 being not that great or overhyped, and yet it's Expansion sells as good if not better tha MW2 will on 360. Well done Bungie. ODST is a fantastic game, and the best FPS this gen IMO.
Amazing game, simply amazing. Sales are through the roof and in 1 day......dominated!
"Well it didn't cure cancer, so it must not be THAT good." Ok, that wasn't a real quote, but it might as well be based on what some of you are saying. Game did amazing day one sales for what was likely not an extremely expensive game to make. Good form.
its good so y not buy it? its impulse sales right now and its cool that it sold almost like halo 3.
2 million people conned in 1 day... go microsoft lol... damn I hate them so much. Halo is not THAT good...its good yes but just no. Most overated game in history. FFS wake up people. No im not a fanboy btw, i own all current gen consoles all of which I think are good.
Another year, another Halo game. Maybe some day I might actually buy one.
Holy shit thats alot. Funny how people are so fast and compare it to Gt5 and Killzone 2. Guess the fanboy war will stay forever.
Wow, goes to show you that a few BILLION dollars in marketing can sell anything, even the sequel... Just like the Transformers Movies.
