Halo 3 Brings in $300 million in first week

Microsoft Corporation's Xbox 360 video game "Halo 3," brought in $300 million during its first week making it the fastest selling video game.

According to Bloomberg.com, "More than 2.7 million people played the alien-shooting title online in the first week." "Halo 3," was released worldwide on Sept. 25, 2007 and sales of Microsoft's Xbox 360 gaming system more than doubled before the debut of final installment of the trilogy developed by the Microsoft-owned Bungie Studios.

The popularity of the video game might aid Microsoft in catching up to Nintendo Company's Wii system, which has outsold the Xbox 360 since the beginning of the year.

It seems the high success rate for the game comes as no surprise to those in the know, "We definitely anticipated a pretty strong release," CIBC World Markets' Brad Reback said in an interview. "The numbers are great, in line with expectations, but great nonetheless," said video game analyst Michael Pachter with Wedbush Morgan Securities.

It seems many people waited until the release of "Halo 3," to buy the Xbox 360 system. In addition, many gamers chose to play the game online which increased the game's popularity even further.

According to the MarketWatch web site, "On Thursday, the company also disclosed that more than 2.7 million gamers have played 'Halo 3,' over its Xbox Live online gaming platform. That represents nearly one-third of the service's total membership."