Halo 3, which is one of the most hyped games in the history of gaming, was released on September 25th.  Microsoft expected to do well with sales of the game, especially considering the massive advertising campaign behind the game.  However, even their early sales predictions of $155 Million were shy of the actual sales figures.

With 1.7 million preorders, Halo 3 is the fasting selling preordered title by far.  Even beyond that distinction, however, Halo 3 has proven itself to have the "biggest day in entertainment history", shattering the previous record of $151 Million created by Spider-Man 3’s opening weekend by earning $170 million in 24 hours. 

Shane Kim, vice president of Microsoft Games, said the following. "Halo 3 has become a pop-culture phenomenon. Not only is Halo 3 setting sales records, it’s also redefining entertainment. Within the first 20 hours alone, we’ve seen more than a million Xbox LIVE members come online to play Halo 3 - that makes September 25 the most active Xbox LIVE gaming day in history."