Halo 4 reaches $200 million in sales on the first day

Microsoft has announced that in the first 24 hours of its release, Halo 4 garnered more than $220 million worldwide, eclipsing the record for the biggest day-one opening in U.S. box office history, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, and the biggest movie of 2012, The Avengers – based on U.S. sales alone.

The game is on track to reach $300 million in global sales in the first week, making it the biggest Halo launch in history and the biggest entertainment launch of the year to date.

Halo 4 also set the record for the largest number of players in the history of the franchise, with over 4 million players in the first five days. Users spent a total of 31.4 million hours playing Halo 4.

“We’re thrilled that Halo 4 has emerged as the biggest U.S. entertainment launch of the year,” said Phil Spencer, corporate vice president of Microsoft Studios. “Thanks to the millions of fans worldwide who helped make this another record-breaking launch for the ‘Halo’ franchise, Halo 4 is kicking off a strong holiday season and has become the must-have blockbuster experience of the year.”

Developed by Microsoft studio 343 Industries exclusively for the Xbox 360, Halo 4 is in stores now worldwide. For more on Master Chief’s return, be sure to read our Halo 4 Review.