Microsoft cashes in: Halo 3 rakes in $170 million on first day

Redmond (WA) – Microsoft can’t complain about the launch of its latest video game : U.S. Halo 3 sales totaled and estimated $170 million on the first day, the company said today.

The result is likely to represent not only a new record of first day sales for video games, but for the entertainment industry as a whole. First day sales of Halo 2 were about $125 million back in 2004, while even the most successful movies scored substantially less than $100 million on their first day.

Spiderman 3, which has been the top-grossing movie in first day sales so far, brought in $59.3 million on its first day. International sales included (which are not included in the $170 million of Halo 3), Spiderman hit $104 on day 1. Pirates of the Caribbean : Dead Man’s Chest, the second most successful movie launch, took in $55.8 million on its first day.

According to Microsoft, more than 1 million Halo 3 buyers played the game within 20 hours of the game’s release. Microsoft did not say, if and how the release of Halo 3 impacted the sales of its game console Xbox 360.