By Mike Snider, USA TODAY  Halo 3 launched straight into the stratosphere Tuesday. 

First-day sales of Microsoft’s Xbox 360 space adventure totaled $170 million in the USA. It was the most successful video game rollout in history and, the company boasted, topped the $151 million Spider-Man 3 made at the box office in its opening weekend in May.

TECHNOLOGY LIVE: Share your thoughts on ‘Halo 3′

Though not quite a fair comparison — each game costs $60 or more, most movie tickets are $10 or less — the early sales are “spectacular,” says Wedbush Morgan Securities analyst Michael Pachter. He estimates 2.5 million copies were sold starting with midnight store promotions coast to coast, meaning one-fifth of all Xbox 360 owners bought a copy in the first 24 hours. “I would guess that the number is 1 million higher in a week, and double by year end.”

GameStop’s Bob McKenzie calls Halo 3 the biggest title in the history of the 4,400-store chain. And Best Buy’s Brian Lucas says: “It’s safe to say Halo 3 is on track to be probably the biggest gaming title that we have ever seen. It’s definitely a phenomenon.” FIND MORE STORIES IN: Spider-Man 3 | Microsoft X Box | Halo | Microsoft’s Xbox | Wedbush Morgan Securities Though Microsoft would not disclose exact numbers of units sold, the company did note that more than 1 million gamers had gone online to play Halo 3, the most activity ever on the Xbox Live gaming network. Game prices ranged from the standard $60 edition to a $130 Legendary edition with a helmet-shaped case and two bonus discs. REVIEW: ‘Halo 3′ lives up to the hype 

Some of those who splurged on the more expensive versions discovered scratched discs when they opened the package. Microsoft says that the issue, in which the discs become loose in the box, affects a small fraction of games and directs buyers to xbox.com/support to get a replacement. Based on early response from reviewers and fans, the Mature-rated game is getting a hero’s welcome. It earned a 96 out of 100 from Metacritic.com’s cumulative analysis of 32 reviews.  “I loved it,” says Miguel Chavez, 39, of Whitestone, N.Y., an administrator for fan site halo.bungie.org. “I thought it was a great capper (to the trilogy). A lot of things get answered, yet enough is left open. Who knows if we will see (the hero, Master Chief) again?” Source: http://www.usatoday.com/tech/gaming/2007-09-26-halo-release_N.htm for more info please visit our site: http://www.semaphore-software.com/web/web_designing_multimedia.htm