Xbox Gaming in South Africa

The highly anticipated Xbox 360 exclusive Halo: Reach released on Tuesday, and as expected, it's doing pretty damn well in the sales department. In fact, according to Microsoft, Halo: Reach's launch generated $200 million in its first 24 hours of release in America and Europe, making it the biggest entertainment release of 2010 in the US, and in a single day easily eclipsing the opening weekends of movie blockbusters Iron Man 2, Alice in Wonderland, and Toy Story 3.

“‘Halo: Reach’ is the biggest game Microsoft has ever released, and its launch has already surpassed every game, movie and entertainment launch this year,” said Phil Spencer, corporate vice president of Microsoft Game Studios. “Every major installment has grown in scope and popularity, firmly cementing the ‘Halo’ franchise as one of the most popular entertainment properties in the world over the past decade.”

While the number of copies sold is still to be confirmed, if each game sold at $60 a piece, we're looking at around 3.3 million copies sold on 1 day. Not bad at all, but slightly off the 4.7 million copies ($310 million) first day sales record held by Modern Warfare 2.

It remains to be seen if Halo: Reach will be the biggest game of 2010, but either way, it's sure putting up a good fight.