'Halo: Reach' release date announced

By Hector Cortez May 24, 2010, 10:13 GMT

“Halo: Reach,” the prequel to the Halo trilogy, will launch worldwide on September 14, 2010.

Microsoft today announced that “Halo: Reach,” the prequel to the Halo trilogy, will launch worldwide on September 14, 2010.

Developed exclusively for Xbox 360 by Bungie, “Halo: Reach” follows the story of Noble Team, a squad of heroic Spartan soldiers as they make their final stand on planet Reach, humanity’s last line of defence between the Covenant and Earth.

During the past 10 years, the Halo franchise has inspired multiple New York Times best-selling novels, comic books, action figures, apparel and more, and it has sold more than 34 million games worldwide to date.

As a testament to the anticipation for its release, more than 2.7 million fans helped make entertainment history this month by participating in the “Halo: Reach” multiplayer beta on Xbox LIVE, making it the largest console video game beta test on record and more than triple the size of the “Halo 3” beta. Players completed more than 13 million online games and logged over 16 million hours of online gameplay, amounting to over 1,826 years of total play time in just over a two-week period. The data and user feedback gathered from the beta will help Bungie and Microsoft further refine the game before launch.

“Halo: Reach” is available for pre-order in standard, limited and legendary editions at participating retailers worldwide. The centerpiece of the legendary edition is a 10-inch-tall, hand-painted and individually moulded Noble Team statue crafted by McFarlane Toys. As a special bonus, fans can receive a token to unlock an exclusive in-game Spartan Recon Helmet, by picking up a copy of the game on launch day at North American retail stores, and outside of North America by making a pre-order reservation at participating retailers.