Microsoft's Halo Infinite Crosses Over 20 Mln Players

(RTTNews) - Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox and PC exclusive Halo Infinite has crossed over 20 million players since its launch in December 2021.

Halo Infinite, a 2021 first-person shooter game developed by 343 Industries and published by Xbox Game Studios, is the sixth mainline entry in the Halo series. It is the third in the "Reclaimer Saga" following Halo 5: Guardians.

Halo Infinite has become the biggest Halo launch ever with strong demand for video games as the surge in Covid cases mainly due to the Omicron variant boosts demand for home entertainment.

Halo, in its official Twitter account, tweeted, "With over 20 million Spartans joining us so far, we're thrilled to announce that #HaloInfinite is the biggest launch in Halo franchise history! Thank you, everyone, for joining us on the next step in this great journey."

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, during the company's recent second-quarter earnings call, said that 20 million people had played Halo Infinite and 18 million people had played Forza Horizon 5 to date.

Halo Infinite offers free-to-play multiplayer modes and day one introduction for Xbox Game Pass subscribers. Horizon 5 is also available on the Xbox Game Pass subscription service.

Nadella said, "Game Pass has more than 25 million subscribers across PC and console. Our differentiated content is driving the service's growth, and we released new AAA titles this holiday to rave reviews and record usage."

In a strong holiday quarter for gaming, revenue increased 8 percent, in line with expectations, with significant growth in Game Pass subscribers and first-party titles, as well as continued demand for Xbox Series X and S consoles.

Xbox hardware revenue grew 4 percent driven by continued strong demand and better than expected console supply. Xbox content and services revenue increased 10 percent, lower than expected.