Halo Franchise Sells 46 Million Copies, 5 Billion Hours of Gameplay on Xbox Live

Halo 4 is just around the corner, but even without the new game the franchise has still done well for itself.

According to a bunch of new stats from Microsoft (via VG247), the franchise has sold 46 million copies since it launched in 2001, and Halo: Reach even managed make $200 million in sales during it's first week. That's nothing compared to the total of the entire series since it has generated over $3 billion in sales since its debut.

The franchise has proven popular on Xbox Live, too, where people have spent more than 5 billion hours playing with and against each other.

"Halo is a $3 billion blockbuster franchise which has shaped entertainment history and defined a generation of gamers. From the world's first ever red-carpet premieres for a video game to sending a man strapped to a jet-pack 50-foot above London's iconic skyline, Halo launches have continually broken the mould and we are back with a colossal bang for Halo 4," said Chris Lewis, VP for interactive entertainment business.

Halo 4 launches on November 6.