 On the day before its official release , 4 @.@ 2 million units of Halo 3 were in retail outlets . Halo 3 grossed US $ 300 million in its first week . More than one million people played Halo 3 on Xbox Live in the first twenty hours . To date , Halo 3 has sold in excess of 14 @.@ 5 million copies , making it the fifth best selling Xbox 360 game of all time , the second best selling game in the Halo franchise , the best selling Xbox 360 exclusive title and the best selling first person shooter on the console outside of the Call of Duty games . The game was also the best @-@ selling video game of 2007 in the U.S. Overall , the game was very well received by critics , with the Forge and multiplayer offerings singled out as strong features ; however some reviewers criticized single @-@ player aspects , especially the plot and campaign layout . A prequel to the game , Halo 3 : ODST , was released worldwide on September 22 , 2009 . A sequel , Halo 4 , released on November 6 , 2012 , was developed by 343 Industries and grossed $ 220 million on its launch day . Halo 3 was rereleased as part of Halo : The Master Chief Collection for the Xbox One on November 11 , 2014 . 
