Microsoft Corp said on Thursday that its "Halo 3" video game racked up worldwide sales of US$300 million in its first week, making it one of the year's best sellers and helping to more than double sales of its Xbox 360 console.

Gaming fans Uchendu Nwachukwu (L) and Darnell Jefferson celebrate after receiving free copies of the Xbox 360 video game 'Halo 3' after it went on sale in New York September 25, 2007. Microsoft Corp said on Thursday that its 'Halo 3' video game racked up worldwide sales of US$300 million in its first week, making it one of the year's best sellers and helping to nearly double sales of its Xbox 360 console.[Photo: Reuters]

The news builds on Microsoft's previous announcement that the final chapter in its series of alien-battling shooting games did US$170 million in sales in the first 24 hours after its September 25 debut.

The game is crucial to Microsoft's efforts to establish dominance in the US$30 billion global video game industry that has been dominated by Sony Corp (6758.T) the past few years. Microsoft also competes against Nintendo Co Ltd's (7974.OS) Wii console, which has enjoyed stronger sales this year.

"Initial reports from retailers worldwide show console sales have more than doubled compared with the weekly average before the launch of 'Halo 3,"' Microsoft said in a statement.

Microsoft did not elaborate, but industry figures show that the company sold 277,000 Xbox 360 units in the United States in August and just over 11,000 units in Japan in that month.

Microsoft also said "Halo 3," which lets people play the game together or battle each other over the Internet, had spurred a "record number" of people to sign up for its paid Xbox Live online service.

The company said all three "Halo" games had sold more than 20 million copies. Earlier this year, Microsoft said the first two games had sold 14.8 million copies, which could mean "Halo 3" has sold as many as 5.2 million copies.

Shares in Microsoft rose 0.9 percent to close at US$29.71 on Nasdaq. Over the past year, the stock has risen 6 percent.

(Agencies via CRI.cn October 5, 2007)