Gamers across Europe grab Halo 3

Gamers across Europe got their hands on Halo 3 at midnight on Tuesday, one of the most anticipated and heavily marketed titles in history.{{more}}

In the UK more than 1,000 shops opened at midnight so gamers could get their hands on the title.

Many gamers started queuing outside shops in the afternoon to ensure they got hold of a copy.

The Xbox 360 game is Microsoft’s key weapon in the console wars with Sony and Nintendo.

Simon Soffe, a spokesman for retail chain Game which opened 150 shops, said: “Half of them seemed to be going home to play on their own and the other half were planning to go online and play against other people.”

Microsoft hopes day one sales will top £70m ($140m), more than the opening takings of any movie in history.

However, sceptics point out that video games cost upwards of £40 ($80), while cinema tickets are much less.

In New York, about 500 people turned out for the midnight launch.

Gamer Alex Escobar, who was one of the first in the queue, told Reuters news agency: “It is worth it. It is time to finish this fight,” echoing the tagline for the science fiction game.

Shane Kim, corporate vice president of Microsoft Game Studios, said the hoped for success of Halo 3 was an essential element in the competitive console market.

He said: “Halo 3 is the biggest franchise for Xbox. The game is going to drive a lot of Xbox 360 sales and Xbox Live subscriptions this Christmas.”