The release of Halo 3 was wildly anticipated, as the game was the third in the original trilogy of the Halo series. Therefore, the Halo 3 trial download was one of the most downloaded video game demos in the history of the Xbox 360. What many people don’t remember is that the Halo 3 trial download helped make another game - Crackdown.
What does the Halo 3 trial download have to do with another video game? Well, it has a great deal to do with the sale and promotional work for a game that was originally planned for playing on the Xbox system. Microsoft had become concerned that Crackdown would not sell well.
Therefore, they used a marketing gimmick, the one of bundling Crackdown with an access code to the Halo 3 trial download. And it worked a treat because Crackdown sold 1.5 million copies within the first half year of its release. Those aren’t Halo 3 numbers, which sold 8.1 million units in slightly over a year, but for a lesser well-known game that’s absolutely fantastic.
Microsoft had turned to the Halo 3 trial download tactic because of poor reports about the game from the game testers. They found the nonlinear nature of the game confusing, often leaving them wondering what they were meant to be doing next.
As a result of this, the powers that be thought that something had to be done or the game would be a loser. It may seem shady practice at first to try to force sales of a game that’s expected to be unpopular, but in hindsight people like the game and it was a good thing that they were able to get the chance to play it.
In Crackdown, and that includes the one bundled with the Halo 3 trial download, people play the role of an agent who is detailed to beat the kingpins or leaders of various gangs. To do this they utilize some superhuman powers such as super strength and super fitness. In order to obtain these powers, players have to build up experience by beating foes who then release experience orbs. The interesting idea in the system was that the kind of orbs released was reliant on the manner in which the agent killed the enemy. For example, a firearms orb appears if the enemy was killed with a gun.
So, while at first sight this game bundled with the Halo 3 free download seems to be nothing but a veiled marketing gimmick, in reality it exposed gamers to an exciting gameplay world.
If you like Halo 3 and are interested in learning more about it, why not go over to Halo 3 Info on our website entitled Halo 3 Insider Secrets
Leave a comment