343 Industries increases the Halo World Championship prize pool to $1.5 million after Halo 5: Guardians players purchase thousands of in-game REQ packs.

Despite releasing just over a week ago, Halo 5: Guardians is already setting records and holding gamer attention with its unique gameplay and compelling story. Surprisingly, one of the most popular aspects of the game seem to be the Halo 5: Guardians REQ packs – the in-game card packs that offer players weapons, vehicles, and boosts they can use in multiplayer modes.

Purchases of the REQ packs have been so successful that developer 343 Industries has added $500,000 to the already large $1 million Halo World Championship prize pool. That’s a 50 percent increase in just a few days.

That increase is sure to capture the attention of many gamers who are preparing for the Halo eSports tournament later this year. While there are still no specific details, we know the championship is set to begin in December, and will run through March, when the top 16 teams will compete for the top spot and a massive prize.

After seeing the Halo World Championship prize money increase in such a short amount of time, it wouldn’t be surprising to see it extend to $2 million or beyond as players continue to purchase the $2 and $3 REQ packs in Halo 5: Guardians. In fact, assuming the average cost of $2.50 per pack purchased, that means players have reached this milestone by purchasing only 200,000 packs. If that’s all it takes to increase the prize pool by 50 percent, one can imagine how much is possible in the next few weeks. Or, cynically, this could have been part of Microsoft's plan all along, and there's really no clear indication as to how much money has been made off REQ packs.

One Redditor estimated that it would cost over $1,000 for one player to unlock everything available in Halo 5: Guardians’ REQ packs, so chances are good that players will continue to purchase the packs leading up to the Halo World Championship.

As a side note, it’s surprising to see how many Halo 5: Guardians players are willing to spend a few dollars to enhance their experience in the game. That kind of success will almost surely drive 343 Industries and Microsoft to incorporate microtransactions into future Xbox games.

What do you think about the 50 percent increase in the Halo World Championship prize pool? How high do you think it will reach? Share your prediction in the comments below.

Halo 5: Guardians is now available on Xbox One.

Source: Halo Waypoint