Xbox Game Studios and 343 Industries released Halo Infinite at the end of last year, and it quickly became one of the most popular releases of December and 2021. According to analysts at the NPD Group, Halo Infinite became the second-best selling game of December despite being available on Game Pass.
Like many other first-party Xbox titles, Halo Infinite released on Game Pass as it released worldwide, allowing subscribers to play the game day one. On top of the over 25 million Xbox Game Pass subscribers who had access to Halo Infinite during December, the game also sold nearly as many copies as Call of Duty: Vanguard. The NPD Group didn't officially confirm how many titles Halo Infinite sold as the result of being number two in the top twenty, but it's likely that several thousands of players purchased the latest Halo release.
Halo Infinite is a cross-generational title as it released on Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S, suggesting that the playerbase is mostly split between the former generation and next-generation of consoles. When looking at the Xbox platform sales from December 2021, NPD Group highlights Halo Infinite as the best-selling title of the month. The rest of the NPD Group top-twenty of December include Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, Mario Kart 8, Spider-Man: Miles Morales, and Forza Horizon 5, and the analysts have also broken down each platform's sales.
On top of its sales success, Halo Infinite also includes live service add-ons such as a Battle Pass and purchasable cosmetics that allow players to customize their Spartans. This is also the case with the best-selling title of December, Call of Duty: Vanguard, while other titles on the top twenty such as Madden NFL 22, NBA 2K22, and Battlefield 2042 offer similar in-game purchases. Because Halo Infinite's multiplayer is free-to-play, this gives 343 Industries another potential revenue source as the game evolves from one season to the next.
The Call of Duty series often retains the number one spot each year according to NPD statistics and that's no different with Call of Duty: Vanguard's sales in December. Although Call of Duty: Vanguard was able to become the best-selling game of December, Vanguard has sold worse than Call of Duty Black Ops: Cold War overall. Because Halo Infinite and Call of Duty: Vanguard both released towards the end of 2021, they may see even more players join the action than the ones currently tracked by NPD Group.
It remains unclear how much live-service titles from 2021 like Halo Infinite and Call of Duty: Vanguard have made from additional content since their release, but Halo Infinite may have an edge in this regard being free-to-play. Game spending rose in 2021 compared to 2020 by 8%, according to NPD Group, suggesting that 2022 will see continued growth. More content is expected to release for Halo Infinite's multiplayer as 343 Industries adds to the free-to-play version of the game, potentially attracting even more players.
Halo Infinite is available now for PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
Source: NPD Group (via Venture Beat)