'Gears' Goes Triple Platinum

January 19, 2007 | By: James Brightman

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And the money just keeps rolling in for Microsoft and Epic Games. The blockbuster Xbox 360 shooter has now officially sold 3 million copies across the globe since its release last November. The new multiplayer maps have also been downloaded over 750,000 times so far.

It had been recently hinted at by Major Nelson that Gears of War would very soon achieve the 3 million sold milestone, but today it's official as Microsoft has confirmed that Epic Games' blockbuster has indeed gone triple platinum.

The gritty shooter reached sales of 3 million worldwide within just ten weeks after release. It was the top selling game in the U.S. in both November and December, and came in third place for all of 2006 in the U.S. despite being on the market for less than two months.

Microsoft pointed out that it was also the fastest-selling title of 2006 and the fastest-selling original exclusive Xbox game of all time. Recently, two new multiplayer maps, Raven Down and Old Bones, were released over Xbox Live Marketplace, and in less than two weeks those maps have been downloaded over 750,000 times. In total, there have been over 1.5 million Gears of War downloads including the maps, themes and video walkthrough.

And while Gears of War received plenty of high marks in the U.S., garnering Game of the Year nominations and awards from multiple outlets, it's also worth noting that the shooter is one of the few Western video games to gain some acclaim among Japanese press. Famitsu has given Gears a Platinum award, making it the second Microsoft Games Studio title to receive that honor in the past two months following Blue Dragon.

"Like blockbuster titles from Microsoft's Halo franchise and the Grand Theft Auto and Zelda franchises, Gears of War is tracking to be one of the best-selling video games of all time and has established itself as the most successful new IP of the next generation," said Jeff Bell, corporate vice president of Global Marketing, Interactive Entertainment Business Entertainment and Devices Division at Microsoft Corp.

Gears benefited from much hype leading up to its release and a cinematic trailer called Gears of War: Mad World that was featured in Advertising Age's Book of Tens as one of the top creative concepts of 2006. The trailer has already had more than 2.4 million views online.

You can read more about Gears of War in our Ad Watch and Chart Toppers columns.