Halo Reach Marketing To Be 'Much More Grandiose' Than ODST's

Microsoft launched a major marketing blitz for last year's Halo 3: ODST, but Bungie community director Brian Jarrard said to expect marketing on an even grander scale for the upcoming Halo Reach. "We have a lot riding on this game and we have high expectations for [Halo Reach]," said Jarrard in an interview with The Seattle Times. The game is slated to launch in fall this year. "I think you can expect to see a lot more grandiose marketing efforts; things will be at a much higher scale than they were for ODST." September 2009's Halo 3: ODST had a sizeable marketing campaign that included a live-action two-and-a-half-minute TV trailer, online and print blitzes, as well as preorder bonuses and Halo merchandise. Microsoft said in late 2009 that ODST had sold over 3 million copies. Jarrard added, "There are a lot of great games coming out this fall, a lot of shooters in particular. I think we definitely benefit from having a really huge built-in audience. We have a huge, high-level, pop-culture awareness that a lot of other games don't. The 360 has a much bigger install base than we had back in the Halo 3 era, so a lot of things are working in our favor." He continued, "We certainly feel Reach will be the best Halo game that Bungie's ever made, and I think Microsoft's going to bet really big behind it. This is what Microsoft does really well — big, huge entertainment launches. You're going to see that happen again for Reach."