Halo

Halo is an American science fiction video game franchise developed originally by Bungie and published by Microsoft, beginning with Halo: Combat Evolved in 2001 as a launch title for the original Xbox console, following the genetically enhanced supersoldier Master Chief and an artificial intelligence companion, Cortana, in humanity's war against an alien religious empire known as the Covenant. The original game's combination of vehicle based combat, a two weapon limit and a regenerating shield alongside traditional health is widely credited with shaping the conventions of the console first person shooter genre and with helping establish the Xbox as a viable competitor to PlayStation, and its multiplayer modes were an early driver of console based online gaming through Xbox Live. Development passed to the studio 343 Industries after Bungie departed to create other games, and the franchise has since expanded into further main series games, novels, comic books, an animated anthology and a live action television series, with combined sales across its games exceeding 80 million units.