A large crowd of students gathered outside the Student Union flag room this past Tuesday night in anticipation of the Halo 3 launch party. Over 300 people registered for the event, sponsored by Microsoft along with the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) and local technology company infoTech Niagara.
Five Xbox 360 consoles with four controllers each were set up around the room, allowing 20 people to play at once. Players rotated every 15 to 20 minutes to allow everyone the opportunity to play. Students gathered in large groups around the players, anticipating their turn.
Event coordinator and Microsoft Student Ambassador Karthik Kathiresan was surprised by the large turnout. He expected 150 to 200 people to attend.
"I'm just blown away by the attendance," he said. "It's humbling to be a part of this and to be running it."
He attributed some of the success to the anticipation surrounding the release of Halo 3. Released on September 25th, Halo 3 broke all industry records by making $170 million in its first 24 hours.
"It holds the highest record for first day opening revenue," he said. "Halo itself is almost synonymous for gaming these days."
The first-person shooter game was developed for Xbox by video game developer Bungie Studios in a partnership with Microsoft. According to Karthiresan, $60 million was spent on development.
He explained that the game is unique in that it allows players to assume the role of a first-person shooter and play as the Master Chief. Developers improved the quality of the software for Halo 3, making it an exciting game for video game fanatics.
"It's more balanced than Halo 2," said Jeff Ackerman, a sophomore mechanical engineering major. "The maps aren't as good, but it's a lot more streamlined. There used to be glitches in Halo 2."
Students saw the event as a unique opportunity for gaming fans and non-fans to come together and enjoy the game.
"A lot of these people probably aren't even gaming fans or have never held a controller," said Konstantin Agarunov, a sophomore chemical engineering major. "Events like these are necessary to keep the student body together."
Karthiresan compared the success of Halo 3 to the success of other series like Star Wars and the Kill Bill movies. Much like the expectations surrounding those movies, the hype and expectations surrounding each installment of the Halo series contributed to its success.
"This is the third title in the series," said Joey Chan, a sophomore marketing major. "It's the last game in the series. It ties the whole gaming community together."
Karthiresan explained that a lot of work went into running the event. Members of the ACM helped to set up the game systems and donated some of the Xbox 360's. They also helped to police the large crowd of students and make sure players rotated to allow everyone a turn.
"This has been very, very effective," he said.
The event served as more than a video game party. Executives from infoTech Niagara and other local technology companies gave students the chance to network and learn about internship and job opportunities.
"We're trying to do more with UB to bring together students and employers," said Jeff Ross, the executive director of infoTech Niagara.
Ross explained that infoTech Niagara has grown over the past few years as technology use within companies has broadened. They look to continue this growth by reaching out to university students.
"We want to keep talented people here in Western New York and keep our companies growing, too," Ross said.
Even with the networking opportunities, students were still there for the love of the game.
"I think it's awesome," Ackerman said. "I've really been looking forward to playing."
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
