Microsoft’s hotly-anticipated Xbox title ‘Halo: Reach’ was launched on the midnight of September 14 amidst great fanfare at the Trafalgar Square in central London. Game stores in the UK opened their doors at midnight. BBC reported that hundreds lined up “to be one of the first to get their hands on the first person shooter”. This is the fourth and the last title in the Halo series to developed by Bungie Studios, a former subsidiary of Microsoft that split from its parent company in 2007.

The latest version introduces players to Noble Team, a squad of Spartan soldiers, who battle against an alien collective (the Covenant) to defend the planet Reach. The game puts the player in the role of a super-soldier called Noble 6 as he is engaged in a mortal combat between humanity and aliens bent on destroying mankind. Moreover from 17-19 September, everyone can enjoy the online multiplayer modes as MS unlocks all the benefits of Xbox LIVE Gold for Silver subscribers.

The company also removed the embargo on the game’s review and initial response of gamers and reviewers have been upbeat. Meanwhile, the BBC report has revealed that “the game, which has a recommended price of £59.99 in the UK, has also sparked a price war” with online and offline retailers apparently “undercutting each other” in their bid to sell the product.

Here are some ratings the game has received from initial reviewers:

• US magazine Game Informer: Majority of the review referred to Reach as ‘the true follow-up to Halo 3′.
• Computerandvideogames.com (CVG): Found it ‘hugely ejoyable’ and gave it 9.2/10.
• Joystiq: Gave Halo Reach five stars.
• Official Xbox Magazine: Gave the game 10/10.
• The Telegraph: Called the title ‘a refinement of the idea – the essence – of Halo’ and gave 10/10.
• The Guardian: Gave it all the five stars and called it ‘Bungie’s masterwork’.
• Destructoid: A 10/10 and the Editor’s Choice tag.

In related news, Microsoft is investigating how the title appeared on the net just weeks ahead of its official release. According to Stephen Toulouse, Microsoft’s director of Policy Enforcement for Xbox Live, Microsoft will permanently ban anyone who plays the leaked game on Xbox Live.