2.7 million gamers reach for `Halo'

Master Chief isn't lacking for friends.

More than 2.7 million people logged onto the video game "Halo: Reach," the upcoming prequel to the first-person shooter trilogy starring supersoldier Master Chief, developer Bungie Studios announced Monday.

Players collectively logged more than 16 million hours and more than 1.1 billion virtual kills during the 18-day public beta test of the game's multiplayer mode, Bungie said in a statement, adding the game will be launched worldwide on Sept. 14 _ except in Japan, where it will debut a day later.

"It's exceeded our expectations," said Bungie Studios community director Brian Jarrard. …