For many longtime fans of the series,Halo 3is considered one of the best games in the franchise.Halo 3introduced many unique elements that weren’t seen in previous installments in theHaloseries, such as new weapons and vehicles. However, given the recent shutdown of the Xbox 360 servers forHalo 3, one fan of the game has shared a touching moment from when the game was first released.

Since theXbox 360 servers forHalo 3shut down on January 13, many players have reminisced about the glory days ofHalo 3’sonline multiplayer. WhileHalo 3’smultiplayer can still be enjoyed viaHalo: The Master Chief Collection, many players have continued to enjoyHalo 3’smultiplayer for years on the console the game originally released on. Now, thanks to one player, fans ofHalo 3can revisit a touching moment from the early days.

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A Reddit user named BovingdonBug posted a time-lapse image that shows howthe population map inHalo 3began to light up all over the world the night the game first launched. The population map helped to show how many players were online at any given time and where in the world they were playing from. Seeing how many players came together on launch night is certainly magical to witness.

The fact thatHalo 3’smultiplayerhas managed to persist for so long is a true testament to the influence thatHalo 3has had on theHalocommunity as a whole. For fifteen years, the multiplayer servers stayed online, and now to finally see them shut down truly marks the end of an era forHalo.

It’s clear that both Microsoft and 343 Industries are aware of how importantHalo 3is to people. Therefore, the fact thatHalo 3can be played on PC, as well as both the Xbox One and the Xbox Series X/S, should be encouraging toHalo 3fans. Not to mention,Halo Infinite’smultiplayer is entirely free-to-play.

In any case, it will be interesting to see what the future holds forHalogoing forward. So far,Halo Infinitehas enjoyed a massive amount of success, but there’s still a lot of content missing from the main game. For instance, many players have been looking forward to the newest rendition ofForge mode viaHalo Infinite.With any luck, new details on upcoming features will be unveiled in the coming months.

Halo: The Master Chief Collectionis available now on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.