Kansas University graduate Trent Overbey, Berryton, raises his fist in victory over brothers KU sophomore Isaac McPheeters, second from right, and Paul McPheeters, a home-schooled high school senior, Lawrence, after a game of Halo 2 on Monday night. They were at a party for the early morning release of Halo 3, a first-person shooter game for the Xbox 360, at the Kansas Union. Also playing Monday were, from left, Kenny Goodell, Wichita senior, Justin Kracht, Marysville senior, and Tim Fields, a Lincoln, Neb., senior.

A player works the controller during a game of Halo 2 during a Monday night party for the release of Halo 3 at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday. The Halo 3 release was one of the most eagerly anticipated games of the year.

“Halo 3” has arrived and not a moment too soon for the hundreds of thousands of gamers who flocked to stores in the past 24 hours.

Hundreds of Kansas University students and Lawrence residents lined up at Wal-Mart, EB Games and inside the Kansas Union for a chance to get their copy of the sci-fi action game as soon as it was available, at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday.

Early reviews of “Halo 3” for the Xbox 360 were almost entirely positive, with gamers and reviewers saying the game lived up to fans’ lofty expectations.

Nhan To, a KU sophomore from Overland Park, was first in line for the game at the union. He’d reserved a copy of the game so he could be sure to have one.

“I wanted to play first. Me and a bunch of my friends wanted to play too, so we’re going to play all night,” To said. “I’ve been waiting for this for months.”

In “Halo 3,” gamers can choose two different modes of play: campaign mode or multiplayer mode. In campaign mode, a player tries to accomplish goals to move through chapters in the game’s storyline. In multiplayer mode, players from around the world can compete with and against each other using online play in a variety of matches.

Microsoft projects that “Halo 3” will have sold more than $125 million worth of copies in the first 24 hours the game was on sale. The game comes in three versions: the $60 standard edition, $70 limited edition and $130 legendary edition. With the $130 version, gamers get several bonus discs and a collectible helmet similar to what the game’s main character, Master Chief, wears.

KU student Shawn Bowers, a self-described Halo addict, helped put on the Halo party and sale with the Kansas Union bookstore and Student Union Activities. He said the release of “Halo 3” would be one of the biggest events of the year.

“It’s been a long time coming,” he said. “At the end of ‘Halo 2’ there was a cliffhanger in the single-player game. I think some people are looking forward to the story; some people are looking forward to just something new to do besides homework.”

And Bowers is one of the lucky ones. With no class Tuesday, he was able to play into the early hours of the morning. For other students, though, class was just a minor inconvenience.

“We bought a bunch of gamer fuel and I don’t have class until 2,” KU senior Manuel Calvin said Monday night. “If it’s good enough, I might skip that class.”

For many of those who chose to get the game at the union, it was a chance to avoid the long outdoor waits that often accompany a major video game release. Calvin said he camped out all day at Best Buy for “Halo 2” when it came out in November 2004.

Best Buy in Lawrence did not open at midnight to sell copies of the game, but had plenty of copies on hand Tuesday for those who could wait just a little longer.