Its release is still a long way off, but the hype machine for the next instalment in the Halo series steps up a gear tomorrow with the UK premiere of movie short ‘Birth of a Spartan’.
The 60 second ad will appear following the full time whistle in the Lyon vs Bayern Munich Champions League clash on Sky Sports tomorrow night.
It will also air after the Barcelona vs Inter Milan match on Wednesday April 28th on ITV1 and subsequently across a number of stations including Bravo, FX and Comedy Central.
In addition, it will be available to download from the new Halo: Reach teaser site from 5:00am tomorrow morning. The same site currently carries a message stating that ‘AUGMENTATION BEGINS APRIL 28, 2010’.
April 28th will also see the Xbox Live debut of the full two minutes and thirty seconds version of the movie – the same one that will be run before Iron man 2 in US cinemas.
The film, which is directed by Noam Murro. Depicts the transformation of Carter 259 from an army cadet into the future leader of the Noble team that plays the starring role in Halo Reach.
It’s not the first time that a publisher has targeted the Champions League as the prime spot to promote its title. The likes of Codemasters (Race Driver: GRID), EA (Rock Band) and Activision (Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2) have all run ads during key matches in the competition in the past, and Sony last year extended its Champions League sponsorship until 2012.