Retail Radar: Halo 3-of-a-kind, early jump on 360 wireless headset

Halo 3 may not be coming out for a while, but some new Halo 3-related merchandise has already turned up on the Retail Radar. According to listings on EBGames.com and GameStop.com, Halo 3 will go beyond the typical dual release of standard and limited editions of the game and see a trifecta of options for customers willing to pay up.

If the two retailers are correct, fans of Master Chief and saving the human race will be able to choose from the standard edition, a Halo 3 Collector's Edition, and the extravagant Halo 3 Legendary Edition, details of which first came to light via the Internet rumor mill.

The Legendary Edition is priced at a whopping $99.99, but the extra moolah nets gamers some protection in the form of a replica of a Halo Spartan Mjolnir Mark VI Helmet, the same headgear the Chief wears. Also included are three bonus discs containing behind-the-scenes videos at Bungie Studios, a hi-res compilation of all the cinematics from Halo and Halo 2, machinima videos featuring Halo, and what EB Games describes as "exclusive gamer tiles & a theme."

Details on the $69.99 Collector's Edition aren't up on the site yet, but that edition likely includes at least some of the bonus discs mentioned above. The standard edition, which includes just the game, is listed at $59.99. For the record, EB and GameStop list the games with a November 1, 2007, release date as well as an "Official pricing and release dates have not been announced by Microsoft."

The two online stores may also be getting a head start on selling the Xbox 360 Wireless Headset. Though the accessory isn't scheduled to hit stores shelves until next week, it appears as though the Web sites are selling the headset now for $59.99. The evidence comes with the "usually ships in 24 hours" note on the product page, which is attached to all products that the retailer is currently selling. A call to a brick-and-mortar EB Games revealed that the headset is not being sold in-store yet.