Back when Windows 7 was just a couple of years old, a Halo Spartan took the opportunity to popularize an exciting offer that Microsoft had announced just for students. While a part of the initiative, the Halo Spartan walked up the stage to grab his high school graduation certificate. The video of him doing the same went viral with several gamers taking the chance to create a memorable meme.

Not many would know about the popular ‘How real gamers graduate’ meme being just an intriguing advertisement. In fact, back in 2011, Microsoft took the help of a Halo Spartan of the name Master Chief to promote their special student offer. At that time, Microsoft was giving out an Xbox 360 for free with every Windows 7 PC purchase over $699.

The video shows Master Chief proudly stepping onto the stage in his armor in front of hundreds of students. As he took the certificate, the students cheered for him. After acknowledging, he left the stage. Although the video mentions him to be Noble 6, it’s obviously Master Chief as characterized by his popular armor.

The advertisement didn’t receive as much attention at the time it aired as it has over the years. As years passed, Halo enthusiasts kept discovering the video and rebranded it as a “real gamers” meme.

Who is Halo Spartan?

Spartans, in the Halo franchise, are a team of advanced super-soldiers functioning as special fighting units. They are a part of a series of UNSC projects. There are four such projects hosted to date, namely Spartan-I, Spartan-II, Spartan-III, and Spartan-IV.

Spartan-I and Spartan-IV were relatively less aggressive compared to the brutal lore associated with Spartan-II and Spartan-III. One of the franchise’s most popular characters and the star of the popular graduation ceremony, Master Chief, is a product of the second Spartan project.

WATCH THIS STORY: From Minecraft to Halo, ranking YouTube star MrBeast’s Favorite Video Games

Master Chief is definitely one of the most commendable Spartans to have ever lived. As of now, he reportedly has over 209 successful operations under his belt. He also played a major role during the Human-Covenant war that earned him the highest place of honor in Spartan history.

The success of Halo as a franchise is not unknown to anyone in the gaming community. In fact, the latest installment in the series, Halo Infinite, is considered one of the most successful games in the franchise. Moreover, Infinite marks the return of Master Chief, who features as the star of the massively intriguing single-player campaign.

Halo has not only inspired millions of gamers around the globe but also played a huge role in shaping Microsoft’s stance in the world of console gaming. No wonder the Halo Spartan got featured in Windows 7-Xbox 360 advertisement!