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[Triteon]

OG Xbox has a special place in my heart mainly due to location and how close to home it was.

I was living in Redmond at the time and a bunch of friends were working on projects for it and my ex wife was working at MS and i was a lowly tabletop gamestore employee. I was getting a lot of early hands on from frients and i went to a bunch of focus groups.

Also morrowind on a console, total awesome.

It feels like a lifetime ago.

 

[Oozer3993]

Oh the memories! I closely watched the Xbox and GameCube launches from the pages of EGM, trying to decide which to put on my Christmas list. I eventually decided on the GameCube because the Xbox was just a bit too expensive. I ended up buying a used Xbox and copy of Halo from Gamestop after playing the game at a friend's LAN party. And so began a love affair. I have every Halo game since, and got both the 360 and Bone at launch.

P.S. In honor of the 15th anniversary of Halo, I channeled my obsession into a "making of" article!

 

[SymbiantXenos]

I played Morrowind on Xbox for six months straight and nothing else.

Original Xbox was a great machine. Loved owning it wish I could go back and experience it again for the first time.

 

[Sanjuro]

I remember getting both Gamecube and Xbox at launch within a few days of one another. What a time to be alive.

 

[DonkeyKong]

Wow I remember ditching my PS2 for the original Xbox, loved it.

In the later years I recall modding it to run homebrew software, Mame emulators and a rather questionable mod/patch for dead or live beach volleyball - ahh the good old days

 

[sixteen-bit]

I remember getting both Gamecube and Xbox at launch within a few days of one another. What a time to be alive.

I remember EGM having a big shootout between the 2 consoles that November issue, and Xbox waled away the winner.

 

[The Elite]

Loved the hell out of the original Xbox.

 

[Coxy100]

Wow I remember ditching my PS2 for the original Xbox, loved it.

In the later years I recall modding it to run homebrew software, Mame emulators and a rather questionable mod/patch for dead or live beach volleyball - ahh the good old days

Aye me too. I was so conflicted after investing so much love into Sony for the PS1. Reading a magazine with some Halo screenshots back in 2001 was what convinced me to make the swap... I was on holiday in Corfu reading the magazine. Remember it well!

 

[Sanjuro]

The PS2 was mostly a waste of a console. I used it largely to play BC PS1 games and the mixed bag of launch titles. Once the online hit there really wasn't much for me over there outside the exclusives.

 

[Kaji AF16]

Back in 2001 I was completely into PC gaming. I had left consoles behind after the Mega Drive, and I watched from afar as Playstation grew to dominance defeating the kings of the eighties and early nineties.

Almost a decade later I would get a 360 and that would change completely. The Microsoft ecosystem, the achievements, Forza and Halo, the relatively vague "Sega successor" aura and it being the choice of most of my gaming friends invested me heavily into Xbox.

I never had the first console, but I am extremely interested in the backwards compatibility rumors.

 

[dreamcastmaster]

I talked a friend into buying one because I didn't want to take the risk at launch that it would be a failure and it was rather expensive. Great launch lineup but fuck you Microsoft for not bringing Tony Hawks 2X to Europe. I'd have brought the console for that.

Most of my experience with that console was by playing at a friends house who owned one and by the Backwards compatibility of the Xbox 360. Which for the 1st month was basically by Half Life 2 console as there was not much at launch for the 360 that I wanted AND the games were more expensive than the previous gen.

I'll show some special photos of Xbox 1 history in a while when I find them. You won't have seen these before...

 

[a.wd]

I lov ed the dreamcast back in the day, and after I got my hands on the Duke and got JEt Set Radio Future I was in.

Ninja Gaiden and JSRF are 2 of the games that if I was stuck on an island and had only 10 games for the rest of time they are 2 of the games I would be happy to be on the island with.

 

[VincentMatts]

I was a Live Beta tester and man, what a time to play online that was.

People were actually friendly, people actually communicated when playing online, very few assholes. Golden age. Now no one says shit, everyone is in a party, no one communicates and when they do, theyre fucking assholes. Damn shame. Those were the days.

 

[CyReN]

G4 Icon's episode of Xbox is always great to watch.

 

[Lazaro]

I remember getting both Gamecube and Xbox at launch within a few days of one another. What a time to be alive.

I got both on Christmas Day, family wanted a DVD player and I wanted the GameCube.

Safe to say, BEST. CHRISTMAS. EVER.

We got the Xbox beast bundle which included Midtown Madness 3 and Brute Force, media remote and an Xbox controller S (limited edition design?)

 

[Zeta Oni]

Lol, remember having to actually drive to a store just to get the Halo 2 DLC disc?

How times have changed. Such a great console.

Soul Calibur II (featuring Spawn, lol)
Otogi 1 & 2
Conker: Live and Reloaded
Bloodwake
Crimson Skies
Rainbow Six 3
JSRF

Just so many games I wish we had access to on modern consoles.

 

[digoutyoursoul]

I was a Live Beta tester and man, what a time to play online that was.

People were actually friendly, people actually communicated when playing online, very few assholes. Golden age. Now no one says shit, everyone is in a party, no one communicates and when they do, theyre fucking assholes. Damn shame. Those were the days.

I remember that period fondly too, there was always one or two dickheads mouthing off but in the main I got to speak to some awesome people on Live on OG and 360. I honestly can't remember the last time I heard someone speak in a lobby or in game chat these days.

 

[dc89]

I remember playing Halo: CE for the first time ever on a demo unit in an independent store in the UK.
Sadly the store is no longer there but I'll always remember trying that huge black box for the first time!

 

[shandy706]

I ended up spending my time split between Gamecube and Xbox. In my late teens I went to a small church in the middle of nowhere that would have gaming weekends. There were only like 60 people in the church, but a good 12-15 of the members were kids/teens. The youth pastor was only 22 and we'd bring 4 Xbox's (including mine) and play Halo and NFL Fever 2001 on projectors from Friday night till well into Saturday.

I remember us drilling a hole in a wall between two rooms to pass a LAN cable through.

Funny thinking back on that, good times.

 

[TheSeks]

Lol, remember having to actually drive to a store just to get the Halo 2 DLC disc?

Yes, and honestly: I miss that. Crazy as it sounds, having your DLC on a "physical" disc for backup purposes is nice. Shame they released two other maps after those right as Halo 2 was dying and able to be replaced by Halo 3 so you don't have the "complete" maps due to it, now. Unless you mod your X-box and try to find those two, those are lost in the ocean.

 

[Samurai G0SU]

When Xbox Live first launched, i pleaded with my parents to get the high-speed internet DSL .(128k i believe) LMAO so i could play ...

I played this game sooo much. even had a little clan [FU] and did clan matches against others LOL. It was cool because if you got a head-shot, you would first shoot off their helmet and then proceed for the one shot head-shot kill.

 

[Barrel Cannon]

The console and xbox brand defined my teenage years. HBD

 

[op_ivy]

Xbl was great back then. Everyone used mics and were generally friendly. It was so easy then to build relationships with gamers in any title you picked up.

 

[TheSeks]

Oh, and if folk were interested Seamus Blackley is trying to get a "Duke" Xbox One controller made.

https://twitter.com/SeamusBlackley/status/797941760089391104

Duke on PC? YES PLEASE.

 

[wesleyshark]

Halo CE was my first FPS and it blew my damn mind.

 

[R3TRODYCE]

Xbl was great back then. Everyone used mics and were generally friendly. It was so easy then to build relationships with gamers in any title you picked up.

I miss those days.

 

[oneida]

Dreamcast 2

 

[bjork]

My first Xbox game was Buffy and man that was a fun game. I didn't even watch the show, I just heard good things and wasn't disappointed. Then I got PSO and that was primarily what I played on it.

Used shortcut chat to kinda cheat on some typing mission, heh.

 

[Fleshfeast]

I still have mine hooked up near my PC, with a 13" CRT TV, and my box of games nearby.

Does anyone remember what glitch/trick the Xbox Music Mixer enabled? I know I never played that game, I just bought it to copy CDs to the Xbox or something. Maybe it was the ability to rip CDRs?

 

[Zeta Oni]

Yes, and honestly: I miss that. Crazy as it sounds, having your DLC on a "physical" disc for backup purposes is nice. Shame they released two other maps after those right as Halo 2 was dying and able to be replaced by Halo 3 so you don't have the "complete" maps due to it, now. Unless you mod your X-box and try to find those two, those are lost in the ocean.

A decade later and still learning something new.

 

[thenexus6]

This game was incredible

I loved OG Xbox. Played around with PS1, PS2, Dreamcast, PC before but Xbox is where it really started for me.

 

[VectorVictor]

Man, I loved playing XBox, and was on XBL day one (didn't get to beta test, unfortunately). I remember many matches on Halo 2, MechWarrior, and a lot of other games.

Hell, XBL was such a definitive and groundbreaking experience--the awesomeness of playing online (which you could do via PC) with voice, but without the hassle of driver or game compatibility issues.

Kinda miss how folks were more communicative on XBL back then. Hell, we had one kid that was talking about killing himself during a MechWarrior 2 online match, and because he sounded so serious, all of us spent a hell of a lot of time in matches with him just talking him out of making that mistake.

Here's to another 15 years for Microsoft gaming--at least with the consoles, it's doing things right (save for the XB1 launch--it's hella better now).

 

[Diablohead]

My favourite console

Ahh to go back to being 15 again and having my mind blown by the grass in Halo CE

Halo was a beautiful game and I love it, played it so much back then I must have beat the game several times in a single year. Being able to change the order you save the marines in some levels was so special back then, the warthog driving, trying to take weapons as deep into a level as possible before you had to swap it out, lovely gameplay loop.

 

[topplehat]

Really loved the Sega titles on Xbox, they feel like they've been lost to time as they never got rereleased later on. Games like Panzer Dragoon Orta, JSRF, Gun Valkyrie, Otogi 1+2...

 

[DJ Lushious]

I waited outside of a K-Mart in the cold, pelted by rain and then snow, for 10 hours to get my Xbox. It was worth every single second of it!

having my mind blown by the grass in Halo CE

Haha, I had the same experience!

 

[stangend77]

I've gamed all my life starting with the NES as a toddler. The years of N64-through OG Xbox were my favorites because of how social they were. Goldeneye, Mario Kart, and Star Fox 64 multiplayer nights started it off, and when Halo released on Xbox my mind was blown!

Nothing beat hooking up 4 CRT tv's with 4 boxes and 16 controllers and playing Halo multiplayer for HOURS.

With a few intermissions for this gem of course too!!!!

 

[etta]

Damn, nice title 👍

 

[Samurai G0SU]

and one of the best games to ever come from the Xbox ...

As a fan of JRPGs this was something new and very exciting to play. Absolutely LOVED IT.

 

[Nitty_Grimes]

Had xbox live for 13 years now.

 

[Tall Paul]

Xbl was great back then. Everyone used mics and were generally friendly. It was so easy then to build relationships with gamers in any title you picked up.

Totally agree, my first proper online gaming was through XBL Project Gotham 2 bundle and a 10Ft Ethernet cable, first few games on that people were really chatty and pinging FR to all players in the games, great fun!

 

[dubc35]

Happy 15th you big bastard!

I was playing Ninja Gaiden Black and X-Men Legends last night! X-men looks pretty good in 720p!

 

[link2021]

first time i was introduces to the Xbox when i went to my cousin house and he was playing halo ce my 10 year old year mind can't believe what i was looking at ever since. I was hook wasn't never going to beat my cousin in halo until i got older but it was my goal. He can still beat me on dead or alive that is his game. Happy 15th anniversary Xbox

How can we forget Wolf Metal Chaos this gem was great. After the 6th gen console was over me and my brother moded the Xbox which give it new life to it playing Super Mario Wars and halo 2 mods using xlinks and playing Wolf Metal Chaos those was the days.

 

[Tall Paul]

Great OT by the way, excellent job!!

 

[Naked Lunch]

The console that made online living room gaming a thing. Halo 2 online was just magical at the time. Then all these Japanese fighting games starting popping up with online play like Street Fighter Anniversary and SNK vs Capcom - after years of my real life friends refusing to play me in fighting games, I finally had competition. All that practicing not gone to waste! These were games I never thought id see online, and on a microsoft console of all things.

Outside of the Halo's, the crown jewels of the Xbox library for me are Panzer Dragoon Orta, Ninja Gaiden Black, JetSetFuture, and Outrun 2/2006. Timeless classics.

 

[intheinbetween]

N.U.D.E
Magatama
Otogi
Metal Wolf Chaos
Rent-A-Hero
Crimson Skies
Panzer Dragoon Orta
Phantom Dust
Capcom VS SNK 2 E.O
Midtown Madness 3
Ninja Gaiden Black
Conker
Fable 2
Blinx
Voodoo Vince
Project Gotham Racing 2
Gun Valkyrie
Jet Set Radio Future
Outrun 2006
RalliSport Challenge 2
DOA 3
DOA Xtreme Beach Volleyball
KOTOR
Halo
Street Fighter Anniversary Collection
Burnout 3 Takedown

so many good games

 

[Bits N Pieces]

Crossposting from the other thread

It was the original Xbox that got me back into gaming in a big way, some incredible games and an almost revolutionary way to play online that had me hooked from the outset.

Happy Birthday Xbox, here's to another 15 years

Hoping we get some nice surprises today.

 

[Southside Jim]

Of the five or so all-time great video game memories, OG Xbox occupies a few slots:

1. The final Halo CE Warthog run on local co-op
2. All of Ninja Gaiden--every single moment.

 

[Cornbread78]

Oh playing through Halo on co-opp was soooo much fun!

Add in a ton of Morrowind and Fable and yeah, it was worth it for those experiences. I was still waaaay too much into all my PS2 jrpgs to fully dedicate more time to the system though.

Halo 1&2
Fable 1
Morrowind
Half-Life 2

lots of fun there!

 

[RedSparrows]

Ninja Gaiden Black. Godly game.

There's a reason I still game on Xbox, and it's cos of that big old brick and Xbox Live. I wish MS a) made OG XB back compat a thing and released them all online and b) pushed for some new Ninja Gaiden level uberness on X1.

 

[Stinkles]

Happy anniversary.