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[Trago]

I'm saying there's a reason why they focused on conquering gaming first, and then eventually focused on entertainment.

They needed those gaming-focused visionaries in the beginning, but later on they would have far less of a say in the direction of the product, as the corporate mandate shifted control to individuals focused on entertainment deals.

Exactly. Even though it looks like they are more gaming focused, and I'm glad, I strongly doubt they are leaving it off the table with things like Xbox Video and Xbox Music still being a thing.

In fact, Sony's got the same thing going on with the branding of the PlayStation name.

Utterly bizarre when you think about it.

 

[BocoDragon]

My main reason to love the OG Xbox is the Dreamcast part 2 Sega library. Love me some Jet Set Radio Future, Panzer Dragoon and OutRun 2.

 

[Simply Sami]

Where's the pic of The Rock and Uncle Bill?

 

[RowdyReverb]

Where's the pic of The Rock and Uncle Bill?

This one?

was this GDC?

 

[JordanN]

While the Xbox was a cool system, it always bothered me Microsoft never pushed for 1st party on it.

Even I knew back then the console was a Halo box. Luckily, there were third party exclusives to fill in the gaps but I think that strategy has worn thin.
Fast forward today, almost all third parties have gone multiplat now.

 

[diehard]

The best hardware for the price ever, and ever will be.

 

[Trago]

Your right software is subjective, but the software library of the PS2 was so massive with so many classic it's hard to argue against I think. Multi platforms were better no doubt, but they were not as common as today so I don't really see that as a huge advantage.

Is it really? I mean don't get me wrong, the PS2's library is fantastic, but undercutting how great multiplatform games were on Xbox, especially considering that late ports got exclusive content in addition to higher fidelity visuals very needlessly creates a non argument.

But again, arguing libraries is subjective.

 

[Uncle Rupee]

This graphics processor can do one trillion operations a second, that's not a billion, that's not ten billion, that's not a hundred billion, that's one trillion operations a second, and that's where you can get photo realism.

And MS lost one billion dollars every year, that's not a million, that's not ten million, that's not a hundred million, that's one billion dollars lost a year, and that's why the Xbox is a joke.

 

[djshauny]

Fantastic console. Love it.

 

[LegalEagleMike]

And MS lost one billion dollars every year, that's not a million, that's not ten million, that's not a hundred million, that's one billion dollars lost a year, and that's why the Xbox is a joke.

Tell us how you really feel about Xbox?

 

[koopas]

And MS lost one billion dollars every year, that's not a million, that's not ten million, that's not a hundred million, that's one billion dollars lost a year, and that's why the Xbox is a joke.

I'm scared to tell you how much the Xbox One controller cost to design ....

 

[RowdyReverb]

And MS lost one billion dollars every year, that's not a million, that's not ten million, that's not a hundred million, that's one billion dollars lost a year, and that's why the Xbox is a joke.

I've always heard Xbox is more about Microsoft mindshare and now ecosystem than absolute profits.

 

[Zee-Row]

And the hilarious conquest of Japan.

I never understood the meaning of that ad. Do they get free hamburgers with their consoles in Japan?

 

[Elija2]

I never understood the meaning of that ad. Do they get free hamburgers with their consoles in Japan?

I think they were trying to market it as the "American" console. "Hamburgers are American, and so is the Xbox!" or something like that.

 

[Big Green Anus]

Such a great console with a nice amount of classic ganes. I really miss this Microsoft and hope their next console returns to glory.

 

[AmyS]

And this:

pre-rendered CG:

real-time on NV15 (GeForce 2 GTS) shown a bit later the same year:

 

[Juice]

Pretty sure I owe my avatar to the following CES

 

[Cavalier]

Heh. First reactions from most people at my school were mainly negative. They all thought it was going to bomb hard. I thought the graphics this system could engender was insane for its time. I remember when I first bought Halo and looked at the instruction manual everyday until I saved enough money for Xbox. I loved that system so much even though it didn't have nearly as many games as PS2 did.

Oh and the obligatory infamous Duke controller

 

[injurai]

I never understood the meaning of that ad. Do they get free hamburgers with their consoles in Japan?

it was for the s-controller, so something about being able to better hold onto it or something

 

[Flying Toaster]

And MS lost one billion dollars every year, that's not a million, that's not ten million, that's not a hundred million, that's one billion dollars lost a year, and that's why the Xbox is a joke.

At this point I think your just bitter. It was a great console, had amazingly awesome games. MS wanted in on the console industry. What's a few billion to them.

 

[a Master Ninja]

I always loved the prototype Xbox.

 

[caffeware]

Ahh yes, the console that would give us Toy Story-like graphics.

Good ol' days. =)

No. It was the Xbox, bro.

http://news.cnet.com/Microsoft-got-game-Xbox-unveiled/2100-1040_3-250632.html

"One of the basic premises of the Xbox is to put the power in the hands of the artist," Blackley said, which is why Xbox developers "are achieving a level of visual detail you really get in 'Toy Story.'"

I bet you were anxiously waiting for someone to bite that bait and soon enough, BOOM; it happened.

 

[Bydobob]

The most excited I have been leading up to a console launch, and I've lived through almost all of them. Xbox seemed to be raising the bar way beyond expectation in terms of graphics, and like everyone at the time I watched agog at the famous bouncing ping-pong ball tech demo. Xbox also came at a time when I was suffering my Dreamcast hangover and was the perfect tonic as I watched the lacklustre PS2 (my opinion at the time) gain an increasing stranglehold on the market.

Having the Microsoft juggernaut behind the console was greeted with negativity and cynicism from most folk in the UK, but I welcomed it. At least this console would have the financial backing to muscle it through any difficulties. The fact a slew of Sega titles were announced also showed the dedication of Microsoft in bringing a credible gaming device to market. I wasn't paying much attention to what Nintendo were doing, having sold my N64 a couple of years earlier, suffice to say when the Gamecube landed a few months later it was one of the best times I can remember for being a gamer.

 

[Lyte Edge]

I never understood the meaning of that ad. Do they get free hamburgers with their consoles in Japan?

It's saying something along the lines of "what an unusual place to have met" or "what a rare place for a meeting" but there's got to be a better meaning than that.

 

[Telephoto999]

I never understood the meaning of that ad. Do they get free hamburgers with their consoles in Japan?

I like how they photoshopped Bill's eyes to be slightly more closed , to better relate to the demographic ya know?

So racist.

 

[terrisus]

Going to be honest - I never thought people would take a Microsoft console seriously.

I figured it would go the way of the MSX, or various other attempts from other companies, such as the 3DO.
I figured people would just scoff at the idea of it, and continue to play games on the existing platforms and PC.

And, I still wonder how things would have turned out without Halo.

 

[RadarScope1]

I was only 3






says someone trying to make me feel old

How can you possibly be made to feel old if you're 18? Does not compute.

 

[Freeman]

Big mistake, should have focused on PC gaming, Ensemble would still exist, they would likely control the main storefront for games in windows and could be making a push for windows in the living room with steambox like PCs. Would have saved a lot of money and would have achieved much more with the effort put into gaming. Ironically they would probably have being able to move games to digital only and even always on. Instead they got the X1 and Steam.

The original Xbox was the best console of its gen I'll give them that.

 

[Snorlocs]

Big mistake, should have focused on PC gaming, Ensemble would still exist, they would like control the main storefront for games in windows and could be making a push for windows in the living room with steambox like PCs. Would have saved a lot of money and would have achieved much more with the effort put into gaming. Ironically they would probably have being able to move games to digital only and even always on.

The original Xbox was the best console of its gen I'll give them that.

They brought joy to millions of people worldwide and helped set the standard for modern consoles. I think they did a good job

 

[Freeman]

They brought joy to millions of people worldwide and helped set the standard for modern consoles. I think they did a good job

If by setting the standard you mean charging for multiplayer I guess it was a job well done.

They also ruined FPS by making them popular on consoles, but I can't fault them for that.

 

[Snorlocs]

If by setting the standard you mean charging for multiplayer I guess it was a job well done.

They also ruined FPS by making them popular on consoles, but I can't fault them for that.

I'm talking about the inclusion of online multiplayer point blank. Standard HDD was also done by them first. Those are pretty big deals.

 

[Dai101]

Halo

... just so many amazing memories. And LAN play was a blast.

That alone >>>>>> anything.

 

[HTupolev]

I'm talking about the inclusion of online multiplayer point blank. Standard HDD was also done by them first. Those are pretty big deals.

You realize that you're arguing with a PC user who had an HDD and enjoyed subscription-free online multiplayer with half-decent infrastructure well before the Xbox was a thing, right? That's Freeman's point.

 

[feel]

That console was something else.

Still remember exactly the moment I was walking past some electronics store and saw the Halo demo reel on a tv, with the soldiers riding the jeep on the green hills. Mindblowing stuff. I started saving for it immediately, I could barely look at my ps2 anymore. And had no clue just how amazing Halo would turn out to be besides the visuals, with the mp LAN experience and whatnot.

Well never get a kickass console like that again.

 

[Snorlocs]

You realize that you're arguing with a PC user who had an HDD and enjoyed subscription-free online multiplayer with half-decent infrastructure well before the Xbox was a thing, right? That's Freeman's point.

Yes, but what I am trying to say is that they brought it to consoles. Console gaming is not equal to PC gaming. Im not a pc gamer and I'm glad that online play on consoles is a thing (even though i gotta pay for it)

 

[Biker19]

The holy trinity. Allard, Blackley and Moore.

Sadly, most of the original Xbox team are gone. Those guys have put a lot of heart & soul into making both the Original Xbox & the Xbox 360 as what they are, & they definitely showed. Made for gamers, by gamers.

 

[Freeman]

I'm talking about the inclusion of online multiplayer point blank. Standard HDD was also done by them first. Those are pretty big deals.

As was said above, those things were pretty common elsewhere, but ok. The Dreamcast also had online multiplayer in a rudimentary way, PS2 had HDD and a network adapter as add-ons, but there is some credit to including them in the Xbox and popularizing them.

Still not that much of a contribution, specially not for me. A lot was sacrificed for Xbox to succeed, including Ensemble and Rare. MS best contribution was their inability to properly react to Steam. In the end it was better for everyone, PC gaming now is in a much better shape because it pretty much had to stand on its own.

 

[twobear]

I think one of the major things MS did which was good for the industry was simplify development. Part of that was to do with the experience that developers had with DirectX, but the non-proprietary hardware and straightforward CPU + GPU with shared RAM also helped a lot, and we see its impact in the fact that Sony abandoned their run of overly-engineered, expensive, and comparatively difficult to work with consoles.

 

[Snorlocs]

As was said above, those things were pretty common elsewhere, but ok. The Dreamcast also had online multiplayer in a rudimentary way, PS2 had HDD and a network adapter as add-ons, but there is some credit to including them in the Xbox and popularizing them.

Still not that much of a contribution, specially not for me. A lot was sacrificed for Xbox to succeed, including Ensemble and Rare. MS best contribution was their inability to properly react to Steam. In the end it was better for everyone, PC gaming now is in a much better shape because it pretty much had to stand on its own.

I get what you are saying, but I am taking about Microsoft in the console space. Not PC. Rare was not "sacrificed" as they are still there making games. YOU may not like the games but millions of others do. I don't know anything about ensemble unfortunately and as for the steam thing you are more than likely right, but steam has got nothing to do with Microsoft's release of the OG xbox 15 years ago.

 

[Freeman]

I get what you are saying, but I am taking about Microsoft in the console space. Not PC. Rare was not "sacrificed" as they are still there making games. YOU may not like the games but millions of others do. I don't know anything about ensemble unfortunately and as for the steam thing you are more than likely right, but steam has got nothing to do with Microsoft's release of the OG xbox 15 years ago.

Fair. I can only expose my own point of view, there can be a lot of interpretations to how successful was their move into the console business.

 

[wolfhowwl]

At this point I think your just bitter. It was a great console, had amazingly awesome games. MS wanted in on the console industry. What's a few billion to them.

The numbers 24 million to 22 million may haunt his dreams.

 

[HalfwayOrb]

Man, OG Xbox was the shit. I liked it more than PS2. It got even better after I modded it (XBMC, motherfuckers).

 

[IbizaPocholo]

My favourite console of that generation.

 

[mrklaw]

The whole point of the Xbox was for Microsoft to use it as a trojan horse to get multimedia Internet content in your living room. They didn't start the whole thing just for game license revenues.

Mattrick was just following the road map implied by the Xbox project since the beginning.

His failure was actually setting the stage for its retreat back into a games console.

It's so fucking stupid because if they'd focused on the games part, it would have potentially sold more, which gives it a better shot at being in everyone's living room. It is a great living room console with most of the media apps you'd want and your DVR going through it. I even quite like kinect just for pausing the DVR when I'm leaving the room (but I'd also be happy with a discreet microphone built into the Xbox)

 

[dark10x]

I remember seeing that XBOX prototype on Good Morning America as a kid thinking that was the coolest looking thing ever(coming from Sega Sony and Nintendo normal looking consoles).

The final design obviously was different, but i had tons of fun with the unit. Jade empire, halo, dead or alive, ninja gaiden, jet set radio future, blinx the cat, breakdown, otogi..and waiting endlessly for that game with the little girl and the hammer that i don't think ever came out it looked cool, does anyone remember that game? I remember it looking absolute insane at the time

Not only did Malice get released, it also showed up on PS2.

 

[bad guy]

My first any only home console ever. (If the Amiga500 doesn't count)
Massive duke controlers are perfect for my big hands.
Quality product. Still works fine.

-Metal Arms: Glitch in the System
-Fight Night 1
-Futurama
-Rallysport Challenge

I'm glad the GFX didn't shatter the earth, like they promised they would.

 

[Ape]

My first any only home console ever. (If the Amiga500 doesn't count)
Massive duke controlers are perfect for my big hands.
Quality product. Still works fine.

-Metal Arms: Glitch in the System
-Fight Night 1
-Futurama
-Rallysport Challenge

I'm glad the GFX didn't shatter the earth, like they promised they would.

You're happy the graphics are worse than advertised? Wtf is going on here?

 

[HTupolev]

You're happy the graphics are worse than advertised? Wtf is going on here?

No, happy that they didn't shatter the earth. Shattered earth doesn't go for as much as unshattered earth. It's about real estate value.

 

[Tidus_Great]

orignal xbox memories
halo
halo 2 online
KOTOR + KOTOR 2
ninja Gaiden

shame how far they fell second half of 360s life and xbone are abysmal

 

[Rhazer Fusion]

My first any only home console ever. (If the Amiga500 doesn't count)
Massive duke controlers are perfect for my big hands.
Quality product. Still works fine.

-Metal Arms: Glitch in the System
-Fight Night 1
-Futurama
-Rallysport Challenge

I'm glad the GFX didn't shatter the earth, like they promised they would.

Wait. Huh?



I still got my Xbox. I loved it. When I first saw DOA3, Halo and Project Gotham, I was blown away, Amazing system and ahead of it's time.