The Story of the Xbox (Complete Series)

by the late 1990s videogames were on the cusp of entering mainstream entertainment for over three decades people have been purchasing and playing video games but for most of that history the industry had been dominated by major Japanese publishers Nintendo revived a dying industry in the mid-1980s Sega challenged Nintendo's near monopoly on the market in the early 90s and Sony flipped the entire industry on its head in 1994 when it released the original PlayStation the first video game console will sell more than 100 million units worldwide other American developers had tried to reclaim the spot in the console market the last being Atari with the atari jaguar system that launched in 1993 unfortunately none of them were able to have the same success as Nintendo Sony or Sega in 1998 while gamers were enjoying classic titles such as half-life Pokemon Metal Gear Solid and The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time video game console manufacturers were quietly crafting a new generation of home consoles but this time it wouldn't just be so nice Aegon and Tendo battling for market supremacy a new player went into the console market backed with billions of dollars in one of the most prominent names in technology Microsoft everything has a story and this is the story of the original Xbox in this part we'll be discussing the development of the original Xbox the office politics at Microsoft behind the creation of the system and the industry's reaction to a new player on the field before entering the games industry Microsoft had a long history developing software throughout the 1980s and 90s Microsoft was founded in 1975 in Albuquerque New Mexico by Bill Gates and Paul Allen Gates became fascinated by the Altair 8800 microcomputer and saw a tential in creating a programming language for the machine alongside Allen gates won a bid from MI ts the creators of the 8800 Microsoft began seeing some success but a trouble finding program is for their new company by the end of the 1970s Microsoft would relocate their headquarters to Washington state where they remain to this day Microsoft had their first major breakthrough in the early 1980s with ms-dos ms-dos was an operating system developed for a new line of personal computers created by IBM Microsoft won a contract from the company to be the sole operating system for the computers the new line of IBM computers would dominate the computer market if Microsoft would reap the rewards with ms-dos in 1985 Microsoft released Windows a new graphical extension that worked alongside the ms-dos operating system to this day Windows is still the most popular operating system for computers in 1986 Microsoft became a publicly traded company on the u.s. Stock Exchange the company raised millions of dollars from investors and became a tour de force in the business world throughout the rest of the 1980s and early 90s Microsoft would expand beyond computer software and began investing in other ventures including Internet services cable television and acquiring startups like Web TV gaming had been a part of Microsoft for some time before 1998 since the early 80s Microsoft had the rights to a title known as flight simulator the series was received numerous installments over the years on Windows with Microsoft serving as the publisher for the games when released for PCs in 1993 doom had become a sensation in some estimates claim that doom was installed on more computers than Microsoft's Windows 95 operating system wanting to maintain dominance over the software of personal computers Microsoft invested in creating and porting video games for the Windows platform starting with a port of Doom to Windows 95 and in 1997 Microsoft published Age of Empires a popular realtime strategy game for windows with ensemble studios developing the title the titles popularity allowed at Frye's the head of microsoft's gaming division to push for an expansion into gaming at Microsoft Windows was incredibly popular but Microsoft feared that the rising popularity and accessibility of home video game consoles would hurt the personal computer market sony was the most notable example as they had rose to be the biggest name in gaming through the 1990s with their PlayStation console multiple individuals and teams at Microsoft have been tossing around the idea of a video game system but one man is considered the father of what would become known as the Xbox Seamus black Lee black Lee had a history in the video game industry he started off at blue sky productions later known as Looking Glass Studios the game developer behind classic titles such as System Shock and thief black Lee was a rising star at the company but left in 1995 over creative disagreements black Lee joined DreamWorks interactive afterwards serving as the executive producer for Jurassic Park trespasser the title received a lot of early praise for its ambition and even caught the eye of well-known film director and DreamWorks founder Steven Spielberg unfortunately trespasser was too ambitious and the title was largely unfinished when it released in 1998 the title would be a critical and commercial failure feeling responsible black Lee left DreamWorks and took a lower profile position at Microsoft shortly after joining Microsoft black Lee found some like-minded gaming enthusiasts who were interested in creating a game console for Microsoft Ted Hays ohto Burks and Kevin Backus would team up with black Lee to begin crafting a console multiple ideas were thrown around but a core idea for a game console was eventually decided upon the system would be incredibly powerful more powerful than Sony's upcoming PlayStation 2 it would be easy to develop for and the basis of the system would be to put developers first so they could craft the art they wanted to the best way to obtain these goals creating a system around Microsoft's powerful and popular direct X graph software better yet the new console would run on Windows Microsoft's own software the team pitched the idea to Ed fries as a gaming console with the power of personal computers Fry's loved the idea and began the difficult process of getting the system off the ground this wouldn't be the first time Microsoft worked on the gaming console in May of 1998 Microsoft announced plans to partner with Sega on their upcoming Dreamcast system Windows CE II the latest edition of the popular operating system would be built into the Dreamcast console allowing developers to easily port or develop titles for both Dreamcast and Windows the most notable thing about this partnership was Microsoft's dip into the console business as Windows CE II was largely unused on Sega's console only around 50 titles were made with Windows CE II on the Dreamcast blackly and the DirectX team weren't the only group at Microsoft working on a secret game console Web TV was putting together their own system to compete with Sony Microsoft had purchased web TV in 1997 the Silicon Valley based startup had rose to prominence with a set-top box for televisions the hardware allowed people to surf the internet on their TVs a bold new idea at the time web TV had one major advantage over the DirectX team they knew how to actually create hardware compared to the rest of Microsoft's software based approach unlike the DirectX team Web TV was planning a more traditional console that would run on a custom software based around Windows CE II the two teams battled it out over who would actually create a game console for Microsoft by 1999 Sony had already revealed the PlayStation 2 and its release was coming in early 2000 the DirectX team and Web TV teams were working on their console projects but the top brass at Microsoft knew only one system would actually be developed and released both teams put together presentations and took them all the way to the top of Microsoft to Bill Gates Gates decided to go with Direct X's idea No that windows CEO was not powerful enough to run games at the necessary levels KT was also impressed by the direct X team's commitment to Windows and liked one of the system's most notable inclusions a hard disk drive the DirectX team celebrated but only briefly Microsoft was a big company and their focus was primarily on software not hardware at any moment their game console project could be canceled luckily the DirectX team had the backing of the Web TV team now to help create a new system and one that could beat out Sony's PlayStation 2 Microsoft was a large company and large companies have a hard time keeping everything under wraps with their home console and development Microsoft began reaching out to video game publishers and developers across the world trying to court them to create new games for their powerful new home console internally the new system was called the direct Xbox the team later shortened the title to just Xbox and everyone knew it was coming at GDC 2008 would step on to the stage in a black leather jacket embroidered with a large green X Gates would lift the veil on the Xbox Microsoft's first take on home entertainment this Xbox was very different from the final product in an attempt to make the system look is far from a PC as possible Microsoft's initial design was a large chrome X in the center of the system was a green core the only staple from the design that would make its way into the final release Microsoft would give early details on the Xbox's power comparing it directly to Sony's PlayStation 2 that had just released in Japan the gaming world was impressed especially Western game developers who'd been at the mercy of Sony and Nintendo and Sega for their console publishing needs for over a decade Microsoft wouldn't show off the Xbox again until January of 2001 at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas Nevada CES had fallen out of favor with the gaming world since the creation of the Electronic Entertainment Expo a few years earlier Microsoft and Bill Gates had a history with CES however Gates delivered a key notes speech at the beginning of every CES and 2001 show would be the perfect opportunity for Microsoft to draw a line in the sand Xbox was here and Microsoft was ready to do battle gates appeared on stage and prepared to lead the audience through a numbers heavy presentation about an expensive games console gates wasn't the best public speaker and Microsoft knew that luckily he would have a little help Seamus blackly would join gates on stage to demo various titles for the Xbox gates was the face of Microsoft but blackly was the father of the Xbox Black Lee's more rebellious attitude and history with the games industry kept the audience engaged but it would never be enough to make waves across the non gaming world black Lee stepped aside and joining Bill Gates was not another developer or number cruncher it was Dwayne the rock Johnson one of professional wrestling's biggest stars Johnson never left character on stage he poked fun at gates nerdy demeanor he boasted about the power of the Xbox and of course he talked about how great he was the CES show was a success Microsoft had used its clout within the world of technology to introduce its new home console if anyone had doubts that gaming was still a niche plaything for children they were in the minority now Microsoft was ready to storm the beaches of the gaming world and consumers wouldn't have to wait long the Xbox was launching in late 2001 and a group of developers at Bungie were crafting a game that would set the world on fire the console wars were just getting started [Music] the Xbox would spend almost two years in development during that time Microsoft gaming and the world had changed considerably at the turn of the millennium Bill Gates stepped down from his role as CEO of Microsoft he would be replaced by Steve Ballmer in January of 2000 Gates would still serve as chairman of the board for Microsoft as well as chief Software Architect gates would continue to be the public face for Microsoft as well Microsoft managed to score a major win in 2001 although at a cost since 1998 Microsoft had been under investigation by the United States Department of Justice for monopolistic practices the Justice Department argued that Microsoft's control over the computer software market violated antitrust laws a group of decisions were made in court and Microsoft would escape the wrath of the US government they were forced to open up their software tools to other developers but were able to remain as a singular company the public image of Microsoft was hurt by the lawsuit which led to a sharp drop in the company's stock price from December of 1999 to December of 2000 the gaming world saw a massive shake-up in 2000 with Sony Unleashed the PlayStation 2 on the world starting with its launch in Japan in March of 2000 the system was a massive success more successful than the PlayStation 1 console that preceded it the PlayStation 2 sold over six million units in 2000 alone and by the end of 2001 Sony had shipped almost 25 million consoles worldwide Sony's dominance had come at a cost to the gaming world in early 2001 Sega officially exited the console race the company struggling Dreamcast system would be discontinued and all future Sega projects would be developed for other consoles Sega had been struggling for the past few years after projects like the Sega 32x and Sega Saturn se get put everything they had into one final system the Dreamcast the console released in Japan in 1998 and rest of the world received it in 1999 the system was much more powerful than the PlayStation 1 in Nintendo 64 but saying as early lead was ruined once the PlayStation 2 launched Sega didn't just fear the PlayStation 2 they knew their market niche would be eroded with the introduction of Microsoft in the console market as well as nintendos next console the Gamecube Microsoft even offered to purchase Sega at one point turning him to a first party developer for the Xbox but talks would break down between the two companies with Sega gone the console war was shaping up to be a three-way battle between Sony Nintendo and Microsoft after CES 2001 Microsoft had a lot of momentum behind them they had a powerful home console and billions of dollars to support the system too bad they squandered that momentum with a disastrous III showing in 2001 Hardware issues and technical problems led to an underwhelming conference Microsoft did have games to show off including titles from Sega who publicly committed support for Microsoft Microsoft revealed the final specs for the console a launch date and a price of $299.99 Microsoft also spent a considerable amount of time talking about online play for the new console and the system's built-in Ethernet port leading up to the consoles launch Microsoft pumped half a billion dollars into marketing the Xbox as discussed in a previous series Microsoft wasn't just trying to promote the Xbox with this ad campaign a secondary goal was to be the biggest name in gaming to overshadow Sony and Nintendo leading up to the holiday season Microsoft's launch plans for America were briefly interrupted by the September 11th terrorist attacks which put much of the US economy in jeopardy Microsoft remains steadfast and stuck to their original launch date although they would end up delaying the Xbox for one week too short more units for the system's launch on November 15 2001 Microsoft launched the Xbox in North America Microsoft had a launch party at Toys R Us in Times Square where Bill Gates himself greeted fans and handed over the first Xbox to consumers the Xbox was in mid ways ahead of its time the system supported broadband internet with the built-in Ethernet port at a time when many consumers were still using dial-up internet the Xbox didn't use memory cards instead it had an 8 gigabyte internal hard disk drive for saving games this same hard drive could be used to store full games and game add-ons a first for home consoles the system supported DVD playback albeit with the purchase of an accessory the Xbox would launch with 12 games in North America and quickly sold through its allotted stock within three weeks the Xbox sold 1 million units the Xbox was a success but a large part of that success fell onto the shoulders of one of 2001 hottest games halo combat Evolved halo was a first-person shooter developed by the game studio Bunji Bunji was found at just 10 years earlier in 1991 by two students at the University of Chicago Jason Jones and Alex Serra plen Jones and Sarah plan had become friends of their mutual interest in programming in game development in 1992 the dual would release their first game Minotaur the labyrinth of Cree a role-playing game for the Macintosh line of computers the use of Macintosh computers was an odd choice given many developers distaste for Apple's line of products Bungie preferred the system for two reasons at the time Mac's were more open to developers compared to operating systems like Windows and Jones had a familiarity with the system Bungie would release their first big hit in 1994 with the first-person shooter marathon Bungie continue to develop and publish hit titles through the 90s including sequels to marathon known as marathon 2 and marathon infinity and the very successful strategy game myth the fallen Lords Bungie success led the developer to open a second studio in San Jose California in 1997 the new branch would be known as a Bungie West the new studio began development on an action game called Oni for the PC Mac in PlayStation 2 the title would be published by take-two interactive under their 2k games banner the main bungy studio on the other hand was hard at work crafting their next big hit at Macworld 1999 bungees new game was revealed to the world by Steve Jobs then in term CEO of Apple the game was a third-person shooter called Halo and it was being developed for Mac and Windows just a few months later in June of 2000 Microsoft announced that they had acquired Bungie for an estimated 30 million dollars the gaming world was somewhat floored but the news wasn't shocking to the people at Bungie Bundy had been looking for a publishing partner since their early days and new being bought by a larger company would offer more financial stability Bungie had also ran into financial problems a few years before the buyout a glitch was found with copies of myth 2 shortly before the release of the game the glitch had the ability to erase the users entire hard drive and forced Bungie to issue a mass recall the title would still be a critical and commercial success but the recall cost Bungie heavily before Microsoft's buyout take-two interactive had already purchased almost 20% of the company to help alleviate with these issues Bungie would take Halo and rework it for the Xbox Oni and the myth series will become the property of tape 2 Bungie would moved to Bellevue Washington to be closer to Microsoft's headquarters Bungie West would finish up their work on Oni and early 2001 the studio would be closed after the game's release with many of its employees during the main Bungie team halo would see a change in perspective after the buyout the title would become a first-person shooter and early impressions of the game were mixed critics were unimpressed by Microsoft's demo of the game at e3 2001 halo would be released alongside the Xbox and quickly became the system's biggest title overshadowing all of the other launch titles for the system critical praise for the final release was incredibly positive the title would go on to receive multiple Game of the Year awards the game would sell over a million units within 5 months of its release around the launch of the Xbox halo head as high as a 50% tax rate with every Xbox console sold it wasn't just hype halo offered a large single-player campaign an incredibly fun multiplayer mode the title lacked online play the boasted local multiplayer through Al and Halo was the killer app of the Xbox and would go on to sell over 5 million copies becoming the second best-selling title on the original Xbox with the successful North American launch behind them Microsoft set their sights on gaming stronghold Japan Sony and Nintendo were both based out of Japan and their new game consoles had released in the region before their North American launches Microsoft knew that for the Xbox to be a success they would need to have a foothold in the region in order to appeal to Japanese consumers Microsoft redesigned the Xbox's controller the first controller was big and bulky it was styled after PC game pads as opposed to more traditional controllers and early impressions turned Japanese consumers away the new controller was smaller and Microsoft dubbed it the S controller the controller was eventually adopted as the main controller for all regions while the larger duke controller was abandoned the Japanese launch occurred on February 22nd 2002 five months after the game Cupid launched in the region and almost two years since Sony launched the PlayStation 2 the launch lineup was tweaked compared to the North American launch notable ps2 ports released with the Xbox included Konami Silent Hill 2 and Capcom's Onimusha Sega would release Jet Set Radio future a sequel to the Dreamcast original exclusively on the Xbox the most notable exclusion from the launch lineup was halo in fact halo would never release in Japan Europe and Australia were the final regions to receive the Xbox when the system launched on March 14 2002 the launch lineup would be a mash-up of the North American and Japanese launches and included halo with the Xbox out worldwide Microsoft turned its attention to its next major plan connecting all of these X boxes to the Internet [Music] the Xbox was not the first game system to connect to the internet nor was it the first console to offer multiplayer gaming over the web in fact every sixth generation console was capable of connecting to the Internet for online gaming although some were more limited than others what the Xbox did have over the competition was a centralized hub for online gaming called xbox live Xbox Live originally under the working title Xbox Online was a core feature of the console from day one by the late 90s personal computers had hit the mainstream and many of them were connecting to the Internet via dial-up modems Microsoft was slow to incorporate the internet with their Windows platform it wouldn't be until 1994 that the company took the idea seriously a memo titled Windows the next killer app on the Internet managed to turn heads and ultimately swayed Bill Gates into incorporating the Internet into Windows 95 the author of that memo was Jay Allard Allard wasn't just an advocate for the Internet he lived it he breathed it he would join the Xbox team during the development of the system and insisted that the console be made with an Ethernet port for broadband Internet as opposed to the popular dial-up modem Siemens systems like the Dreamcast others argued that dial-up would still be around for a few years to come and utilizing only broadband would severely limit the user based Allard would be right again as adoption of broadband communications would increase after the release of the Xbox the Xbox team had hoped to launch the Xbox with an online service on day one but the prolonged development cycle for the hardware had pushed it back at e3 2002 Microsoft's focus was squarely put on their Xbox Live service Microsoft showcased details on the service which they slowly started rolling out to consumers earlier in the summer Microsoft announced that 14 titles would launch with the live service in the fall of 2002 and more than 50 online titles would be available on the Xbox by the end of 2003 ed fries then the vice president of Xbox game content would excite fans with a tease of sequels to titles like Project Gotham Racing and Halo titles that would be built with online gaming in mind on November 15 2002 one year after the Xbox had been unleashed onto the world Xbox Live was made available for all consumers a yearly subscription Xbox Live would run you fifty dollars Xbox Live was a revolution in online gaming it boasted stronger servers and faster internet speeds when compared to Sony's PlayStation 2 Xbox Live offered the ability to download games directly to the Xbox's hard drive and to even download additional content for games Xbox Live had a friends list with user names a simple but popular concept that has been copied by most of Microsoft's competitors with Xbox Live Microsoft created the modern online gaming blueprint and the foundation of one of their most popular services unlike other online services for gaming at the time Xbox Live was an all-encompassing online option you didn't need a separate account to play separate games for consumers this was a fantastic option but for Electronic Arts it was seen as an act of war EA had been creating online games for a few years at this point and all of their titles utilized EA's own dedicated system while other developers and publishers lined up behind Microsoft for the new Xbox Live service EA rebelled ea wouldn't enable online play for their titles for the Xbox only the PlayStation 2 version of their games would feature online play Microsoft attempted to bridge the gap in the Xbox's library by developing first party sport games to compat EA's popular madden and NBA Live series the standoff would last until 2004 when EA announced that they would support Xbox Live for all future releases Microsoft had been quietly working behind the scenes with EA to win them over Microsoft would loosen their grip on Xbox Live and allow EA to have more control over their online titles and Microsoft would cancel their fledgling sports titles in development so EA sports lineup would have less competition with EA on board it seems like nothing could slow Xbox Live down now by July of 2004 Xbox Live had surpassed 1 million users a year later in July of 2005 they would have over 2 million Xbox Live helped establish Microsoft as the leader in online gaming in the early 2000s but it wouldn't be until the fall of 2004 that Microsoft and Xbox saw Xbox Live reach its full potential Microsoft's history in the world of business through the 80s and 90s had followed a pretty simple guideline they would try to make a better product than the competition and if they couldn't Microsoft would use its enormous wealth to buy out the competition this had led the company to be scrutinized by both the American government and American populace that bought their products in the early days of the Xbox Microsoft had tried to use these same techniques to establish the company's foothold in the gaming market Microsoft offered to buy out Nintendo and turn the 100 year old company into a first party developer Nintendo discussed the proposal and made an offer 25 billion dollars Microsoft declined Microsoft instead turned their attention to developers in 2002 Microsoft already had major developers like Bungie and ensemble Studios under their wing in September of that year Microsoft purchased rareware for 375 million dollars headed by Ed Fry's the buyout was meant to give Microsoft a major developer and to take away one of Nintendo's biggest partners Nintendo owned a 49% stake in rareware since the early 90s since their hit Donkey Kong Country title released in 1994 rare had been releasing hit after hit on Nintendo's Super Nintendo Game Boy and Nintendo 64 consoles the other 51% of rare was owned by Chris and Tim Stamper talks of a buyout had been swirling for a few months before Microsoft's purchase the stampers wanted rare to be owned by a singular publisher not only would this provide more stability for rare but also give them more funding to develop bigger and better games discussions between Microsoft Nintendo and Activision occurred over a few months Microsoft would continue to raise their bid on rare ultimately causing Activision to drop out with only Nintendo left Nintendo opted to sell their share of rare to Microsoft the buyout caused a major shake-up within rare and over 30 employees would leave the company during the transition rare titles and development were either canceled or development was moved to the Xbox rares first title with Microsoft grabbed by the Ghoulies when released a little over a year after the purchase for many people rare would never be the same under Microsoft rare would release multiple titles on the Xbox and Xbox 360 but would eventually become an exclusive developer for Microsoft's Kinect peripheral in 2010 rares founders the Stamper brothers would stay with the company in 2007 when they resigned to seek other career opportunities former employees of rare state that Microsoft's more bureaucratic structure had caused a decline in the quality of their releases but other state that rares level of quality had already started to diminish under Nintendo nowadays Raiders no longer locked behind the Kinect Microsoft has taken rares older IPs and re-released them Raiders killer instinct would even see a reboot on Xbox one under the helm of the developer double helix Raiders most recent title was released in 2018 the game is sea of thieves an online multiplayer game the title seems closer to what rare used to make under Nintendo but time will tell if rare will ever be able to reclaim their former glory with their focus on Xbox Live Microsoft's first party lineup in 2002 was rather shallow while halo appealed to adult Xbox tried to make the Xbox more appealing to children with the release of blinks the time sweeper in October of 2002 blinks was a 3d platformer similar to Nintendo's Super Mario series the title was met with mediocre reviews and blinks was never able to hit it off as a family-friendly mascot for the Xbox Microsoft would have better luck with mech assault an action shooter title when he released in November of 2 - the title would be met with positive reviews in serif is the first killer app for xbox live both blinks and mecha saw would receive sequels on the Xbox in 2004 media developers and publishers created consoles exclusives for the Xbox as well this was primarily due to the Xbox is similar development structure to PCs and it's increased power compared to the PlayStation 2 notable examples of this include Bethesda's the Elder Scrolls 3 morrowind Bioware Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic valves half-life 2 and doom 3 from Eid software big games were on their way to the Xbox and one of the most anticipated sequels at the time was officially unveiled in September of 2002 halo 2 was officially announced less than a year after the first game's release while only showcasing a CG trailer it was more than enough to get fans excited it wouldn't be much longer until Bungie showcased their ambitious project at e3 2003 a demo of the game was showcased to the public for the first time this new Halo would continue the story of Master Chief feature online play the likes of which console gamers had never seen and the game would only be available on Xbox [Music] despite the long development of the Xbox Microsoft struggled to find parts that would lower the cost of the system their inexperience in the console market had led the Xbox to cost around $400 to make and those costs weren't going down as the generation continued in February of 2003 Microsoft employees began working on a new Xbox under the title project xenon it was around this time period that Peter Moore would join Microsoft Moore was the CEO oh and president of Sega of America he had overseen Sega during their Dreamcast years and helped the publisher transition into a third-party developer Moore would soon become the face of Xbox as Edie fries would leave Microsoft in early 2004 the shake-up with Xbox is top brass wouldn't slow down Microsoft's release scheduled in September of 2004 Microsoft would publish fable an action RPG by Lionhead Studios fable was an ambitious title that first began development on the Dreamcast before moving over to the Xbox the title was a critical and commercial success spawning several sequels Microsoft would buy Lionhead Studios in 2006 after the developer entered financial trouble Microsoft wasn't just interested in big-name titles they also used their new Xbox Live service to promote and release smaller games announced in May of 2004 and released in the following November Xbox Live Arcade would be released on the original Xbox the service allowed consumers to purchase and download games directly to their system's hard drive a total of 27 games would be released on the Xbox through the service with titles ranging from $4.99 to $14.99 Xbox Live Arcade wouldn't make too big of a splash on the original Xbox the service came towards the end of the Xbox's lifespan and launched just a few days before one of the most anticipated games of all time at e3 2004 the gaming world watched as Microsoft unveiled new details on Halo 2 the hotly anticipated sequel to the Xbox's biggest game halo combat Evolved released at the launch of the Xbox in 2001 and became the system's killer app fans of the title we're excited to see what Master next campaign would look like and more importantly they were excited to play the games popular multiplayer online the game's release date would be revealed during Microsoft's press conference by Peter more more tattooed the games logo and release date on his arm a stunt that led to tears from the crowd halo 2 was coming on November 9th 2004 halo 2 entered development shortly after the release of the first game and Bungie was incredibly ambitious on what they wanted to accomplish halo was never made with the intention of creating a sequel so Bungie set out to expand the world and story of the first game the game would grow to be too large though Bungie would cut halos to campaign short ending on an infamous cliffhanger and setting the stage for a third title in the series the online multiplayer suffered a similar fate why don't you put together many ideas for multiplayer modes and features that the original Xbox Xbox Live and even Bungie themselves couldn't handle many of the ideas that were shelved for various multiplayer modes would be reused for future Halo releases all the way up to bungees final Halo game Halo Reach when it released in 2010 while halo 2 was not the full game Bungie had set out to create it was a smash hit the gameplay was more refined the level design had more variety the story was more focused and the multiplayer modes broke every player count record Xbox Live had ever seen halo 2 became the best-selling title on the original Xbox selling over 8 million units halo 2 would hold the record for most played game on xbox live from the time of its launch until two years later in November of 2006 when Gears of War was released on the Xbox 360 it was the height of the Xbox's popularity but it wouldn't last for long rumors were circling the gaming and tech industry in early 2005 talks of the next generation of consoles was already underway Sony was preparing the world for the PlayStation 3 and Nintendo was going on about a revolution at Microsoft a new console was exactly what the Xbox brain needed Sony was still dominating the console market and Microsoft was losing more and more money with every Xbox made the goal was simple they wouldn't allow somebody to enjoy a year on the market by themselves like they had done with the PlayStation 2 the next Xbox would release around the same time as the PlayStation 3 and Microsoft set their sights on a fall 2005 release during an mtv special in May of 2005 Microsoft would reveal the Xbox 360 this new Xbox would address many of the issues and complaints of the first Xbox it's boarded a sleek white design and all-new wireless controller an easily removable hard drive support for wireless internet and high-definition graphics with a built-in HDMI port the console would launch in North America in November of 2005 two versions of the 360 would be available at launch a core system at 299 dollars in a pro model that included a hard drive for 399 dollars Microsoft seemed to have cracked the code on making game consoles with the 360 on the way the original Xbox was largely an actor thought to both gamers and Microsoft there would still be support for the system however Forza Motorsport would release in May of 2005 launching one of the Xbox is biggest and longest lasting franchises the Xbox would secure some high-profile console exclusives like Dhoom 3 and Star Wars Republic Commando rail would release their second Microsoft publish title with conquer live and reloaded in 2005 the game was a remake of the Nintendo 64 classic with updated graphics and an expanded multiplayer mode for Xbox Live the final Microsoft published title for the Xbox would release on September 20th 2005 less than two months before the Xbox 360 hit store shelves the game was Kingdom under fire heroes a prequel to the previously released Kingdom under fire the crusaders the hack and slash title was developed by blue side and Phantogram and would support online play and received generally favorable reviews the Xbox would be discontinued in Japan in 2005 with North American Europe following in 2006 this system was a failure in the Asian market where Sony and Nintendo dominated the Xbox sold around 2 million units within Asia with less than half of men being sold in Japan Europe and America were more welcoming of the system where it sold better but was still a far cry from what the PlayStation 2 managed to accomplish releases for the original Xbox would slowly halt after the Xbox 360 released the final game released on the original Xbox was mad no 9 released in August of 2008 almost seven years after the console came out while the Xbox 360 was in development divisions within Microsoft began to push for a new feature on the Xbox 360 backwards compatibility the late push largely came from the success of Halo 2 as developers feared that the Xbox 360 wouldn't have a very good adoption rate if people were still content with playing their original Xboxes the push came late into development so late that the 360 was unable to be backward compatible on a hardware level the chips and components on the system just weren't made to play original Xbox games to remedy the issue Microsoft turned to emulating the original Xbox hardware on the Xbox 360 the good news was that Xbox games would be playable on the new console the bad news was that it would be a time-consuming process to make each game playable Microsoft released the updates and batches for Xbox emulation all gamers had to do was update the Xbox 360 and make sure that they had a hard drive for the system the emulation wasn't perfect as many games ran into technical issues with the Xbox 360s hardware but it was ultimately a success over 400 titles would be made backwards compatible with the Xbox 360 before Microsoft released the final batch of updates in 2007 Microsoft would even sell digital copies of original Xbox games to the Xbox 360s digital storefront the games would be under the Xbox originals label and saw updates until 2009 at e3 2017 Microsoft made another monumental announcement regarding the original Xbox after the success of making Xbox 360 games backwards compatible with Microsoft's newer Xbox one the company announced that they would make original Xbox games backwards compatible with the system as well new titles are still being added to the list to this day making the Xbox one the only modern game console to support backwards can ability every story has an end and for the original Xbox that end would come in 2010 with the console discontinued in all regions no new games releasing for the system and the Xbox 360 at the height of its popularity xbox live support for all original Xbox games would come to an end online servers would shut down April 15 2010 making all online features no longer accessible for original Xbox games even those playing through an Xbox 360 the original Xbox was finally laid to rest [Music] transitional periods for game consoles don't follow a singular structure some manufacturers will keep successful consoles on the market for years after their successor is released Microsoft opted to pull the original Xbox off shelves after the release of the Xbox 360 the 368 come out at a perfect time Sony and Nintendo wouldn't release new home consoles until 2006 a year after the 360 had already came out not only did Microsoft gain a head start but Sony made some major stumbles with the PlayStation 3 early on high price point and a lack of strong exclusives helps Microsoft lead the console war in the early years Microsoft managed to have a lot of early hits for the Xbox 360 that were either exclusive to the console or came to the PlayStation 3 years later by the late 2000s the Xbox division of Microsoft had finally become profitable Microsoft saw more success in 2010 when they released the Xbox 360 Kinect the Kinect was a motion sensor camera that tapped into the widely popular fad of motion gaming in the late 2000s in total Microsoft would sell 84 million Xbox 360s over a decade and over 20 million connects the 360 wasn't perfect for Microsoft or consumers Microsoft rushed the production cycle of the Xbox 360 to reaches November 2005 release date due to this rush production cycle many Xbox 360s would suffer from the infamous red ring of death the red ring of death would cause many Xbox 360s to overheat and malfunction Microsoft tried to address the issue by offering an extended warranty on the Xbox 360s and eventually released an updated slim model in the end it's estimated that the red ring of death would cost Microsoft over a billion dollars the failure rate of Xbox 360s was never confirmed by Microsoft but some estimates pegged the failure rate as high as 20% for the early models Microsoft saw great success with the Xbox 360 but their most recent console the Xbox one hasn't been so lucky a change of leadership at Xbox in the late 2000s would see Don Mattrick a former EA executive heading the Xbox division under his watch the Xbox one would launch in 2013 the initial reveal is widely criticized by the gaming community due to vague claims with the console and poor communication Microsoft has not released sales numbers of the Xbox one but estimates put the Xbox one at around 40 million units sold after five years roughly half of what Sony is sold with their PlayStation 4 during that same time period Microsoft backpedal and many of the early features for the Xbox one including an always-on line connectivity a lack of support for used games and a required Kinect connection for the Xbox one alongside price cuts Microsoft has tried to turn the tide on their struggling console the biggest problem for the Xbox one now is a lack of first party support and other exclusives Microsoft has tried to make up for the lack of quality titles with new consumer friendly positions but it hasn't been enough for the company or the console Microsoft has continued to support home consoles since the release of the original Xbox but they have branched out with the Xbox into the world of smartphones tablets and personal computers in many ways Xbox is less of a console to Microsoft and more of an all-encompassing brand for their various gaming properties their most recent edition of Windows Windows 10 includes applications designed under the Xbox branding alongside this branding has been Microsoft's push to have all of their major Xbox exclusives be available on PC as well Windows 10 includes more nuggets of gaming to Cortana the fictional computer program from the Halo series serves as window tins default assistant Microsoft's Brandt has expanded alongside Xbox while Microsoft isn't the biggest tech company in the world anymore their expansion into new technologies and hardware can trace its roots to the Xbox it's entirely possible Microsoft would have never expanded into more Hardware markets when they did if it hadn't been for the success of the Xbox brand the future for Xbox is a murky one the Xbox one has a few more years on the market and Microsoft is already planning a new home console under the codename scarlet few details are known about the new system which could come out as early as 2020 but Microsoft has hinted at multiple versions of the system leading to the possibility that the next Xbox will be a variety of systems as opposed to a singular box it's entirely plausible that Microsoft might eventually drop the console entirely and focus exclusively on making Xbox an application for a variety of hardware or even into a streaming service once technology catches up whatever the future of Xbox is the brand of Xbox is a very strong part of Microsoft the original Xbox became the starting point for one of gaming's most popular brands but what happened to the characters that helped craft the console in the story of the system many of them have since left Microsoft and some have even left the gaming industry as a whole Seamus blackly the father of the Xbox left Microsoft in 2002 being the only one of the consoles co-founders to stay with the Xbox division until the launch of the system alongside Xbox co-founder kevin Backus Seamus blackly would create Capital Entertainment Group a company that was meant to serve as a middleman between game developers and publishers unfortunately the company wouldn't last long and shut its doors in 2003 Beck's has worked for a variety of companies since his departure from Microsoft in 2001 currently he is serving as the vice president of entertainment and game strategy at Dave & Buster's ohto Burke's and Ted Hays the final two co-founders of the Xbox would leave the Xbox division before the system launched both of them would continue to work for Microsoft Hayes left Microsoft in 2006 and has since work at aristocrat technologies in Las Vegas Nevada Burke's stayed at Microsoft until 2011 he has since worked at HBO in CA Technologies after leaving Microsoft Edie fries the former head of gaming for Microsoft left the company in early 2004 and founded his own game studio fire and fire ant was acquired by Sony just a few months later since then Fry's has served as an advisor and on the board of directors for of gaming and technology companies Peter Moore left Microsoft in 2007 to become the head of the sports division at EA more would be replaced by Don Mattrick more would become CEO o of EA in 2011 he left EA and the games industry in 2017 when he became a CEO of the Liverpool Football Club Bill Gates the man whose rubber-stamped helped create Xbox has taken on a smaller role at Microsoft over the years Gates stepped down from running the day-to-day operations at Microsoft in the late 2000s to focus more on his philanthropy quark through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Gates still owns a substantial stake in Microsoft and is currently estimated to be the second richest person in the world with almost a hundred billion dollars in assets the Xbox is a major force that changed video games for the better whether it be offering a strong competition to Sony for over a decade and a half now or introducing big franchises like Halo to the world of gaming or new and innovative ways of playing video games Microsoft is a net positive for video games as a whole perhaps the most important aspect of the original Xbox was just how seriously Microsoft considered the world of gaming Microsoft's investment and interest into the gaming world helped legitimize gaming within the business and cultural world for many since then many other major technology companies including Apple Google and Amazon have made investments into gaming while I've never considered myself an Xbox fanboy I do appreciate what Microsoft has done with the Xbox at the end of the day the games are truly what matter the most in the Xbox Xbox 360 and even the Xbox one offer new and exciting titles that make me proud to be a gamer that's the story of the Xbox to me a console that contributed to the advancements of gaming while offering new and fun experiences that weren't available anywhere else thank you for watching the story of the xbox if you missed any previous parts be sure to check them out leave a like if you enjoyed the video and tell me what you would like to see the next story of down in the comments below previously I covered the Nintendo GameCube and pokemon gold and silver and I'm always looking for new ideas on what games systems or events in gaming history I can cover next share this video on your favorite social media sites to help this channel grow and subscribe to catch the next video as soon as it releases and once again thank you for watching

Channel: Double Dog

Views: 419,485

Rating: 4.8548536 out of 5

Keywords: Xbox, Microsoft, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Xbox history, video game history, halo, halo series, fortnite, nintendo, sega, sony, ps2, gamecube, dreamcast, star wars, knights of the old republic, fable, half life 2, forza, bill gates, seamus blackley, documentary, jade empire, xbox live

Id: MG5_nM1JWbU

Length: 53min 36sec (3216 seconds)

Published: Tue Feb 12 2019

Reddit Comments

[u/Thug2Legit]

This was pretty decent, I linked it to my fb group as well. Thanks op!

[u/navyblue4222]

Very much enjoyed! Thank you.

[u/Apostrophe]

Came across this great amateur documentary about the Xbox with only a few hundred views!