GT
Xbox

Xbox

Manufacturer
Microsoft
Production
2001–2008
Generation
Gen 6
Type
Home
Launch price
$299
Media
Disc
Units sold
24.0M

About Xbox

Xbox is a video gaming brand that consists of four main home video game console lines, as well as the streaming service Xbox Cloud Gaming, and online services such as the Xbox network and Xbox Game Pass. The brand is owned by the namesake division of Microsoft.

Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA 4.0).

Read about the Xbox in the Chapter 5: The Three-Way Battlefield era of our long-form console history.

Library & collector facts

Software library

1,014licensed games

  • North America: 989
  • Japan: 99
  • PAL: 711
Best-selling game
Halo 2

Release timeline

🇯🇵 Japan
February 22, 2002
🇺🇸 North America
November 15, 2001
🇪🇺 Europe / PAL
March 14, 2002
Lifespan
7 years on market

Pricing

Launch price (2001)

🇺🇸 USD
$299
🇬🇧 GBP
£299

Controller

4 × Xbox controller ports (proprietary USB interface)

Launch titles & exclusives

Launch titles

Halo: Combat Evolved · Project Gotham Racing · Dead or Alive 3 · Amped: Freestyle Snowboarding · Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee · Fuzion Frenzy · Madden NFL 2002 · NFL Fever 2002 · Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2X · Cel Damage

Pack-in game

None standard; many launch bundles included Halo: Combat Evolved

Notable exclusives

Halo: Combat Evolved · Halo 2 · Fable / Fable: The Lost Chapters · Jade Empire · Ninja Gaiden / Ninja Gaiden Black · Forza Motorsport (original) · Project Gotham Racing 1 & 2 · Conker: Live & Reloaded · Mech Assault · Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge · Otogi 1 & 2 · Phantom Dust · Panzer Dragoon Orta (Sega's swan-song shooter)

Final licensed game

Madden NFL 09 (2008) was the final licensed release

Most valuable collectible

Steel Battalion with 40-button controller (~$300+ CIB, full kit ~$500+); Stake-tier rarities; Xbox Live launch bundles sealed; Halo 2 Limited Edition tin sealed

Hardware specs

Os
Windows NT-based Xbox system software
Cpu
Intel Pentium III @ 733 MHz
Gpu
Nvidia NV2A @ 233 MHz
Ram
64 MB DDR SDRAM
Weight
3.86 kg (8.5 lb)
Dimensions
320 × 100 × 260 mm
Display Output
480i, 480p, 576i, 576p, 720p, 1080i
Storage Internal
8 GB internal hard drive

Hardware revisions

  • Original Xbox(2001)

    only base hardware revision, but motherboard versions 1.0–1.6 vary internally — clock capacitor leakage on v1.0–1.4 is the platform's defining failure (corrodes the motherboard) — capacitor replacement is essential preservation maintenance

  • v1.6 board(2003)

    final cost-reduced board, different clock capacitor design (no leak) but Xecuter modchips have more constraints

Launch colorways & special editions

Launch colors
Black with green accents (launch)
Special editions
  • Crystal (transparent green, 2003)
  • Halo Edition Green (limited)
  • JP-only green/white variants
  • Various retailer promo colors

Modding scene

Difficulty
soft-mod
Custom firmware
XBMC (Xbox Media Center, the origin of Kodi); UnleashX; Evox; Softmod via savefile exploits (007 Agent Under Fire, Mechassault, Splinter Cell)
Softmod via TSOP-flashing or savefile exploits — Mechassault, Splinter Cell, 007 Agent Under Fire savefile hacks remain the canonical free softmod path; XBMC (the original Kodi) ran on modded Xboxes and is why the original Xbox became the legendary first-gen media center; replacing the IDE hard drive requires unlocking the HDD via a modded console

Reception & legacy

Launch reception

Strong launch — Halo: Combat Evolved was the killer app and immediately repositioned the Xbox brand against PS2; criticized for the massive 'Duke' controller (replaced quickly with the smaller Controller S)

Notable controversies

Microsoft sold the Xbox at a substantial loss for the entire generation (~$4B in losses); the 'Duke' controller was so large it became a meme; lawsuits over Xbox Live age verification and the disc-scratching issue (some early units scratched discs in normal operation)

Cultural significance

Established Microsoft's gaming credentials and Halo as an industry-defining franchise; XBMC scene transformed it into the first mass-market media-center PC; the foundation that built the entire Xbox business through Xbox 360 and beyond

References

More from Microsoft

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Xbox in the news

Recent coverage mentioning the Xbox, gathered from 80+ gaming-news sources.

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