Original Xbox - Timeline
Wednesday22nd Jun 2022
News Xbox Exec Talks The Struggles Of Adding Games To Backwards Compatibility
"Every title is a unique challenge"
When Microsoft dropped the mic at E3 2015 with its backwards compatibility announcement, it was clear that a ton of work went into the program. Xbox One launched with no ability to play Xbox 360 games at all, let alone anything from the original Xbox. Now, of course, both libraries work on modern Xbox platforms in...
Friday20th May 2022
Video Here's A Nostalgic Look At Official Xbox Magazine Demo Discs
Remember these?
The folks over at Digital Foundry have decided to crack out some old Xbox demo discs, and we're swimming in nostalgia right now. The hosts sit down and play a selection of demos from PGR to Arctic Thunder and everything in between, and it takes us back to the good old days. There's even a trailer on there highlighting some of Xbox's...
Monday28th Mar 2022
Random This Original Xbox Hot Tub Post Has Gone Viral
Too bad it's digital
Alright, we catch our fair share of the weird and wonderful on a whole range of gaming subreddits, but this post might just take the cake. An Xbox hot tub image started doing the rounds yesterday, March 27th, and you could say it looks 'unique'. The core of this thing is based on an original Xbox console, with the tub section...
Friday18th Mar 2022
News This Rare Original Xbox Development Kit Is An Absolute Monster
90's desktop life
It's another normal Friday morning on Twitter, browsing the news, checking for discourse, y'know, the usual, and then this absolute unit appears on my feed. An Xbox collector who goes by the Twitter handle GameboxUkv has acquired an original Xbox development kit that we've never seen before. This thing looks like a proper 90's...
Friday21st Jan 2022
News Xbox Creator Shares NSFW Quote That Nearly Got Him Fired From Microsoft
Bill Gates was "VERY upset"
If you weren't aware, Seamus Blackley was a key part of the original Xbox team, even going on to be coined the "father of the Xbox". He's one of the major reasons why Xbox got off the ground, so he's kind of a big deal around here! However, he didn't get everything right. Earlier today, he highlighted an NSFW quote of...
Sunday9th Jan 2022
News OG Xbox Creator 'Feared It Was All Over' At The Xbox One Launch
"There was a moment..."
We've been hearing a lot from the "Father of Xbox" Seamus Blackley in recent weeks to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Xbox, and he happened to mention on Twitter yesterday that he felt Xbox One almost killed off the brand entirely. In response to a comment about the Power On: The Story of Xbox documentary, Blackley (who...
Thursday6th Jan 2022
News The Rock Comments On Unveiling The Xbox With Bill Gates In 2001
"We were the coolest cats in Vegas..."
The unveiling of the original Xbox by Bill Gates and The Rock at the CES trade show is one of the most famous moments in the brand's history, and it took place exactly 21 years ago today on January 6th, 2001. At the time, it seemed like such a bizarre crossover — Dwayne Johnson was still a WWF wrestler back...
Thursday16th Dec 2021
News 'Father Of Xbox' Seamus Blackley Admits He Was Wrong About GTA 3
"Not going to lie, I was sceptical"
The recent Xbox documentary series Power On: The Story of Xbox revealed that the team passed on the chance to bring GTA 3 to the original console in 2001 (possibly as an exclusive) — the decision made by some "newly important executives". Following this, the 'Father of Xbox' Seamus Blackley, who was a key part...
Wednesday15th Dec 2021
News Xbox 'Rejected' GTA 3 In 2001, Didn't Think It Would Be Successful
"It was the top-selling game of 2001..."
The new Xbox documentary series called Power On: The Story of Xbox briefly discusses the huge success that was Grand Theft Auto 3 in 2001, and also explains why the game never ended up on Xbox until a few years later. As revealed by former Xbox Director of 3rd Party Relations Kevin Bachus, Microsoft was...
Thursday25th Nov 2021
News Microsoft Shares Early Dashboard Concepts For The Original Xbox
It could have looked very different
We all remember the iconic original Xbox dashboard and its incredible intro sequence (the latter still viewable today with backwards compatible titles on modern consoles) but Microsoft had plenty of alternate ideas for these as well. A few examples have been published on the Xbox virtual museum, broken down into...
News Xbox 360's Logo Was Almost Used For The Original Xbox Instead
Along with a variety of alternate designs
Did you know that Microsoft was considering using (a version of) the Xbox 360 logo for the original Xbox? Thanks to the new Xbox virtual museum, we can see what it would have looked like, and there are various other alternate designs on display as well. You can see the logo on the right side of the image...
News When The Original Xbox First Leaked, Microsoft Openly Lied About It
"You guys, I think they're onto us"
We've been treated to a bunch of fascinating information about the original Xbox courtesy of the new Xbox virtual museum, and one of the sections goes into detail about the first time the original console leaked to the press. Next Gen Magazine was the first outlet to get word of Microsoft's new "Xbox" project,...
Tuesday9th Nov 2021
News Gen Z Reacts To The Original Xbox, And It’s As Cringe-Inducing As You’d Expect
Please, make it stop
Halloween may be over, but Xbox has dropped the scariest video of 2021. A new reaction video sees Gen Z coming across an original Xbox for the first time whilst millennials sit back and watch in horror. In what we can only describe as ten minutes of pure hell, seeing the younger generation interact with the console and describe...
Tuesday2nd Nov 2021
News The Official Xbox Website Has Received An Early 2000s Makeover
A trip down memory lane
The 20th anniversary celebrations for Xbox are continuing, this time with the official website sporting a look reminiscent of the original Xbox console itself. On the back of the site being redesigned to have a retro Xbox 360 feel, we're now going true old school with the original Xbox. Complete with the classic logo, the...
Wednesday13th Oct 2021
News Xbox Creator Apologises To AMD For Last Minute Awkward Switch To Intel On Original Xbox
Uh-oh
20 years is a long time, right? Surely any bad blood in those years has been squandered. Well, original Xbox creator Seamus Blackley is still feeling pretty guilty towards AMD, after a last-minute change at the console's reveal saw their work swapped for Intel hardware. Blackley took to Twitter to make a public apology to Lisa Su, the...
Friday8th Oct 2021
Rumour Seven Original Xbox Games That Could Be Getting Backwards Compatibility
'But don't jump to any conclusions'
Earlier this week, we reported on a story that Xbox might be thinking about adding more backwards compatible titles to the library this November, and now a few rumoured possibilities have cropped up on the original Xbox side. As highlighted by True Achievements, the outlet spotted a few bizarre original Xbox...
Wednesday6th Oct 2021
Rumour Xbox Could Be Adding New Backwards Compatible Games This November
Possibly for Xbox's 20th anniversary
Stop us if you've heard this one before, but it's been rumoured that Xbox might be thinking about adding some more backwards compatible games to the library later this year, possibly to celebrate Xbox's 20th anniversary. This is according to XboxEra co-founder Shpeshal_Nick, who mentioned back in January that a...
Saturday17th Jul 2021
Pick One Which Is Your Favourite OG Xbox Title On Game Pass?
Remember, you can only pick one!
It's time for another round of Pick One! This week, we thought we'd take a look at the Xbox Game Pass library and pick out the five original Xbox games that are currently available via the service. Which is your favourite? Remember, you can only pick one! Let's take a look at what we're working with: Black Join...
Sunday11th Jul 2021
News Halo Co-Creator Shares Footage Of Prototype Build From 2000
Weapons, models and more...
Over the past week, the co-creator of the Halo universe, Marcus Lehto, has dug up some of his "old" Halo 2000 PC footage and shared it on social media. He started off with a look at the Covenant weapon prototypes - one of the highlights is the "microwave gun" - with Marcus himself noting how hilarious it would have been...
Sunday23rd May 2021
Video A Closer Look At That OG Xbox Dashboard Easter Egg
And there's still another one to find!
Old-school Xbox fans got a surprise this week when an original Xbox dashboard Easter Egg emerged after 20 years. In short, it brings up the credits of the team who worked on the original system's dashboard and is similar to a previously known Easter Egg, which reveals a credits list for the entire console...
Wednesday17th Feb 2021
News 16 Years Ago Today, Xbox Decided To Recall Millions Of Power Cords
The issue affected just over 14 million consoles
Remember the mid-2000s? Remember the days of the original Xbox? Then you may recall the time Microsoft recalled 14.1 million power cords after it was found they had the potential to catch fire. As reported by CBS News back in 2005, the mass recall was made after 30 customers had reported they had...
