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Why wasn’t the original Xbox a bigger success

Main reason it wasn’t a huge success?

  • Total voters
    151
RetroGamingUK

RetroGamingUK

Member
Team Andromeda Team Andromeda got me thinking about this.

I recall buying one (the crystal model) along with Halo 2 at launch and a Live subscription and having an unforgettable experience online that weekend.

I soon built up a decent collection and it became my main console towards the latter half of that gen once PES went online.

I also loved the Sega exclusives and excellent PC ports like Doom and Half-Life.

I was quite surprised when it was dropped shortly after the 360 released.

So, what happened? Why couldn't it compete with PS2?
 
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Look at the PS2 game lineup in 2001, compared to the Xbox lineup.

Also, sort of the inverse of the Sega situation, people liked PlayStation and trusted Sony and were more likely to buy a PS2 because of that. I also think that there was resistance outside the US to throw and support Microsoft, who was not a well loved company at the time.
 
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IMO- atleast for that console, it was simply a newcomer. It was still the new guy on the block and needed to establish some sort of footing. Didnt have the foundation or games Playstation had already built via in house or partnerships.
A solid launch pad for the first half of the 360s life.
 
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I had all 3 systems. Xbox was definitely the best 3rd party machine. GameCube the best 1st party machine. PS2 was by far the worst of the 3 but got the most games. It is what it is. Popularity contest basically. Japanese games weren't universally available everywhere at the time, and western games were just barely starting to gain an audience on console. FPS and WRPG wouldn't explode until 360 era, but the seeds were there already with Morrowind, KOTOR, Jade Empire, Halo, etc.

P.S. Steel Battalion was awesome.
 
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diffusionx said:
Look at the PS2 game lineup in 2001, compared to the Xbox lineup.

I also think that there was resistance outside the US to throw and support Microsoft, who was not a well loved company at the time.
Click to expand...

We didn't get the original Xbox until March 2002 in the UK and by then PS2 was basically becoming established as the default 6th gen console in the UK.

I bought my PS2 shortly before Gran Turismo 3 released and my friends basically upgraded from PS1 to PS2 when GTA3 launched.

Had the original Xbox released with Halo by Christmas 2001 I think it would have turned more heads.
 
PS2 dominance

Gamecube coming in 2nd.

Xbox initial cost, plus a game library that was limited compared to PS2/Gamecube.

I had a OG Xbox at launch and ended up getting rid of it after about a year. Then I picked up a heavily modded one when KOTR was released as an Xbox exclusive a few years later. I still have that one.
 
When X dropped it was peak "M$" and they were not generally well perceived because of all the 90s antitrust shit. It's really the same reason a lot of people still don't like them today. Just Microsoft being Microsoft.

Frankly I'm surprised as many people bought in over the years as did, but I'm sure a lot of the general gaming population isn't old enough to remember the 90s anyway.
 
While they were releasing their first console in North America, they were competing with a company that had this:

https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F983f2622-50ef-4d7e-ac30-3c73021bd1ed_1024x901.png


I mean...let's be serious. You simply can't compete.
Most of these games ended up being some the best games on their own genres back then.
 
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It was simply the late release. PS2 already had a stranglehood on the market. I had both a PS2 and an Xbox and outside of playing GoW and some JRPGS on PS2, everything I played was on the xbox. I mean, I mostly played on Gamecube that generation.
 
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RetroGamingUK said:
We didn't get the original Xbox until March 2002 in the UK and by then PS2 was basically becoming established as the default 6th gen console in the UK.

I bought my PS2 shortly before Gran Turismo 3 released and my friends basically upgraded from PS1 to PS2 when GTA3 launched.

Had the original Xbox released with Halo by Christmas 2001 I think it would have turned more heads.
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I don't know about the situation in Europe but in the US in 2001, Halo was competing with MGS2, GT3, FFX, GTA3, it really wasn't a fair fight.
 
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Sethbacca said:
When X dropped it was peak "M$" and they were not generally well perceived because of all the 90s antitrust shit. It's really the same reason a lot of people still don't like them today. Just Microsoft being Microsoft.

Frankly I'm surprised as many people bought in over the years as did, but I'm sure a lot of the general gaming population isn't old enough to remember the 90s anyway.
Click to expand...

To be fair everyone I knew with a computer back then had a Windows machine, it was when laptops were becoming mainstream.

It's not like the 2010s and 2020s where everyone seems to use an iPad or Android tablet instead.
 
Tiago Rodrigues said:
While they were releasing their first console in North America, they were competing with a company that had this:

https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F983f2622-50ef-4d7e-ac30-3c73021bd1ed_1024x901.png


I mean...be serious. You simply can't compete.
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I certainly wouldn't have skipped Xbox though. I had it all. Make a pic in green with Ninja Gaiden Black, Morrowind, KOTOR, Project Gotham, Brute Force, Halo, Dead or Alive 3 and on and on.

I always forget how many people had PS2 only. Crazy.
 
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Well, they already had a DVD player called the PS2. Outside of the obvious competition, I remember the duke being a turn off.

PS2 was a smart choice out of the gate. You waited out Dreamcast and then didn't need anything else.
 
My initial response to Microsoft entering the console space with xbox was, ok so now they gonna charge for the online multiplayer? F THAT (was a heavy pc quake/unreal tournament etc player back then) and my previous online console experience was just the dreamcast with its dialup and quake 3 (and chuchu rocket, tons of fun) and hoping this would not become part of the ps2 etc. fastforward to today and boy are we paying for online mp on consoles. ;(
 
RetroGamingUK said:
To be fair everyone I knew with a computer back then had a Windows machine, it was when laptops were becoming mainstream.
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I mean, we all used Windows, we mostly still do. It's more just the lack of viable alternatives. If Steam OS every gets full desktop release I'll probably just do that and not look back.
 
As others have said, the PlayStation 2 was a monster.

Too bad the PlayStation 3 sucked ass, but then we got another monster, the Xbox 360.

Then the fuck up with XBone and welcome the PlayStation 4.

Shame it appears that pattern isnt repeating it's self with a good Xbox come back this generation.
 
The system had quite a few successes in its own way - especially considering that fact it had a shorter lifespan than the PS2 AND also came out after it.

I'd say the main reason was actually because they went for the 360 pivot. The marketing and release of the 360 basically nulified the system fast.
 
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How is a 1st console supposed to compete with arguably the GOAT console?!

They entered the market with a good console and a cool library, X360 took the brand further. It was normal imo.
 
Judge Magister said:
How is a 1st console supposed to compete with arguably the GOAT console?!

They entered the market with a good console and a cool library, X360 took the brand further. It was normal imo.
Click to expand...

Bulky aesthetic aside it was a much better machine than PS2, and at the same price.
 
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PS2 had something for everyone. GTA, Gran Tusrismo, Final Fantasy X, tons of exclusive JRPGs, many exclusive indie games and almost all sports games. PS2 was also the cheapest DVD player and backwards compatible with a console that sold more than 100 million copies. Sony already established it's brand globally.

Xbox had Halo and a few games for a American centric audience. Even Sega after the partnership released many games exclusively on PS2. PS2 also one year head start.
 
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Punished Miku said:
I certainly wouldn't have skipped Xbox though. I had it all. Make a pic in green with Ninja Gaiden Black, Morrowind, KOTOR, Project Gotham, Brute Force, Halo, Dead or Alive 3 and on and on.
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Not saying those games are bad...they aren't. But how do they even begin to compare them with that little game called GTAIII? Or MGS2? Or GT3? Or Devil May Cry?

GTAIII literally changed open world games forever and its influence is still felt to this day. MGS2 is still one of the biggest jumps from one game to its sequel we have ever seen in every metric. Devil May Cry basically created an entire subgenre that it's still emulated to this day and one of the main influences of God of War, Bayonetta, etc. Gran Turismo 3 was probably the most awaited racing game in history. Final Fantasy X changed JRPGs forever. Silent Hill 2 is still considered the best one from that franchise and one of the best horror games in history. ICO is still mentioned as an influence to many developers from a level design point of view.

Most games you mentioned are on the same level as Jak & Daxter, Ace Combat etc...from my picture. Even if they were great games they didn't reinvent their own genres. The only game on your list that you can include among the ones i just mentioned is Halo.

That PS2 picture isn't just a picture of great games...it's a picture of games that basically changed an entire industry. Most people out there don't know what Morrowind or Brute Force even are.
 
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Tiago Rodrigues said:
Not saying those games are bad...they aren't. But how do they even begin to compare them with that little game called GTAIII? Or MGS2? Or GT3? Or Devil May Cry?

GTAIII literally changed open world games forever and its influence is still felt to this day. MGS2 is still one of the biggest jumps from one game to its sequel we have ever seen in every metric. Devil May Cry basically created an entire subgenre that it's still emulated to this day and one of the main influences of God of War, Bayonetta, etc. Gran Turismo 3 was probably the most awaited racing game in history. Final Fantasy X changed JRPGs forever. Silent Hill 2 is still considered the best one from that franchise and one of the best horror games in history. ICO is still mentioned as an influence to many developers from a level design point of view.

Most games you mentioned are on the same level as Jak & Daxter, Ace Combat etc...even if they were great games they didn't reinvent their own genres. The only game on your list that you can include among the ones i just mentioned is Halo.

That PS2 picture isn't just a picture of great games...it's a picture of games that basically changed an entire industry. Most people out there don't know what Morrowind or Brute Force even are.
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Xbox eventually got better versions of GTA3, MGS2, and Silent Hill 2. They were late. Sony dominated almost exclusively because of 3rd party support and brand popularity. They perfected that "cool adult" aesthetic that SEGA was toying around with on the Genesis. Marketing worked for them, and most of the gaming industry was in Japan at the time and they clearly benefitted from that.
Tiago Rodrigues said:
Most people out there don't know what Morrowind or Brute Force even are.
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Oh I agree. For me though at the time it blew away Final Fantasy, and X is one of my favorites in the series. Morrowind was a revelation at the time. Most people had no idea. KOTOR as well was a megaton. These were all time classics hitting home run after home run, and they were exclusive.
 
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Punished Miku said:
I certainly wouldn't have skipped Xbox though. I had it all. Make a pic in green with Ninja Gaiden Black, Morrowind, KOTOR, Project Gotham, Brute Force, Halo, Dead or Alive 3 and on and on.

I always forget how many people had PS2 only. Crazy.
Click to expand...

Ninja Gaiden came out in 2004 (Black in 2005)
Morrowind came out in 2002
KOTOR in 2003
Brute Force (which sucked) in 2003

All the games in that graphic came out in 2001.
 
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I bought OG Xbox and was largely disappointed with the amount of 1st party games that interested me. The few that did were alright, but had extremely open ended, incomplete narratives, or were stupidly short, or both. It was clearly for the Madden\WWE crowd (or the FPS people that didn't realize how superior PC FPS were) more than the RPG crowd so I wasn't the target audience for sure.
 
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Punished Miku said:
Xbox eventually got better versions of GTA3, MGS2, and Silent Hill 2. They were late. Sony dominated almost exclusively because of 3rd party support and brand popularity. They perfected that "cool adult" aesthetic that SEGA was toying around with on the Genesis. Marketing worked for them, and most of the gaming industry was in Japan at the time and they clearly benefitted from that.

Oh I agree. For me though at the time it blew away Final Fantasy, and X is one of my favorites in the series. Morrowind was a revelation at the time. Most people had no idea. KOTOR as well was a megaton. These were all time classics hitting home run after home run, and they were exclusive.
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I mean...so did Xbox (the bolded part). Even Halo wasn't from them. Sony still had stuff like Jak & Daxter, Gran Turismo, ICO, etc...from their main studios.
And to be honest PS5 didn't reach 80M consoles sold because of PS studios effort so that's still something that's happening to this day.

About Xbox getting better versions of those games, i mean yeah...but it was 2 years later and games like GTA3 came out on PC even before Xbox so no need to buy an Xbox for some of them. And if i remember it right both MGS2 and Silent Hill 2 had issues on Xbox that didn't have on PS2 even if it was better in some areas.
 
Nintendo and Sony. And the fact Xbox had to come in and establish itself.

Sony launched a year earlier and was king. Nintendo GC was the established 2nd console and had the 3rd party support at launch.

Xbox didn't have Madden etc early in its lifecycle. Xbox was an unknown quantity.

Also Xbox was ahead of its time with its feature set. Broadband wasn't widespread in 2001.
 
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PS2 was unstoppable, it had the entire third-party industry invested in the system, it had DVD, backwards compatibility with the first PSX, etc... Xbox and GameCube arrived very late, by then they only had the crumbs left.
 
Mostly late release.. but also it lacked the right games. Nintendo had their longtime popular IP, Sony had GTA as exclusive and a bunch of other hits. With Xbox the only thing that really caught on was Halo..
 
tr1p1ex said:
Nintendo and Sony. And the fact Xbox had to come in and establish itself first in order to eventually get 3rd party support.

Sony launched a year earlier and was king. Nintendo took awhile some sales and had the 3rd party support at launch.

Xbox didn't have Madden etc at launch in its early life. Xbox was an unknown quantity.
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Xbox had Madden at launch.

en.wikipedia.org

Madden NFL 2002 - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org
 
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It was new and people were skeptical of a PC based company developing something for the living room.
 
I had all 3, but actually got the ps2 last, it was woefully underpowered for multiplatform titles, so I pretty much just got those on xbox; I eventually got the ps2 strictly for japanese exclusive titles like the naruto ultimate ninja games, another century's episode, super robot wars etc.
 
tr1p1ex said:
Oh 2001 is actually 2000 before the Xbox launched. Whoops.

I didn't think they had widespread 3rd party support in the beginning. But maybe I'm wrong on that. Maybe I am misremembering and confusing that with the GC losing 3rd party support after a few years.
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I think Xbox had ok third party support all things considered, it had good games like Max Payne (the PS2 port was really bad), but Japanese devs were not on board and that is where the action was in 2001.
 
diffusionx said:
I think Xbox had ok third party support all things considered, it had good games like Max Payne (the PS2 port was really bad), but Japanese devs were not on board and that is where the action was in 2001.
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Yeah I know it got pc 3rd party support. That was one of its selling points to developers. It had the same APIs as the pc more or less. DirectX and pc hardware. Max Payne was a pc game first. It had CAstle Wolfenstein. ...Halo was a Mac game original or from Mac game developers.

btw, for Madden at launch, I'm also probably remembering that full price Madden in November is not a big selling point.
 
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tr1p1ex said:
Yes I know it got pc 3rd party support. That was one of its selling points to developers. It had the same APIs as the pc more or less. DirectX and pc hardware.

And as for Madden at launch, I'm also probably remembering that full price Madden in November is not a big selling point.
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What you might be thinking of as well is that, IIRC, Madden 2003 did not have XBL while the PS2 game did have online.
 
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