Microsoft Celebrates 20 Years of Xbox

A celebration of the past and future of Xbox
Britt Britt (157)
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November 15th marked the 20th anniversary since the first release of the original Xbox! Microsoft celebrated the occasion with a livestream on Twitch, Facebook, and YouTube. While most video game industry events are focused on the future of games and technology, Xbox wanted to also celebrate its history.

Microsoft released the first generation Xbox in 2001 as a way to dip into the gaming console market. Competing with Sony’s Playstation 2, Sega’s Dreamcast, and Nintendo’s GameCube, Microsoft was the first American company to release a console. Since their first console release, Microsoft has sold over 160 million Xbox consoles.

The entire livestream was a blend of old and new, featuring clips of previous Xbox events “from the vault”. There were many internet speculations on what might be announced at the event, but let’s break down what was confirmed and announced!

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power on the story of xbox

For those interested in the history of video games and technology, a six part documentary series will feature the story of how Xbox began and where they’re at now. Starting December 13th, watch Xbox employees of the past and present talk about their experiences in the development of major Xbox products. Power On: The Story of Xbox will air across most video streaming platforms, like Roku, IMDb TV, YouTube, and Redbox.

backwards compatible xbox
Xbox

Peggy Lo, compatibility program lead, announced that over 70 original Xbox and Xbox 360 games will be backwards compatible. Games included are:

  • 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand
  • Aces of the Galaxy
  • Advent Rising
  • Adventure Time: The Secret of the Nameless Kingdom
  • Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? Make the Grade
  • Avatar: The Last Airbender - The Burning Earth
  • Bankshot Billiards 2
  • Beautiful Katamari
  • Binary Domain
  • Black College Football Xperience: Doug Williams Edition
  • Cloning Clyde
  • Conan
  • Darwinia+
  • Dead or Alive Ultimate
  • Dead or Alive 3
  • Dead or Alive 4
  • Death by Cube
  • Disney Universe
  • Disney’s Chicken Little
  • Elements of Destruction
  • Fear
  • Fear 2: Project Origin
  • Fear 3
  • Fear Files
  • The First Templar
  • Gladius
  • Gunvalkyrie
  • Islands of Wakfu
  • Lego The Lord of the Rings
  • Manhunt
  • Max Payne
  • Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne
  • Max Payne 3
  • Mini Ninjas
  • Mortal Kombat
  • Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe
  • MX vs. ATV Alive
  • MX vs. ATV Untamed
  • Nier
  • Novadrome
  • Oddworld: Munch’s Oddysee
  • Onechanbara: Bikini Samurai Squad
  • Otogi: Myth of Demons
  • Otogi 2: Immortal Warriors
  • The Outfit
  • Outpost Kaloki X
  • Quake Arena Arcade
  • R.A.W. - Realms of Ancient War
  • Red Dead Revolver
  • Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City
  • Ridge Racer 6
  • Rio
  • Risen
  • Risen 2: Dark Waters
  • Rock of Ages
  • Sacred 2: Fallen Angel
  • Scramble
  • Screwjumper!
  • Secret Weapons Over Normandy
  • Skate 2
  • SpongeBob SquarePants Underpants Slam!
  • SpongeBob’s Truth or Square
  • Star Wars Starfighter: Special Edition
  • Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith
  • Star Wars: The Clone Wars
  • Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast
  • Switchball
  • Thrillville
  • Thrillville: Off the Rails
  • Time Pilot
  • TimeSplitters 2
  • TimeSplitters: Future Perfect
  • Toy Story Mania!
  • Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment
  • Viva Piñata: Party Animals
  • Warlords

All games added will benefit from Auto HDR, a feature that analyzes and converts standard definition resolution (SDR) to high definition resolution (HDR). Many will also improve with increased frame rates from the FPS Boost feature that was introduced in the Xbox Series X. Some backward compatible games already in the library will be getting an FPS Boost as well, such as Fallout 3, Fallout: New Vegas, Dragon Age: Origins, and Alan Wake.

xbox vault dwayen the rock johnson

Partnering with Netflix and the cast of their new movie Red Notice, fans of Xbox can enter to win exclusive prizes at XboxVault.com. More of an interactive story narrated by Dwayne Johnson, players have four minutes “within” the vault to find hidden artifacts. Prizes include an oil painting of “The Rock”, three replica Cleopatra Eggs featured in the movie, 20 custom Red Notice Xbox Series X consoles, and more!

halo tv series

Streaming in 2022 on Paramount+, the first Halo TV series trailer was revealed. It’s the first glimpse of the upcoming live-action adaption. It was a short trailer that didn’t reveal much, but is rumored to tell a new story around the Master Chief within the Halo universe.

halo infinite early beta release
Xbox

Anyone on Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X and PC can now play the beta season one of Halo Infinite! Originally set to launch December 8th, any progress, cosmetics, unlocks, and stats from the multiplayer mode will carry over on launch day. Game mode and features included are:

  • Academy and Training Mode
  • “Heroes of Reach” Season One (which will run until May 2, 2022
  • Quick Play 4v4 Arena (bot, social, and ranked)
  • 12v12 Big Team Battle
  • Custom online and local games
  • Free special event Fracture: Tenrai with the Yoroi armor core and event pass

Anyone who plays in the first week will receive commemorative rewards by logging in before November 22nd.

You can watch the full livestream here:

Watch the video:

Britt Britt (157)
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It was at Minecraft Live 2020 that the Caves & Cliffs update was originally announced.