The End of the Original Xbox

Via eToyChest, a sobering look at the not so distant end of the Xbox. The article at 'Dubious Quality' also discusses the current/next-gen boundary for Sony, Nintendo, and the PC. From the article: "While there are already 40 Xbox 360 titles earmarked for release in 2007, the original Xbox has exactly zero titles currently scheduled with the retail chain. What does this mean exactly? Not much on its own, as company's could have things planned that are simply not in the system yet, but it sure does not paint a very rosy picture for the gigantic console that gave us so many fond memories."

Comments

Forcing Next Gen.

[the dark hero]

Without real backwards compatability on the 360 and little to no new games on the Xbox M$ might be trying to force us into buying the 360.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[Ant P.]

Sega did that at least twice. Look where it got their hardware business.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[Osty]

Sega did that at least twice. Look where it got their hardware business.

And Nintendo did that at least three times (NES to SNES, SNES to N64, N64 to Gamecube), but they're still alive and kicking.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[pembo13]

Forcing you maybe. I see other brighter options. Then again, I don't buy Microsoft.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[Have Blue]

Well, duh. It's their current baby and a bigger source of revenue than the original Xbox is at this point.

Although, not being fully backwards-compatible is a strong disincentive for me to buy one, since only about 25% of my Xbox 1 games are supported.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[__aaclcg7560]

Microsoft will do the same thing when they pressure game developers to stop supporting Windows XP in favor of Windows Vista to force the general gaming community to upgrade to the latest and greatest. That was the case for the Windows 98 to Windows XP transition. Windows Vista is going to hit gamers harder since it may require a hefty hardware upgrade.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[Castar]

Yes, they are. The original Xbox still costs them money to make, so the sooner they can stop supporting it and start making money on the 360, the happier they'll be.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[ad0gg]

My gamecube wasn't backwords compatible with n64 games. Oh wait, we are bashing microsoft.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[the dark hero]

Of course. I just haven't seen such a cut-off to a succesful console. The PS2 seems to be popping games out left and right with little signs of a major slowdown. If you really like those "xbox" games then you have no choice but to get the new system. I myself can make that sacrifice. This console war will definately be divided.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[LordSnooty]

But in those days, emulation (or in another form, backwards compatibility) was not popular or even possible in some cases. However, the Sega Megadrive (OK, Genesis) had a plug-in you could buy that played Master System games.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[Jace of Fuse!]

Actually since I worked retail between the NES and SNES phases I can tell you that Nintendo not only moved NES units after the SNES was released, but actually released new titles for the NES for at least a year after the release of the SNES. Between the SNES and the N64 things become a little harder to say for sure, but then I believe the Gameboy Color had taken up a larger space on the shelf than the previous gameboy line had ever had, and the rest of the space was dominated by PS1 and Saturn, so it's possible that the decline of the SNES popularity by that time was determined by factors outside of Nintendo's control. (By this time I was no longer working retail).

From the N64 to the Gamecube, it certainly was possible to still get an N64, but lack of 3rd party titles had long before already become a problem, and the only units I remember being available at retail in my area were those silly green and orange colored units.

Looking at modern times, let's not forget that there are still Gamecube games due out soon even into the release of the Wii. I do believe Twilight Princess is still a Gamecube game with Wii features added. There is also the new 2D Mario Adventure for the cube coming out.

The Gameboy Advance is still alive and kicking even though there is a huge shift from third parties to support the DS. Nintendo has repeatedly said that the DS has not replaced the GBA and that the GBA is still alive and moving in large numbers.

On the Sony side of things, the PS1 still had fresh titles for at least a year after the release of the PS2, and you can expect at least that kind of support for the PS2 after the release of the PS3. I say this because there are still several titles due out for the PS2 over the next year.

So, in reality, Microsoft dropping the XBox so soon after the 360 is a move that ISN'T the norm in the gaming industry. Some might say Sega did this, but Sega seems to have had a history of dropping support for a system the moment it's popularity declines beyond a certain level. Some people think they should have stuck it out with the Dreamcast even though we all know they had to think of their investors first.

Overall though, don't kid yourself. The XBox didn't do that well. Most of it's titles were available on either the PS2 or the Gamecube, if not both. The rest were available on the PC if not at the same time then shortly after. It only marginally had 2nd place over Nintendo and Nintendo's top selling titles at any time period were moving in far greater numbers than all but a very few of the highest rated Xbox games, and the rest of the titles that were available were losing sales to the PS2 version (and in some cases even the Gamecube version!)

Xbox Live! was the only thing that kept the XBox popular and that's the only thing pushing the 360.

Microsoft dropping the XBox might seem like it's coming pretty quickly by the gaming industry standards, but considering the losses the XBox has generously given the company it is wise on their part to ditch it now and focus their resources on the 360 which actually has some chance of success.

The XBox was not a success. It was a dismal failure. It's just a failure with a lot of fans. Kind of like the Dreamcast, though I sometimes think the Dreamcast has more fans now than it did while it was still alive.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[Osty]

So, in reality, Microsoft dropping the XBox so soon after the 360 is a move that ISN'T the norm in the gaming industry. Some might say Sega did this, but Sega seems to have had a history of dropping support for a system the moment it's popularity declines beyond a certain level. Some people think they should have stuck it out with the Dreamcast even though we all know they had to think of their investors first.

The article clearly shows that the Xbox is supported for a year after the 360's release. There are games scheduled to launch all the way up to October 2006 (that is, a year after the 360 launch). Anything after that gets into year two of the 360, and very few console makers have supported an old console that long (the GBA not withstanding, since Nintendo has said the DS is not a GBA replacement). Sure, the number of games is trending downward, but that's to be expected.

Nintendo and Sony will release Gamecube and PS2 games throughout next year, but that's within the first year of their next generation. Microsoft probably won't release any Xbox games next year because they're into the second year of 360. Unless you plan to hold Nintendo and Sony to the same two-year obsolecence commitment, I don't see how you can say Microsoft is bad for ramping down Xbox production after a year of 360.

The rest of your post turned into an anti-Microsoft troll, so I'm going to ignore it.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[Jace of Fuse!]

I don't see how you can say Microsoft is bad for ramping down Xbox production after a year of 360.

I never said they were bad. I said it was wise. In fact, I never actually said what Microsoft is doing, I spent more time talking about what traditionally happened in the past.

Anything that Microsoft does to the XBox is this point is probably aimed at focusing on the 360.

It seems to me you ignored far more than the "rest of my comment".

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[Donjo]

If you are worried so much about the backwards compatible games, you probably already had an xbox. If you already had an xbox and love those games so much, keep it plugged in. Pretty simple really. I am sure there are just as many people with a 360 that don't want time being wasted by making "old" games as there are people with the old xbox who want to have some new games for their system.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[Jokerz17]

I thought we were supposed to be bashing sony.

did I miss something?

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[ad0gg]

Bashing sony is only on tuesday and thursday. Microsoft bashing is Monday and Wednesday. Friday is reserved for worshipping Steve jobs.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[billcopc]

If you were a gamer, you'd already have this "hefty hardware". If you were just a normal person rather than a troll, you'd have enough "normal hardware" to run Vista anyways. It's not like you're forced to run Aero Glass just to use your computer. You can run Vista with a plain-jane interface just like many users run XP with the classic grey interface. What's important is the underlying OS and its functionality. Even at this early stage, Vista does many things right like per-application and even per-request security controls and a saner audio/video API.

Back to the topic, Xbox is dead. Yes, it's dead. It's done its time. It's damned obvious that Microsoft will focus all its resources on the 360. It's been out for what, 6 months now ? That means the last batch of games have been released, or canned in favor of 360 substitutes. No one in their right mind would be producing a first-gen Xbox today, and anyone even thinking about starting a new project, should have done so five years ago; they missed the boat. There's very little homebrew activity on the Xbox, beyond XBMC, so there won't be any worthy indie games to keep the aging platform alive. I love my Xbox dearly, despite the average mediocrity of its titles, but it's no Dreamcast, that's for sure.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[billcopc]

The reason developers are still working on PS2 titles is because Sony is turning the PS3 into a grand screwup. Nobody really knows how it's going to turn out, Sony is screwing developers left and right (nothing new), and to top it off we don't even know if we'll be able to afford the damned thing. $699 buys you a hell of a lot of handjobs!

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[Desult]

I'm a bit of a console scavenger. I bought into the SNES after the 64 had been out for a while. I bought a Dreamcast during the Thanksgiving sales where it was 99$ with games and equipment bundles.

I just bought an XBOX last weekend. It is MS refurbed, which I wasn't too hot on, but I have to say, 150$ (130 + 10 dollar usb gaming keyboard + 10 splinter cell) is a PHENOMENAL deal for XBMC. It would have cost me at least 300 bucks to build a quiet media center PC (though it might have been a bit smaller). It was dead simple to softmod it and install XBMC (for the average Slashdot reader, I guess). Plus I now have access to the XBOX catalog, on the strongest hardware of the last round of consoles. I got Vice City used for another 10 bucks. I always wanted to play that Panzer Dragoon game. Fight Night Round 2 on XBOX looks 10x better than Round 3 does on PS2. But again... XBMC makes up for any dearth of games. It can play PAL and NTSC DVDs. It can play video from data discs. It can play streamed music (though the XBOX does lack an optical out, which I love on the PS2). It very well may be able to stream video, but I haven't tried that yet.

My point - I will continue using XBMC until my XBOX dies. I will evangelize XBMC to everyone who enters my home. I know that this alone won't keep the thing alive, but it seems like any current XBOX user who gets into XBMC will keep using as long as the damn thing runs. I'm tempted to buy one of the remaining new ones at retail if they ever knock the price down from 180, just to mothball it for when my current one drops the drive motor or whatever. I took apart my dreamcast to keep it going longer, I'm not sure I can disassemble the behemoth XBOX =)

I don't understand the architecture of the X360 or PS3 well enough to guess whether they can be easily repurposed to run code like XBMC/linux/whatever, but I would hope that by the time I own an HDTV and the next next generation is nigh, one of them has been hacked to allow use to full potential. That will probably be my only criteria to pick between them. Having a quiet, (relatively) attractive media PC for 200 bucks RULES! Tacking on HD output, wireless internet, a 60GB hd, and whatever HD disc format wins out is a nice 200 dollar upgrade, over the XBOX, too =)

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[iocat]

For better or worse, Xbox was always second to PS2. PS2 was the everyman system, and Xbox was the system for people who wanted a little more. Put another way, if you were only going to have one console last generation, it was probably a PS2.

Multiple console people, Xbox Buyers, are quick to drop the platform when something new comes along. People who are more mass market, and only have one console, upgrade later because they aren't as rabid about games in general.

So, while Sony will/can/does have a good longterm PS2 business, regardless of PS2, the Xbox 1 biz may not be as long-lived, because the kind of people who buy Xboxes will have already moved on. (Of course, 15 years from now, they'll also be the ones buying them on eBay. "Dude! Halo 1! Remember that!")

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[AnyoneEB]

Just a minor note: At E3, Nintendo announced that Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess would be released in two separate SKUs: one for the GameCube and one for the Wii with Wiimote pointing for the bow and arrow and hookshot and widescreen display. It is assumed they will release on the same day, and the ability of the Wii version to play in GameCube mode is unknown but unlikely.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[__aaclcg7560]

If you were a gamer, you'd already have this "hefty hardware".

I guess six years in the video game industry doesn't count? (See my profile or my resume.) My current machine does support Vista but I'm in no rush to upgrade since I switched to a Mac. :P

If you were just a normal person rather than a troll, you'd have enough "normal hardware" to run Vista anyways.

Sure... if you like a slow computer system. I seen reports where machines with 256MB of memory will be Vista-ready even though you need 1GB or more.

Back to the topic, Xbox is dead. Yes, it's dead. It's done its time.

Maybe, maybe not. Sony kept the PS1 around longer than six months after the PS2 came out, and may do the same for the PS2 after the PS3 comes out. Follow the money... Microsoft needs upgraders more than the upgraders need them.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[Fulg]

the XBOX does lack an optical out, which I love on the PS2

Get the S-Video or Component video adapter pack for your Xbox, both have an optical output jack. Since you don't seem to have HD yet, you may be happy to know the S-Video adapter also sports a composite output if you don't have the proper hookup on your screen (get a new TV already!).

I will continue using XBMC until my XBOX dies

Actually I will go so far as buying another Xbox 1 if my current one dies. XBMC as a Universal Media Player is just too awesome to give up, and it is quite unlikely anything else can come close, short of XBMC360 :)

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[Kenshin]

The reason developers are still working on PS2 games is that there's a metric shitload of PS2 consoles sitting in front of TVs all around the world.

Why abandon a perfectly viable installed base in the tens of millions to focus solely on a console that's not going to have nearly that much of an installed base for a few years?

I mean, duh?

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[slack-fu]

Speaking of modded Xbox's...I slapped a chip in, added a custom faceplate with an LCD screen on the front, and put a 250 gig hard drive in my Xbox. With XBMC I have (in my opinion) the ultimate media center. I have over 60 games installed and about 2 dozen movies with plenty of room for new stuff all accessible without having to change a disc. It also streams 500 Shoutcast radio stations, has one of the best visualizers for partys, can stream movies or music over the wirelass network, AND tells me the weather outside. Xbox might have been a technically financial failure for Microsoft, but screw them, my Xbox is better than a 360.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[wolrahnaes]

(though the XBOX does lack an optical out, which I love on the PS2)

Only on the two lower-end output packs. Face it, the people who don't even have a S-Video capable TV are not exactly the market for a 5.1 or larger surround system, and optical out for sterro is pointless. All S-Video and Component output dongles have either optical or coax S/PDIF output.

Yes it would have been nice to have it out of the box, but if you have a decent enough system to take advantage of optical you've probably upgraded the output pack for a cleaner video signal as well.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[KlomDark]

In what days?

If you go all the way back to the ColecoVision, it had an emulator plugin that would let you play Atari 2600 games. (As well as the Adam plugin which turned it into (Yet Another) 8-bit 6502-based computer (Like the Apple II, Atari 400/800, Commodore VIC-20 & C64 (Which had an improved 6502, the 6510)))

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[Desult]

I'm definitely going to keep an eye on the current 180$ *new* packages. They've gotta come down eventually, no one seems to be buying them at that price point. They're not being shipped anymore but my local gaming store had at least two or three of them on the shelf.

I didn't buy any of the output dongles, I just used what came w/ the system. I will definitely grab the remote and a good output set... The video output isn't critical because I have a really cruddy TV (my girlfriend's) with my surround system (klipsch promedia 5.1, nothing amazing). I just really dig the idea and simplicity of the optical link. I imagine the coax would be just as good in my low end setup but the fiber makes me feel all futuristic ;)

I have been drooling over 40 to 50" DLP sets, but I haven't had the spare 2K laying around. But I know I'll cave and/or save up enough eventually =)

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[KDR_11k]

Unlike the Gamecube, it actually had games that adults wanted to play and could feel good doing it.

Last time I checked all of them were available to someone who has a GC, PS2 and gaming PC.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[KDR_11k]

But it IS Thursday!

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[Half a dent]

Without real backwards compatibility on the 360 there is no reason why an Xbox owner is tied into that upgrade path. The PS2 did so well partly because you could run your PS1 games if you wanted to. So a big library on day one and no need for two consoles under the TV.

If most Xbox games don't work/work well then you may as well choose which next gen to buy based on the console itself not it's predecessors back catalog. That approach may force an "upgrade" but not necessarily an MS console.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[mgabrys_sf]

699.00? Neat!

Is that Canadian dollars? I recall it being a little less than that. If you consider 100 dollars a small margin of error.

I don't but silly fucking me.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[Phisbut]

The Xbox was far from a failure. Unlike the Gamecube, it actually had games that adults wanted to play and could feel good doing it.

Why should an adult not want to play a Mario game and feel good doing it? Does every game one plays need to involve shooting at stuff and lots and lots of violence in order for him to enjoy them?

People who can enjoy simple games like Wario Ware, Mario Party and Mario Kart are probably more psychologically and socially stable than people needing violent games to satisfy their impulses. Because a game is rated "M for Mature" doesn't mean the person playing it is mature.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[powerlord]

The reason developers are still working on PS2 games is that there's a metric shitload of PS2 consoles sitting in front of TVs all around the world.

Not to mention the vaunted "backward compatibility" of the PS3 (if it works).

Why aim a game for a small corner of a market that might not hit yet, when you can aim for a much much larger one, without sacrificing the emerging market, except in terms of new features ... at least until the new market grows large enough to warrent the expense.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[Pope]

That's the problem. I never could get the hang of Thursdays.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[xtracto]

It was dead simple to softmod it and install XBMC (for the average Slashdot reader, I guess)

I know the most obbvious answer for this is Google, but could you point to any webpage with instructions on how to do the soft modding? I would REALLY appreciate it :).

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[Reapy]

xbox-scene.com

The hardest part of soft modding is having a game which has an exploit on it, then getting that game onto the xbox.

The games that have exploits are spinter cell, mech assault, and 007 agent under fire.

The way I managed to get the game on the hard drive was a little tricky, but not too bad.

I bought a memory card for my controller.

I took apart an old usb mouse and an extra xbox controler dongle.

You can match the cords together by color between the ubs end and the controller end. For ease of splicing I happened to have a bridge from radio shack, where all I had to do was screw down the stripped wires on the bridge instead of trying to twist them together or solder them. Wrapped the whole thing in electric tape. There is a tutorial how to do this on xbox scene.

Next I downloaded the action replay software, and drivers for the xbox controller called XID. Plug in the controller, install the XID drivers. Plug in the memory card, then use the memory card drivers from within the action replay install directory.

Now you can use the action replay software to copy back and forth to your memory card. So copy the saved game file onto the card, then plug in to your xbox like normal and copy it to the hard drive. I used the splinter cell one, so I had to copy two files.

I then loaded splinter cell, then loaded the saved game. I found myself in linux. I was able to easily set up an ftp on the xbox in order to save my eeprom file and back up anything I wanted.

Next I used the menu and began the automatic installer. It took care of everything for me.

The next tiem i rebooted I had a softmoded xbox. I then went around and found lots of software to use on it, including xbox media center.

I honestly read stuff for about a week or two, just trying to understand what I would be doing to the xbox, and figuring out the simplest and cheapest way to get the save game on the hard drive. At one point I was almost going to try hot swapping thd drive so I didn't have to buy a Mega X key or a flash stick that could be subsituted and used with the mega x key software.

Once I figured out how to do it, I then modded all of my friends xboxs who were not using xbox live, and it took me about 15 minutes per xbox to do it.

After modding the xbox it increased its value to me 10 fold and I've been able to enjoy watching a lot ot tv shows I wouldnt have bothered watching, as well as running some emulators on it. I highly recommend modding it.

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[billcopc]

I am insensitive you Canadian clod!

But no, seriously I was thinking canadian dollars.. my bad!

Re:Forcing Next Gen.

[mgabrys_sf]

No worries - actually - if memory serves - the Aussies are the one's that really get screwed on the conversion rates for video game consoles come to think of it.

XBMC forevar

[Smack]

It's still very good at being a media center.

Re:XBMC forevar

[PDAToday]

I would say its 'fair' at being a MCE (media center extender). I have been using mine that way for over a year and it's obvious that MCE was an after thought with the XBOX. It is however cheaper than some of the third party MCE devices. Mostly my compliant is that it does lock up or get wonky at times and that it had to load the MCE front end from the CD everytime. The visualls are also weak, and as I understand it you cant use an HD tuner from the MCE Server on teh orginal XBOX.

The Xbox360 however is amazing as an MCE. My only complaint is that I had to wait almost 6 months for it to be easily picked up. My old XBOX will now be a for my bedroom TV untill the 360's come down in price. --bill

Re:XBMC forevar

[Mitaphane]

Outside it being the term MS uses for media playing products(set top boxes, XBox, XBox360), Media Center Extender and Media Center are synonymous. What media program where you running on your XBox? I was thinking you might of had problems if you were loading it if off a CD-ROM. A lot of homebrew XBox apps assume the ability to write to the directories that the executable is located in. I know XBMC writes to some it's files upon running(logging, DB updates, etc.).

Re:XBMC forevar

[PDAToday]

True some stuff is dumped onto the HD. I am using the MS Xbox Extender software. It's works "ok". But when you use it on the 360 you really geta sense of just how much of an afterthought the Xbox version was. I would like to see an upgrade to the Xbox MCE software to make it more like the new 360, but really doubt that is in the works.

I guess I am being too critical of its functionality, look and feel. It does work, it just doesnt feel polished. So whats's my point? Well, I guess I didn't agree with the parent that it's a "great" MCE.

But hey, I did use it for a year because I didnt want to drag my Windows Media Center server into my media room. And I do plan on using it in the bedroom until the 360 price comes down in a year or two.

Re:XBMC forevar

[no_such_user]

If you're not using XBMC, you have every right to complain about the xbox being a poor "media center extender". It's not the MS-based app you seem to be referring to; it's MUCH, MUCH more than that. Go on craigslist, get a used xbox for $100, softmod it, and load up XBMC. It's simply the best "media center" I've come across.

From their site:

XboxMediaCenter is a free open source (GPL) multimedia player for the Xbox(TM) from Microsoft. Currently XboxMediaCenter can be used to play/view most common video/audio/picture formats such as MPEG-1/2/4, DivX, XviD, MP3, AAC, JPG, GIF plus many more less known formats directly from a CD/DVD in Xbox DVD-ROM drive or of Xbox hard-drive, XBMC can also stream files from a PC over a local network and even stream media streams directly from the internet. XBMC has playlist and slideshow functions, a weather forecast and many audio visualizations

Re:XBMC forevar

[Mitaphane]

That's probably because we're talking about two different media center programs. I didn't even know MS made a media extender for the original XBox until today. I'm surprised the offical MS media extender makes you run the software from the CD. I'd figured MS would have the program would update the dashboard to enhance its functionality.

Anyway, I thought you were talking XBox Media Center or some homebrew app for modded XBoxes. XBMC is pretty much the standard for media playing programs on the XBox. It supports most common video/audio/picture formats(more than the XBox360 supports), allows python scripting to allow internet audio/video functionality(among other things), runs a FTP/HTTP for remote access, plus other little goodies. In my mind, it's much more useful than what the XBox360 is capable of when it comes to media center capabilities.

Re:XBMC forevar

[wolrahnaes]

Yea, the Microsoft extender software was clearly half-assed. IMO no extenders for XP MCE were bearable until the 360, the rest were just too damn slow and incapable of HDTV.

Definately try XBMC though, it'll change the way you use your Xbox. Mine's set up to stream movies in almost any format I throw at it from my media server, so I can use the entire hard drive to back up games and store all my movies, music, and emulator ROMs in one place shared between my two modded Xboxes and 6 PCs.

So?

[Per Wigren]

There are at least 573 games already released for it. I doubt you have already played through all of them...

Re:So?

[PatrickThomson]

take the subset of games you don't dislike because of the premise or gameplay, then take the subset of that which doesn't suck.

Re:So?

[thatguywhoiam]

There are at least 573 [wikipedia.org] games already released for it. I doubt you have already played through all of them...

Yes, of course. Those were all killer titles, every one of them.

I haven't finished sifting through all the PS1 games yet. Every one a gem.

Re:So?

[Per Wigren]

My point (although I failed to write it) was that most people (except those who pirate every game they can find) only have maybe 1-5 games and there are still plenty of gems for them to find.

The X-Box is dead, you say?

[Golias]

So... Does Netcraft confirm it?

I know people who still occasionally fire up their Dreamcast systems. Old consoles are dead when they stop running, not before.

Re:The X-Box is dead, you say?

[CarnivoreMan]

Heck ya. I still use my original NES from time to time. I love the old school Metroid and Zelda. I'm sure people who have the old Atari systems play those too.. Systems never really die as long as they have some fun games. However, the end of support and push by the owning company may come to an abrupt halt. Thats when replay value of the games come forward allowing you to witness the firepower of this fully armed and operational battle station! or.. .. um... the console.. I mean you can see the long term playability of the console.

Re:The X-Box is dead, you say?

[Per Wigren]

At least in Sweden the NES is still very very popular, even among people who weren't even born when it was released and even (especially?) among non-nerd, non-techie, non-gamer type of people. These people aren't "collectors" or anything like that, they like it because the games are fun and simple but mostly because so many of the games can be played as two-player games.

Boxed mint condition NES consoles and games sell for almost the same prices as the current generation consoles/games...

Re:The X-Box is dead, you say?

[mctk]

Old consoles never die, they just play dead.

Re:The X-Box is dead, you say?

[windex]

Newer consoles with hard drives are going to die. Lots. :/

Re:The X-Box is dead, you say?

[Aladrin]

I put my Dreamcast in the closet for a while. I pulled it out the other day to play Reel Fishing Wild and I couldn't find the video cord. I've actually paid $2 for the cable and like $20+ for shipping (I ordered other stuff too, to mask the pain) just so I could play that game.

So yeah, good games will keep a console alive long after they leave retail.

Re:The X-Box is dead, you say?

[acidrain69]

I'd like to point out here that you can put your own HD in a PS2 and install games on it using HD Loader. You don't need the Sony drive unless you want to play FF11.

Re:The X-Box is dead, you say?

[StormUP]

NES systems died. Lots. Blink, blink, blink....goes the little red light. Of course thats fixable for a nominal sum, but I imagine a hard drive would be replaceable just as the connector pins on the NES are replaceable.

Re:The X-Box is dead, you say?

[CarnivoreMan]

lol.. good point about the blinky NES factor. Man, I hate that.

Re:The X-Box is dead, you say?

[Jarlsberg]

That's because Swedes don't have any business sense. You can get a NES with games on Ebay for $20-30. ;)

Fond Memories?

[tgpo]

"but it sure does not paint a very rosy picture for the gigantic console that gave us so many fond memories." Not quite. I'm still playing the ole' N64. I figured then that all games on newer systems were nothing more than remakes with "Better graphics". I don't care about graphics, I want gameplay!

Re:Fond Memories?

[mc1138]

I'd agree with that, it seems as games get flashier they don't increase in quality and often you'll see games that look good but play like crap. Take the First Rouge Squadron for N64, great game with two crappy remakes. Why is it that the first thing out of most people's mouths is a question about the graphics?

Re:Fond Memories?

[Braino420]

I'm with you on this one.. MarioKart 64 with 4 people on a projector, still hella fun (preffered over the GameCube version even). My roommates and I play through the Zeldas and Marios every once in a while too.

Not a memory maker for me

[CrazyJim1]

Only game I liked on Xbox was Halo 2 because it had good online features. Halo 1 was somewhat fun, but it lacked the depth that an online ladder game has. I guess I look for a lot in a system nowadays, mostly online multiplayer ladder, or massive multiplayer. I for one won't be looking back at the Xbox as nostalgic as Nintendo or Atari 2600. There were better games on PS2 or on the PC during the Xbox era for me to give it a crown in my memories.

Re:Not a memory maker for me

[riotstarter]

Has anyone else noticed the strange/funny connection between his username (CrazyJim1) and sig ("God spoke to me.")?

Change happens, people!

[cinnamoninja]

Is this shocking to anyone?

... abandoning a console is something that is going to make people angry, no matter how it's handled.

Who gets angry that their console is outgrown? Of course, plenty of people might choose not to buy the newer system immediately. Most who make that choice are happy with the amount of games they already have to play, and are willing to wait for the newer generation to come down in price.

The article has a table of future game release dates. Apparently, the Xbox has 31 new games scheduled to come out, compared to 85 for the 360. Given that the 360 has been out for half a year, I'm surprised to hear that many new titles in the works for an older system.

Re:Change happens, people!

[mattydont]

Half a year ?? you must be exadurating.... oh, nope forgot people in australia have had the 360 here for about 3 months now. But the reason for this is that supply could not keep up with damand in the states so we got shafted, i dont think that i being phased it is a problem either as this has happend with every console and is mainly why i dont buy them in the first place.

Re:Change happens, people!

[davidbrit2]

The number of times I've seen a 360 Premium bundle in stores is approximately equal to the number of times I've played chess with Bigfoot. Thus I'm not too surprised that some publishers are still hanging onto the machine that's actually got a market share for now.

Re:Old consoles are dead when

[Abcd1234]

Uhh... not to advocate piracy, but if you can't find the titles, you can always... err... acquire them and burn them to CDRs. That's the beauty of the Dreamcast. :)

But then...

[skyman8081]

But without the original Xbox, what will we laugh at for being "OMG XOBX HUEG?" "OMG PS3 HUEG" doesn't have the same ring to it.

Re:But then...

[TheBlackSwordsman]

But without the original Xbox, what will we laugh at for being "OMG XOBX HUEG?" "OMG PS3 HUEG" doesn't have the same ring to it.

"OMG XOBX 360 PSU HUEG"? Still doesn't have the same ring to it, but that damn power supply is a space heater....

Re:But then...

[nutshell42]

All those jokes we remember so fondly were mostly a problem of industrial design.

The 360 is almost the same size (I think it's even larger in at least one dimension) and managed even that only by moving its PSU to an enormous external unit but it *looks* much sleeker. The same's true for the PS3. The whole Xbox design is clumsy and just screams "I'm huge, make fun of me". Kudos to MS for getting it right this time.

Well...

[xCROSSFIREx]

the thing is...with the popularity of Halo 2 on xbox live, there are many users that simpy can't afford a 360...the big switch will be if/when microsoft doesn't allow xbox (1's) on xbox live..

Re:Well...

[vga_init]

the big switch will be if/when microsoft doesn't allow xbox (1's) on xbox live..

Okay, but why would this happen, really? I don't think it would be difficult at all for 360 service and legacy service to coexist happily together, so why pull the plug when you're more likely to make people angry than drive up sales?

Re:Well...

[Braino420]

Is there a reason for them to do that? People have to pay to play xbox live... Or did you mean big switch as in going from the XBox to the Revolution?

Of course...

[Scorpion265]

I mean, would you really want to develop for a system that is now considered obsolete? The same thing happened to the Saturn when the dreamcast came out, n64 to gamecube. There might be a month of two of overlap, but thats the way the console market is run. We really shouldn't be surprised by this, in fact, this is common sense here.

Re:Of course...

[und0]

I don't know you, but i would develop for a system that has a considerable installed base...

Re:Of course...

[demon]

There was ongoing development for the PlayStation/PSone for several years after the PlayStation 2 hit the streets. There are still GBA games being developed, even though the DS has been out for awhile (don't give me the naming thing, DS is supposed to be the "next leap" in practice, if not in name). It's become more common in recent years, as the "current" systems are still out of the price range of some more casual gamers, and the old systems still remain quite useful, for development of titles to continue.

I'm sure that at this point MS can't wait to get out from under the old XBox though, as it's probably getting kinda expensive sourcing thouse 8-10 GB hard drives, Celeron 733 CPUs and custom graphics chips (since they're one of a quickly dwindling list of consumers for those particular devices - supply and demand, kiddies). They're selling them cheap, but I'm sure the parts still cost well more than the whole, and it's most likely killing them a little inside with each unit one of their contractors ship out. I've no doubt that's a major reason for the XBox's relatively early demise.

Re:Of course...

[Scorpion265]

The whole reason behind the development for the PS1/one is because hardware was still being developed for it. When the PS2 came out, the PSone did as well. Same thing with the GBA, the GBA micro came out. This then dictates that more software should be developed. I am not saying that this is always the case, but for most cases, it's true.

Reality Check

[John Gaming Target]

I think TFA is missing a few key pieces of data. First, he's using the EBGames website for his information, which is not terribly accurate. The release list I maintain has a 50/60 Xbox/Xbox 360 split. Not quite a big difference. Sure, 2007 will be all 360, but right now this is probably the best console transition for owners of the obsolete system ever.

A sobering look?

[Anonymous Coward]

When the end of life for a video game console is sobering you know your priorities are seriously messed up.

It was (is) a good system

[Nightspirit]

I'm not really a fanboy (I have both a xbox & ps2, will be getting the Wii), but the xbox did pretty decent overall. Sure, it lost 4 gazillion dollars, but they got decent marketshare in an area already saturated IMO.

Sony and nintendo were pretty indifferent about online (I'm sure someone could quote something to prove me wrong here), and who knows where they would be now if xbox live wasn't introduced, and the evolution of live into the 360 is pretty sweet IMO.

The ps2 had more exclusives (the only reason I bought a ps2 was for the romance of the three kingdoms series, and dragon warrior), but those tended to be japanese RPGs and similar games, which don't interest everyone. Cross-platform games tended to look better on the xbox because of the hardware, and the xbox controller was better than the ps2s IMO. The xbox had some decent exclusives as well (jade empire was better than most recent final fantasies IMO).

Where the xbox mainly failed was in Japan, hence the lack of japanese development, and it looks like the 360 is doing, if anything, worse in this aspect.

Also, the custom development for hacked xboxes is impressive. XBMC is (honestly) the best open source program I have seen. I don't know anything about software but even I could get XBMC to play the way I wanted. Not to mention emulators exist for nearly any non-recent game system (no dreamcast, gamecube, ps2, etc).

Re:It was (is) a good system

[ClamIAm]

I'm still not so sure about the impact of online in the now-ending generation. MS managed to get a pretty healthy subscriber base, but I also think that the demographic that signed up for Live is made up of a lot of PC gamers, and/or hardcore gamers. These are the same folks who are forcing the arms race of HD and graphical masturbation between Sony and MS.

Then we get to the money aspect. If my demographic assertion is correct, this is a group that isn't expanding at a phenomenal rate. I've read analysis that claims most of the growth in the US gaming industry was due to population growth, while the percentage of hardcore gamers stayed relatively constant. There's also the question of whether or not Live is profitable. I have seen only one article on this, which claimed it was not (I have no idea if it is).

Re:Ha!

[snuf23]

Yeah, I've been wondering if I should pickup a second one before they disappear. In addition to being a great DIVX/XVID player, it is excellent for MAME, 8 bit and 16 bit emulation. I know you can run all that on a computer, but I prefer having the easy to console interface.

Thinking of the Dreamcast...

[wilgibson]

While in Tokyo in March, I went to a Yodobashi Kamera in Shinjuku and noticed they were still selling new Dreamcast games. The system may be dead in the rest of the world, but for some damn reason it still seems to be kicking in Japan. Just not as much as the rest of the consoles.

Re:Thinking of the Dreamcast...

[RailRide]

And by keeping an eye on Play-Asia, I managed to snag Zero Gunner 2, Trizeal, Radirgy, and Under Defeat. All appear to be conversions of Naomi (an arcade version of DC) titles, meaning there is potential for a few more DC titles to trickle out. (assuming you have a modchipped DC)

Not that I've gotten around to playing them yet...I still have shrinkwrapped Saturn titles I haven't gotten around to (including the legendary Radiant Silvergun)

(oh, yeah, and then there are the handful of Jaguar games I haven't unboxed yet.)

---PCJ

Re:Old consoles are dead when

[Abcd1234]

Pfft, I'd drop $4 without blinking... the time spent finding ISOs and burning them is worth more than that.

Speaking of dedicated, I bought my DC solely for hacking my own code (which I haven't done much recently, unfortunately). If you want to get into console programming, the DC is a great starting point (that or a GBA... which I also have, along with a flash cart... yes, I'm a console dev junky with no free time ;).

This Isn't a Big Surprise

[Mitaphane]

MS themselves have said before that they're no longer going to make any new software for the console. And it's been said they're soon going to halt production of the original XBox. It's no surprise that other 3rd parties are following suit as they prepare for the very pricy next-gen change.

I imagine MS is much more eager than other console makers to jump to the next-gen because they know the original XBox has hacked wide open. They've done their research with the 360 and they know it's going to long while before someone really cracks the 360 open.

As for me, I'm quite content with the original XBox. It isn't a great game box, but it's a fantastic media player/emulation box.

Re:This Isn't a Big Surprise

[Babbster]

I imagine MS is much more eager than other console makers to jump to the next-gen because they know the original XBox has hacked wide open.

I know this is the Slashdot party line, but Xbox hacking has little or nothing to do with Microsoft's desire to pull the plug on the Xbox. They want to pull the plug because every time they make and sell an Xbox they're still losing money. It's far more advantageous for them to produce and sell the Xbox 360 for a loss than the Xbox. If Microsoft could produce the Xbox dirt cheap and sell them for a hundred bucks a pop like Sony did with the PSOne, they'd do it in a heartbeat, hacking or not.

Re:This Isn't a Big Surprise

[wolrahnaes]

And it's been said they're soon going to halt production of the original XBox.

They already did. nVidia stopped making the NV2X/MCPX chips some time last year, which meant all Xboxes produced since then were just burning through stock. As of a few weeks ago, I could not find a new Xbox available through the website of any major retailers, and the on-shelf stocks have been dwindling for a few months. When I bought an Xbox about a month back to mod for a friend, I had to search 4 stores before I found one, and it even turned out to have been manufactured nearly a year before I bought it.

Basically, the Xbox has been terminal since last year when the chip production stopped after Microsoft's contract with nVidia ran out (it had not been renewed due to some major arguements between the companies, which is also why the 360 uses ATI). It's been dead from a production perspective since early this year, and it's just barely clinging on to life in the retail market with the few still left on shelves.

Re:This Isn't a Big Surprise

[cttforsale]

I agree. I live in waterloo and had to go to cambridge Ontario to find a new one for $177.00 (holiday bundle). I modded it right away though

Hmmm.. open the old Xbox up?

[Rifter13]

After reading comments here, I think MS could give the Xbox longer legs, and make it a legend. When they officially "retire" the box, send a final xbox live update that opens it up, and allows mods and such to work on it, and let it find a new life as a media PC/DVR type unit. It would generate goodwill from the fans, ensure a very long life for the hardware, and probably allow them to ship through all of their back inventory quickly.

Re:Hmmm.. open the old Xbox up?

[fyrewulff]

And let people cheat even -more- on Halo 2 than they already are? I prefer it stays closed. People unable to cheat (for the most part) is worth the 5$ a month, or the use-and-canceling of 2 month trials, for me. If only Bungie had actually locked down their DLC like every other Xbox game does.....

Ah yes the fond memories

[Trogre]

1. Buy XBox
2. Modchip
3. Linux
4. OSS Media Center!

Re:Ah yes the fond memories

[faedle]

Modchip? We don't need no stinking modchip! Where the hell you've been?

Re:Ah yes the fond memories

[Trogre]

Ah, kids these days. They have no idea how easy they have it.

Back in my day we had to modchip our Xboxes to make them usable, and we were GRATEFUL.

I'm not sure what they are talking about....

[guspasho]

I predict many happy years to come for millions of Xbox users, with their Xboxes hacked to be a media center device.

Was it really a failure?

[xswl0931]

From outside, it would appear that XBox was a "dismal failure". However, I think it really depends on the original goals. If the goal was to make a profit on XBox, then all would agree. However, at the beginning, Microsoft stated their long term strategy and did not expect XBox 1 to make money, but to get the brand out. Being late to the console game, Microsoft knew they had to spend lots of money to establish themselves as a legitimate player in the console business. For this, they succeeded. If XBox360 ends up winning the next round of consoles and makes enough money to cover the losses from XBox 1, would XBox 1 still be considered a failure?

Re:Was it really a failure?

[Jace of Fuse!]

If you look at it that way, I would tend to agree. As a single business venture in the short term, the XBox itself is a failure. It generated losses and it didn't even perform as well as Microsoft initially hoped.

As a foot in the door, a name generating entry, and a place holder for later efforts, it's certainly fullfilled it's goals.

I think it's unrealistic to expect the 360 to generate enough revenue to recap the losses of the XBox, though that will really depend more on how much competition the PS3 gives.

However, someone at Microsoft once said (I'd look for the quote, but I don't know the exact wording) that Microsoft was in this game for the long haul and wasn't even too worried about profitability anytime soon.

I never said the 360 was doomed, or that Microsoft was doomed in the game console arena. They do have deep pockets and they're willing to dig far into them. I simply stated that dropping the Xbox and focusing on the 360 is a wise choice. (As someone pointed out, though, they haven't dropped it YET...)

The question is how long will stockholders be willing to play along with that game?

Re:Was it really a failure?

[KDR_11k]

Well, MS's goals are quite low. Most console makers just make a console and take over the market on the first attempt or die from lack of money. The XBox was as dead as a console can be, it was on life support the whole time. From the sounds of it the XC isn't much better in the profitability department. I don't think any other console manufacturer in the history of the market ever incurred such a heaviy loss. Measured by the market standards, the XBox was not only a failure but probably the worst failure that ever happened.

No! They're supposed to make games forever!

[WoTG]

Uh, whoop-de-doo. I can't buy games for my old Sega Master System either... what's the big surprise again? XBox had a reasonably long life for a console. Let it be.

Meh

[thelonestranger]

I've said it before and I'll say it again. I dont care if retail stores stop selling games for my XBOX, I'll just continue to pick up the games I never got round to playing off Ebay for £3-£5 and build up a substantial collection of quality games to keep me happy until the prices for the new generation of consoles come down to somewhere not approaching ridiculous. I'm just going to sit back with my pile off games and wait for the dust to settle.

Re:Meh

[gknoy]

...until the prices for the new generation of consoles come down to somewhere not approaching ridiculous.

For me, this translates to, "I'll be waiting a REALLY long time..." ;)

Re:Meh

[thelonestranger]

More than likely, but in the meantime I have a REALLY big pile of dirt cheap top quality games to keep me happy ;) .

Re:Meh

[gknoy]

Which, IMO, is peftectly fine. I'm in the same boat. Hell, I haven't even beaten half the games I /do/ have (and i have like ... 4 ... ;)) for my gamecube.

Hooray!

[Kamineko]

Does this mean that the original Xbox is now going to be cheap as chips and I can finally buy one and load it full of haxncrax?

Re:Hooray!

[sinner6]

You can already by a box full of haxncrax for under $200 including shipping.

Re:Hooray!

[Kamineko]

That is a substantial amount of chips, you know. >:(

Build the 360 library

[nerdwithagun]

It only makes sense that developers would prefer to develop for the xbox 360 hardware. Which should be (or so microsoft tells me) easier to develop for and at least provide the extra power.
I intend to upgrade to an xbox 360 in the future (I refuse to pay the AU$650 !!) but I wouldn'd be burned if all the good games in the next year come out on a 360, infact I would be happy to know that when I get my 360 there will be some good titles in the library I can pick up cheap.

Pros for Xbox....

[cttforsale]

- Only HD capable device I have (an I use it at 720p with XBMC) - AFAIC it's a dead system, so roms are free. - lots of emulators. - my wife likes Baldur's Gate & D&D Heroes, so lots of quality time spent together there.

Re:Pros for Xbox....

[Is0m0rph]

I'll always have the Xbox, mine from the original launch day is still working fine as a media center, Nintendo/arcade emulator, and even the occasional Xbox game.

Re:Get off your FAT ASSES...

[mgabrys_sf]

technically that would be ON your fat-asses. Unless you're playing DDR, Guitar Hero or an eyetoy game - or if you're being suspended from the ceiling.