Here are the 11 XBOX game consoles I have in my collection which includes stock systems, modded, special editions and one Japanese console. (and what I think about the Xbox Series X)
GameSpot – For nearly twenty years, Microsoft’s Xbox has been a constant force in gaming, nestled alongside Sony’s PlayStation as one of the most popular gaming brands. With the coming shift that the upcoming Xbox Series X will bring, fans have been clamoring for more details on what’s to come with next-gen. While the console itself features some impressive features, the one thing that players are especially excited to see more of, and to get their hands on, is the controller itself. The many controllers throughout Xbox’s history have placed themselves among the pantheon of gaming’s most iconic devices, and the Xbox Series X’s controller looks to continue on a tradition of having an accessible and engaging peripheral to get a grip on.
With this in mind, we wanted to take a look at the history of the Xbox’s key controllers and upgrades. Many of these controllers would possess features and innovations that would go on to become trailblazers for more exciting and accessible ways to play for the audience. In this video, video producer Jay Julio takes us back to the beginning with the Xbox’s original controller–often known as The Duke–and explains how each device paved the way for what came next.
Few video game genres instill power and satisfaction as easily as the shooter. While players can’t raise hell in titles like Call of Duty on the same scale as they can in games like Civilization, the immediacy of the former’s gameplay has proven time and time again to be far more efficient of an endorphin rush. Decades after players were first able to do so in Wolfenstein, unloading one’s clip into an unsuspecting enemy is still sublime like few other experiences in the medium; an unequivocal act of domination bereft of drawbacks or emotional trauma.
But every now and then, a shooter goes against the grain, and attempts to subvert these very foundations upon which it is built. Spec Ops: The Line was one such game. Released in 2012 on consoles and PC, The Line began in an unassuming fashion, casting players as the leader of a three-man team tasked with investigating the fate of a rogue colonel in a sand-swept version of Dubai. Those who kept with it, however, quickly discovered that underneath its modest premise laid a hellish odyssey, one that forced its protagonists into disturbing predicaments at every turn, and repeatedly questioned the ethicality of how they chose to solve them.
Like many subversive games before it, The Line received critical acclaim upon its release, but disappointed at retail, selling well below other, contemporaneous first-person shooters. Almost everyone who was involved in its production, however, was almost relieved that it didn’t end up becoming a massive hit – for bringing it into being had been its own personal hell, and nobody was ready to go for a second round.
In 2005 mere weeks after the launch of the Xbox 360 in North America, hackers found a method to exploit the DVD drive firmware and defeat security by allowing for backup DVD’s to load and run. This is a look back and how this was achieved and how Microsoft responded.
Lollipop Chainsaw is a hack and slash action game released on Xbox 360 in 2012,was also released on PS3. Developed by Grasshopper Manufacture,published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment.
In 1989, young college graduate Jordan Mechner introduced a 2D platformer called Prince of Persia to the world. Platformers were all the rage during the 80s, yet Mechner’s set itself apart from its contemporaries with its weighty, swashbuckling action, and incredibly smooth animations – a feat that Mechner had achieved by rotoscoping his family and friends into sprites. After a decade of enhanced ports and a strong sequel, the series would fall into an abyss following a misstep into the third dimension. Yet just when all seemed lost, Ubisoft’s young, Montreal-based studio would step in and transform the series into a modern classic, implementing a gameplay mechanic now as iconic as the franchise itself in the process. Prince of Persia’s new heroes would continue to nurture it for many years after – until finally, after bringing it to the silver screen, the decision was made to put it on hold. The series’ spark had seemingly vanished – but the mark it had left on the industry and gamers worldwide would still remain. This is the rise and fall of Prince of Persia.
