14 DAY TRIAL // It's a bit hard to believe but 10 years ago, on November 15, 2001, the original Xbox console was released in North America, alongside some iconic titles like Halo: Combat Evolved.
Now, after 10 long years and a new generation of the device, the Xbox 360, Microsoft is looking back to the past, through the voice of Chris Lewis, the vice president of its Europe, Middle East and Africa entertainment division, who talked with Edge about the massive progress recorded by the company's Xbox division since those early days.
Back in 2001, console gaming was rapidly changing, with Sony establishing its PlayStation 2 as the most popular gaming console of its generation, while Nintendo deployed the GameCube. Besides these established companies, however, Microsoft awkwardly muscled its way, with the first generation Xbox.
Lewis admits that not even the company was that confident it would establish the Xbox as a serious entertainment brand.
"We were agile - we were first with many things we were proud of," Lewis said. "So I was confident we had the appetite for it. Could I have seen us here in ten years time? No.
"Did I think we would have 57 million Xbox 360s out there and growing? No, I probably wouldn't have guessed we'd have that much momentum. But we were in for the long term and that it was a marathon, not a sprint."
Lewis believes the success of the consoles is largely owed to Xbox Live, the online service that first saw its start with the original console and became a hugely successful endeavor with the 360, on which it's getting ready to get brand new features, including TV on demand.
"I've already said we're incredibly proud of Live. I know we have a rich array of entertainment partners coming and TV coming. That whole service orientation is right at the center of what we do and the scope, as broadband penetration gets deeper and speeds get faster, is only going to grow. The future's brighter for us than it is for anybody."
Last but not least, Lewis doesn't miss the chance to hype up the Kinect and how it's now being marketed towards hardcore gamers who favor traditional titles like shooter or racing games, not just casual ones.
"We were very deliberate when we brought Kinect to market that the need was to appeal to the broader family consumer in that first foray of our marketing and games. The second phase is to start to appeal to the core gamer, but the key is to make sure we don't alienate either. This is another example of the challenge to make sure we can appeal and resonate with the core gamer with both controller and Kinect-based games, and at the same time bring family and broad entertainment to market."
In between this celebration of the Xbox, quite a lot of rumors are floating around about its next generation, which is rumored to be announced early next year.