/r/OriginalXbox

1,274 gamers playing for 6 years!

While technically the sub has existed for six years, it didn't really launch until two years ago. Before then, there was no real community to discuss just the original Xbox on reddit. That place used to be /r/Xbox, but it has long since become a mix of posts relating to all Xbox branded products, both new and old, leaving fans for the first Xbox without a dedicated subreddit.

The announcement of Xbox One made things more confusing. During the Xbox 360 era we mostly referred to the first Xbox as "Xbox 1," kinda how PlayStation was called "PlayStation 1" when the PS2 was announced. But now Microsoft's new console was literally called "Xbox One." So that pretty well just messed everything right up. The community seems to have settled on the term "Original Xbox." I guess "First Xbox" didn't have the same ring to it. And who knows, maybe Microsoft will name the successor to Xbox One "First Xbox" just to create further chronological confusion. Or better yet, "Xbox Two." We'll see.

/r/OriginalXbox exists for fans and enthusiasts of the original Xbox console that was released in 2001. The first one.

As the Xbox approaches its 15th birthday next month, what do people still do with such an old console? First of all, they enjoy playing video games, that's what. despite being two generations old, many Xbox games still look and play great.

When we went from third generation gaming (NES/Master System) to the fourth gen (Genesis/SNES), gaming took a big leap forward. When we went from the fourth gen to the fifth gen (PSX/Saturn/N64) gaming took another gigantic leap forward. And it had a massive leap going to the 6th generation consoles too (PS2/Xbox/GameCube). But in the years since, we've had two generations that only incrementally improved upon what the past generation was doing. As such, Xbox games hold up very well.

Imagine if Halo was never released. Now imagine if it came out today with the gameplay 100 percent intact and with a modern graphics engine. It'd fit right in with the other first person shooters that are being produced today. In fact, it'd still stand above many of them. And that's just one example. Halo's not even the best game Xbox has to offer. Xbox games are as playable today as they were nearly fifteen years ago.

What else goes on on /r/OriginalXbox other than talking about games? Well, there's a lot of collecting activity. Here /u/GymLeaderKoga shows of his rare Mountain Dew model. /u/franchy36 is working on a complete Xbox collection. Here he shows it at 57 percent complete with 581 titles. I happen to know that he's a lot closer to his goal now than he was when he made that post eight months ago.

Through the magic of XLink Kai many Xbox owners still get together and play games online. Modding is another big topic of discussion. Since Xbox had a lot of power under the hood and fairly familiar architecture, it's easy for modders to work with. People expand the hard drive storage, add emulators, and suddenly they have access to thousands of games.

People love Xbox because it was a great console with a great library of games, they love to mod it, and they love to play online. If any of that sounds appealing to you, then check out /r/OriginalXbox.

Don't take my word for it, though. Let's hear what the community has to say.

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What do you like most about this community?

/u/presertim: I love the devotion to a console that never quite got the respect it deserved even in its heyday.

/u/Noctis_Lightning: Everyone here seems to be very friendly and knowledgeable and willing to help or lend a hand.

If you could pick five games for a person to try out who has never played an Xbox, what would they be and why?

/u/presertim: Halo 2, Voodoo Vince, Forza, Crimson Skies, Kung-Fu Chaos. A varied group of exclusives that I feel are the best of their genres on this console.

/u/DeviIstar: Halo 1 in a LAN setting with folks who are willing to teach, and fusion frenzy - gotta get that jump duck on.

/u/NostraKlonoa: My list...

• Blinx The Time Sweeper. A charming, unique and ridiculously hard platformer in which you eliminate time monsters and traverse the level using various time powers, such as STOP, PAUSE, SLOW, FAST-FORWARD, REWIND. The game is for those who certainly want a challenge, and believe me when I say this: you will certainly want to keep playing to achieve the ending. Its a really adorable game with tons of charm and a unique play style that has never been captured upon since. It's the Klonoa of XBOX.

• American McGee Presents Scrapland. A fun, futuristic GTA3 styled game in which you work as a robot journalist, in a world where if you are a robot, you never die, due to your data being stored in the martix, trying to uncover a dangerous conspiracy, initiated by the death of an important political figure. Its main focus is utilising the powers of your character and flying ships. It's a challenging game that should be immortalised as one of the hardest games ever with some of the best storytelling ever.

• Second Sight. Made by the guys who made TimeSplitters, it's a third-person stealth combat game utilising the psychic powers of the main protagonist. Like Scrapland, it has a great story, and the gameplay is brilliant and well executed.

• Jet Set Radio Future. While lacking in a big story, its unique gameplay and charm replicated only by its predecessor makes it a stand out title exclusive to the system.

/u/Noctis_Lightning: Halo 1 & 2. They're what brought us into the modern fps. Such solid gameplay and story telling. A must play.

Shenmue II. So much life went into this game. Open world, depth in the weirdest areas of gameplay. It is really a unique game that I think everyone should at least see or experience once. The shenmue games also brought us the modern day version of a quick time event. Also Shenmues director Yu Suzuki coined the term "quick time event."

Kung Fu Chaos. Funny action fighting game with weird characters

Jade Empire or* Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic*. Amazing BioWare RPG's that hook you from start to finish.

Now there are other games such as Ty the Tasmanian Tiger, Steel Battalion, Amped 2, Breakdown, Blinx the Timesweeper, Burnout, Fusion Frenzy, Panzer Dragoon Orta, Enter the Matrix, GTA, etc. There's a huge list but I feel like the games I listed in the top 5 show those who have never touched an Xbox the scope of the system. It's incredibly difficult to pick 5 games ahaha.

Do you still play your Xbox online?

/u/DOSBrony: There's a discord of people who play different games each Friday and some Wednesdays, I can send an invite. Other than that, Halo 2 is pretty much active all of the time.

Have you ever had to repair or replace your Xbox? What about modding it?

/u/presertim: I have soft modded my original Xbox so I could use MAME on it. Before I could use it, my hard drive began to have issues. I plan to replace the hard drive soon as my next project.

/u/Noctis_Lightning: I had to remove the clock capacitor so the dang thing wouldn't leak. I asked some questions in the sub, looked up a YouTube tutorial and everything went swell.

What do you think a new user will immediately notice about /r/OriginalXbox?

/u/presertim: I think a new user will notice how quick questions are answered in this sub. It shows how active and welcoming this sub can be.

/u/DeviIstar: There is a wealth of knowledge for the most part here and we are really willing to help newbies out.

/u/NostraKlonoa: That it isn't full of elitists that hate outsiders. This place is very welcoming towards new users.

/u/shantigilbert: This is what I like the most, I have several OG Xbox and I like to mod them and fix them if necessary, softmodding is very easy, the outcome is that the OG Xbox is my most used console for emulation up to the N64, you just can't find a better console for this.

What are your favorite posts on this sub?

/u/presertim: My favorite posts are the game recommendations. As a collector, I get to find more games to keep a extra eye out for, as well as adding my own favorites to help someone else.

/u/DeviIstar: It's a tie between the information for mods, and seeing people develop their own games, that is really cool to me.

"What is your favorite soundtrack off of any Xbox game?

Mine is the Halo 2 soundtrack, because Bungie were at their best with that game.

/u/DeviIstar: I would 100% agree... the composition of just the menu song is fucking amazing.

What game do you have the most time in on Xbox?

/u/DeviIstar: Halo 1 without a doubt.. right now I am using a modified version with a built in timer and made for multiplayer only. I hold LANs at my house at least 2-3 times a month with folks for all skill levels.

What about Xbox do you like the most?

/u/ghost_of_xbox_past: I like that the Xbox is the underdog in the 6th generation consoles. Most people go for GC of PS2 and pass up the Xbox even though it has some incredible games on the system. The console is a powerhouse compared to the other two systems and can be modded in many different ways to play all sorts of games. Xbox is just the best overall to me.

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That's it for this feature. Check out /r/OriginalXbox for more. Keep in mind that if you're not already an owner, the consoles and most games are still pretty cheap. You can have a great start to a collection for $50-$60, the same price that you'd pay for a single brand new modern game.

I am not only an Xbox owner, fan, and collector, I'm a mod of /r/OriginalXbox.