Sunday, November 22 marked the 10th launch anniversary of Microsoft’s Xbox 360 console. Xbox Live Director of Programming Larry Hryb, known to most as “Major Nelson”, observed the occasion by thanking fans via Twitter and posting about the system throughout the day.
10 Years ago today we launched Xbox 360. Thank you to the millions of fans around the world for helping us create a great decade of gaming
— Larry Hryb (@majornelson) November 22, 2015
Following its MTV unveiling in 2005, the Xbox 360 revolutionized the Xbox experience with impressive (if unreliable) new hardware, a web-based marketplace for products and demos, and player-focused features like achievements, avatars, and web-accessible Gamercards.
In addition to new games and social features, Xbox 360 players participated in several innovative experiments. Microsoft’s massively multiplayer version of 1 vs. 100 allowed players to compete for real prizes over the Xbox Live network in a trivia game built to handle hundreds of thousands of simultaneous contestants. The XNA game development platform helped bridge the gap between Xbox players and aspiring indie teams leading to several independent hit games such as Total Miner and Weapon of Choice.
November 22 also marks the second launch anniversary of Microsoft’s Xbox One system. While a catalog of supported Xbox 360 games is gradually expanding on the Xbox One console, there is currently no immediate end for Xbox 360 support in sight.
