100°

The OG Xbox Live Is Back From The Dead--This Is The Team Making It Happen

Xbox Live was born on November 15, 2002. Though it wasn't the first online service offered by a video game console, it's fair to say that the original Xbox was the box that popularized the concept on an industry-wide level. Hits like Project Gotham Racing 2, Phantasy Star Online, and especially Halo 2 introduced a generation of console gamers to the concept of online play, and the world of gaming has never been the same since. And though Microsoft pulled the plug on the original Xbox Live back in 2010, a team of programmers and hackers at Insignia have brought it back to life on modded Xboxes--a triumph of engineering that serves as a reminder of the importance of digital preservation.

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gamespot.com
MIDGETonSTILTS17320d ago

Don’t we have Live available right now?

Asplundh319d ago

Not for the original Xbox, it was closed down over a decade ago

purple101319d ago

"introduced a generation of console gamers to the concept of online play,"

Well.. they might have introduced some who hadn't come across it before.

But the first console with built in internet was Dreamcast and the game was chu-chu rocket. A pac man type puzzle game.

Also 2 other games mentioned, project Gotham racing (metropolis street racer) and phantasy Star online are both sega games. And back then halo was bungie and ms paid for exclusive rights.

They literally did nothing. The guys writing with rose tinted glasses for sure.

SyntheticForm319d ago

More people got into online gaming through Xbox Live than through Sega's short-lived effort. Sega may have had the first capability, but it wasn't through them that people became familiarized with online gaming.

To say that they "literally did nothing" is to make an insane statement.

purple101319d ago

It did introduce a generation. Its just the generation before already introduced it. Depends how old the writer is as to how he sees it.

I suppose they deserve some credit but to give them too much credit is also a mistake.

Also "Hits like Project Gotham Racing 2, Phantasy Star Online" implies they brought those games to market but they were also already available a generation before on dreamcast

It rubbed me the wrong way with the wording because although I know the facts, many others possibly don't.

SyntheticForm319d ago

Microsoft are largely responsible for making online gaming mainstream. Did they invent it or think of it first? Absolutely not. But with their resources they were able to build a very competent and first-of-its-kind online gaming service.

That said, this is 2023, and I by and large disapprove of their gaming strategy. I've disapproved for a long time and until the great games come, I'm avoiding Microsoft.

90°

Two Decades Later, the Original Splinter Cell is Still a Masterpiece

They don't make games like this anymore.

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gamingbolt.com
vgvill4d ago

Too dated in my book. The AI is way too unpredictable to be acceptable today. It's definitely a game of its time.

Jingsing4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

Agreed with those sentiments. The quality of the CPU controlled characters make or break a stealth game and they are pretty poor in all the Splinter Cell games by today's standard. This is what led me to playing Spies vs Mercs all the time in later games just to get a better stealth experience from a real person. Arguably Sony are making better stealth games albeit not Tom Clancy stuff.

TheProfessional4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

You should stick with fortnite or one of the countless bloodborne style games then. What a joke.

rlow14d ago

I had a good time with the game. It is a product of its time. But when it came out it was a must have game for a lot of people. I wish Ubisoft would make another game in the series or at least a reboot.

vgvill4d ago

They are making a remake, I think. I loved the original game when it was released, but I tried to play it again in recent years and just couldn't get on with it. The same with the older Hitman games.

PrecursorOrb4d ago

Yeah chaos theory still holds up though I gotta say. If you’re a fan of the series I highly suggest you go back to that one. Ubi has said they are remaking sc for “modern audiences”. I don’t have a lot of faith for the future of that company

Chocoburger3d ago (Edited 3d ago )

Due to the lack of modern stealth games, and me constantly playing the MGS series, I've been looking for alternative stealth games to play, and went back and re-played the SC series recently. I wouldn't call SC1 or SC:PT masterpieces, there are AI issues, they're very much trial-and-error games, and that can lead to a lot of frustration. I also found the stories in this series to be boring, uninteresting, and just sloppily told. Cinematics are also of poor quality for both in-game scenes and CG cut-scenes, the soundtrack didn't leave any impression on me either.

Chaos Theory is better, but there was still a lot of room for improvement, and Double Agent (old gen ver.) was a sloppy mess that ended up a regression from CT. But still, at least they tried back then, these days Ubi-junk doesn't even try to make good games!

70°

How EA & Xbox Are Defining Gaming's Bleak Future

Xbox and EA have recently made baffling moves that define how bleak the future of the gaming industry is with major companies at the helm. Ryan Bates from "Last Word on Gaming" posits in this op-ed that maybe it's not ineptitude, but intention.

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lastwordongaming.com
Profchaos4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

Name someone that isn't trying to look us these days maybe cdpr.

Take two, ubi and yes even PlayStation are pushing us to own nothing and be happy with our live service ad injected games on a sub so they can raise prices at will and take access away when they see fit.

If it keeps up I'll be a full time retro gamer and this industry will be crashing hard

As rediculas as it sounds we need government reforms to defend consumer rights

gold_drake17h ago

i can tell you that the government or any government has our backs on this. the glo al trend goes to digital.

wait until money is digital only. we are already on the way there.