November isn’t just a time for big games to launch. It’s traditionally a time when game consoles make their big splash in the States. With the exception of the PlayStation 2 and the PSP, every major game console of this decade has launched in November in the US. Four years ago today, Microsoft kicked off the “next generation” of video games by releasing the Xbox 360. Time sure does fly when you're watching people on your friends list having fun. Like the PlayStation 3, Wii, and Nintendo DS, I’m taking a look at the history of the platform, and the prognosis for the coming year. Let's start with the horoscope:
“You will be enthusiastic, frank, sincere, upright. You will finally realize your plans, after long and painstaking work, thanks to your patience, to your experience, which you have always known how to use, to your common sense and also because you have never lost sight of your objective.”
Microsoft certainly stuck to their overall plan for the Xbox brand, and though the Wii is currently in the driver's seat (and who saw that one coming?), the 360's got the upper hand over the PS3, thanks to launching first and securing third-party support.
The Specs
Launch Date: November 22, 2005 (United States)
Launch Price: $399.99 (Pro model), $299.99 (Core model)
Significant Price Drops and Hardware Iterations
Possibly thanks to the higher entry price for hardware this generation, both Sony and Microsoft have tinkered with hardware and prices to a degree seldom seen in console sales prior. One thing’s for sure: it makes for some insane research.
Xbox 360 Elite (released April 2007) was the first iteration of Xbox 360 hardware supporting HDMI output and a 120 GB hard drive. It retailed at $479.99. Later in 2007, HDMI output became standard across all Xbox 360 models, even if the chipsets have continued to evolve at a headache-inducing rate.
In August 2007, Microsoft made its first price cuts to Xbox 360. The Core Xbox 360 dropped to $279.99, the Pro dropped to $349.99, and the Elite experienced a dramatic $30 price cut. A few months later, the Core Xbox 360 SKU was eliminated and replaced with the Xbox 360 Arcade model, which features a memory unit instead of a hard drive.
Year One: 2004-2005
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I am a 27 year-old and I am working at Whataburger and I hate it. I am asking for your help. I love to play video games and I would like a career in that field, but I can't find anything on that out here in Arizona. So if you could please point me the way on where to get this job so I can stop flipping burgers. -- James M. 
In case you weren’t aware, Valve’s zombie-fest 
Both consoles are awesome and no matter how you put it, they'll just equal each other out with their awesomeness in the end of my book. I've got to give both Microsoft and Sony props for delivering us with some pretty good consoles this generation. But sure let's face it, they do share their own set of unique problems, but nothing is perfect, but the key goal is their improving upon it over the years.
Natal is not a plus or negative for me, but It is interesting to see what...
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