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- Microsoft launched the Xbox 360 in 2005, one year before the PS3 arrived.
- This decision was made because the original Xbox was losing money and became unsustainable.
- At the same time, Xbox intended to capitalize on the age of online and HD gaming.
Microsoft has been part of the gaming industry for over two decades, but the Xbox 360 remains its biggest achievement. Not only was the Xbox 360 a gateway into HD gaming for millions of people, but it also kickstarted this new era one year earlier than the PS3.
A former Microsoft executive has now shared details on the decision to launch the console earlier than Sony’s hardware. He states that one key reason was the fact that the original Xbox was losing a lot of money.
Why it matters: Microsoft has found itself in a similar position again, with the Xbox Series S|X selling poorly in the market. Rumors suggest it may rely on the same strategy and launch next-generation hardware before PlayStation.
Peter Moore, the former head of Xbox, recently shared the thought process behind the Xbox 360’s early launch during an episode of the Gamertag Radio podcast.
He revealed two main reasons for this approach, one of which was Microsoft’s intention to one-up PlayStation and gain market share through an early transition to the digital HD era.
However, Microsoft Gaming’s own financial condition played a major role in the Xbox 360’s launch. He described how hardware selling below projections can be a death sentence. For Xbox, the software-to-hardware attach rate was also lower than expected.
As Peter Moore puts it, the original Xbox was not only losing money, it was “hemorrhaging cash.” Fortunately, Microsoft could afford to lose cash and did so for a while before it became apparent that the PS2 was completely unstoppable and could not be matched.
We were losing money right, left, and center. We were Microsoft, so we could afford to hemorrhage cash.
This, combined with Microsoft’s intentions to bring HD and digital gaming to the forefront, meant that the gaming giant had little doubts about moving on from the original console.
The company also hoped to pioneer Xbox Live as the biggest platform in the online world. All of this would have been impossible without new hardware, so the Xbox 360 was born.
What are your thoughts on the story behind the iconic Xbox 360’s launch timeline? Let us know in the comments, and visit the Tech4Gamers Forums to continue the discussion.
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[Senior News Reporter]
Avinash is currently pursuing a Business degree in Australia. For more than 5 years, he has been working as a gaming journalist, utilizing his writing skills and love for gaming to report on the latest updates in the industry. Avinash loves to play action games like Devil May Cry and has also been mentioned on highly regarded websites, such as IGN, GamesRadar, GameRant, Dualshockers, CBR, and Gamespot.
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