14th March 2002: Alongside one of the most lauded launch line-ups in console history, Microsoft’s Xbox arrives into the UK marketplace, priced £299.99. EDGE magazine awards Halo 10/10.
Launch Games- Halo
- Project Gotham Racing
- Dead or Alive 3
- Rallisport Challenge
- Amped: Freestyle Snowboarding
- Oddworld: Munch’s Oddysee
- Jet Set Radio Future
- Max Payne
- Mad Dash Racing
- Fusion Frenzy
- Wreckless: The Yakuza Missions (released, expanded on, but considerably worse 8 months later on PS2 and Gamecube)
- Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX 2 (released on PS2 in October 2001 and Gamecube in May 2002)
- Cel Damage
- NHL 2002 (released on PS2 in October 2001)
- Blood Wake
- Transworld Surf
- NBA Live 2002 (released on PS2 in November 2001)
- Tony Hawks Pro Skater 3 (released on PlayStation 1 and 2 in November 2001, on Gamecube in May 2002)
- Batman Vengeance (released on PlayStation 2 in November 2001, May 2002 on Gamecube)
March 2002: Shrek (released and expanded on Gamecube in October 2003 as Extra Large), Knockout Kings 2002, Arctic Thunder (a garbage game released on PS2 in November 2001), Dark Summit, the Crazy Taxi ‘influenced’ The Simpsons Road Rage (released on PS2 in November 2001 and Gamecube in May 2002), Blood Omen 2, NBA Inside Drive 2002, Xbox exclusive Star Wars: Obi-Wan, and Genma Onimusha (released as Onimusha: Warlords on PS2 in July 2001) hit shop shelves shortly after launch. It’s revealed Xbox has managed to shift 48,000 consoles in the UK over the course of 3 days. “Sales have been great, especially considering it's March and not November. There has been a high software and accessories attach rate, which is also very encouraging. We're receiving supplies of Xbox from Microsoft and expect them to continue to fly off the shelves“ says Richard Barry of Toys R Us.
April 2002: Despite proclamations by Vice President of Xbox Europe Sandy Duncan that Xbox is off to an “incredibly strong start in Europe and gamers are obviously liking what they see, feedback from new Xbox owners has been fantastic,” it’s revealed Microsoft has only shifted 11,000 Xbox’s in Germany, and even less elsewhere, resulting in Microsoft to take action and knock £100 off the retail price. Sales momentarily are a one-to-one match of that of the PlayStation 2. Dixons offers an Xbox with a copy of Halo for £235, with an additional game for £25. As way of compensating early adopters who purchased the console between 14th March and 26th April, Microsoft offers customers 2 free games (out of a possible 10, including Halo, Project Gotham Racing and Dead or Alive 3) and an additional controller. Some owners complain that they’ve already purchased the best titles. “I think the price cut in the Xbox hardware will prove to be a much needed shot in the arm for the fledgling console. If the launch of the Xbox has showed us one thing, it's that the days of paying three hundred pounds for games consoles are over…” says Alex Verry, PR Executive at Joytech. Wonder what he would have made of 2007… Destruction Derby knock-off Crash (released as Totaled! elsewhere), EA Sports’ F1 2002, third-party exclusive UFC: Tapout, Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex (released on PS2 in November 2001 and Gamecube in November 2002), MX 2002 featuring Ricky Carmichael (released on PS2 in September 2001), Pirates: The Legend of Black Kat, 2002 FIFA World Cup, Championship Manager Season 01/02, ESPN International Winter Sports 2002 and Deadly Skies (also known as Airforce Delta Storm) are released.
May 2002: MotoGP: Ultimate Racing Technology (not to be confused with the Namco series of roughly the same name), GunValkyrie, Azurik: Rise of Perathia, New Legends, and NightCaster are released, all exclusively on Xbox. The Test Drive brand continues to trudge along, with the launch of Off-Road Wide Open (released on PS2 in November 2001). Burnout (November 2001 on PS2, May 2002 on Gamecube) and Star Wars: Jedi Starfighter (March 2002 on PS2) are released. ISS comes to Xbox with International Superstar Soccer 2. Needless to say it’s not as good as the ‘90s versions…
June 2002: Spider-Man: The Movie, SSX Tricky (released on PS2 in November 2001 and Gamecube in July 2002), SpyHunter (released on PS2 in October 2001 and Gamecube in June 2002), David Beckham Soccer (released on PSone in November 2001), Gauntlet Dark Legacy (released on PS2 in June 2001 and July 2002 on Gamecube), Gun Metal, Circus Maximus: Chariot Wars, Legends of Wrestling (released on PS2 in February 2002 and Gamecube in June), James Bond 007: Agent Under Fire (released on PS2 in November 2001 and on Gamecube in June 2002) and Tour de France.
July 2002: With a dearth of appealing new software and World Cup mania having gripped the country the month prior, sales of the console slow again. “I don't think hardware pricing is that much of an issue since the last price reduction. Games sell hardware and at the moment that is the fundamental area that is preventing the Xbox from increasing its market share" says Infogrames UK PR Manager, Simon Callaghan. Talking of Infograms, their Slam Tennis does a Henman and double faults onto Xbox, somehow managing to miss Wimbledon-mania entirely. RPG Enclave is also released, as is RedCard (released on PS2 in May), Hunter: The Reckoning (released on Gamecube in July 2003), yet another Test Drive title in Overdrive: The Brotherhood of Speed, Mike Tyson Heavyweight Boxing from Codemasters, and Antz Extreme Racing. The movie came out in 1998…
August 2002: The surprisingly good Buffy the Vampire Slayer arrives exclusively on Xbox and saves summer, along with the highly playable Aggressive Inline and Splashdown (released on PS2 in November 2001). GAME takes the price of Halo down to £29.99 for loyalty card holders, and throws in a free controller with the console. Dixons drop the price of the DVD remote to £19.94.
28th August 2002: Sony cuts the price of the PlayStation 2 to £169.99. Not even 2 hours later and Microsoft announce another price cut of their own, dropping the Xbox down to £159.99, both effective from the 29th. “Xbox is extremely well positioned to be at the top of Christmas wish lists. The game experience with Xbox is simply unsurpassed. Best value is not just about price; its price, plus the most advanced hardware features, plus a killer games portfolio, all in one package.”
September 2002: Crazy Taxi 3: High Roller (exclusively on Xbox), WWE RAW (exclusively on Xbox, but 7 months after its US launch), Conflict: Desert Storm, Turok: Evolution, Prisoner of War, Commandos 2: Men of Courage, Blade II, Chase, Madden NFL 2003, NHL 2003, The Thing, Tetris Worlds (released on PS2 in July 2002), Shadow of Memories (out on PS2 in March 2001), Taz Wanted, Pro Tennis WTA Tour, Xbox exclusive Loons: The Fight for Fame, and the monumentally crap Gravity Games Bike: Street. Vert. Dirt are released, the later regarded by many as the worst game in the entire history of Xbox. Giving it a strong run for its money however is Bruce Lee: Quest of the Dragon, another atrocious third-party exclusive for Xbox this month.
October 2002: Spiritual successor to Sony’s WipEout, Quantum Redshift arrives on Xbox, accompanied by Colin McRae Rally 3, Silent Hill 2 (an expanded port, originally released on PS2 in November 2001), The Terminator: Dawn of Fate, Hitman 2: Silent Assassin, FIFA Football 2003, Rocky, the sublime TimeSplitters 2, Need for Speed Hot Pursuit 2, Myst III: Exile, Street Hoops, Eggo Mania, Barbarian, Mat Hoffman's Pro BMX 2, NHL Hitz 2003, SEGA Soccer Slam, Kelly Slater’s Pro Surfer, Deathrow and yet another diabolical racket game, with FILA World Tour Tennis. The more user-friendly Xbox Controller S goes on sale in the UK, priced £24.99.
November 2002: In another rammed month, timed Xbox exclusive Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell debuts to both critical and commercial success, while much hyped exclusive Blinx The Time Sweeper vacuums its way onto shelves and straight back into bargain bins everywhere. Unreal Championship, a reworking of Unreal Tournament 2003 on PC, fares much better and lays down the gauntlet for online multiplayer on console. The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind also launches (released on PC in May 2002), along with Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets [insert forced wizard pun here], The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring [any wizards?], Dynasty Warriors 3, LMA Manager 2003, Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes, NFL Fever 2003, Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast, Outlaw Golf (released on Gamecube in June 2003 and PS2 in November 2003), Phantom Crash, Micro Machines, Serious Sam, Xbox exclusive MechAssault, Robot Wars: Extreme Destruction, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4, Reign of Fire, Total Immersion Racing, James Bond 007: Nightfire, Rally Fusion: Race of Champions, Xbox exclusives Sega GT 2002, NFL Fever 2003 and Transworld Snowboarding, LMA Manager 2003, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2003, and X-Men: Next Dimension. More crap ball action plagues the shelves with Tennis Masters Series 2003, and Electronic Arts try their hand at creating a platforming mascot again with Ty the Tasmanian Tiger. ‘Better than Blinx!’ and “properly bonza this, mate” children are heard saying in Australia. Probably. Sales of Xbox begin to eclipse Gamecube in the UK, with the w/e 10th November 2002 seeing Xbox manage 15,102 to Gamecube's 6,839. Indeed, after a slow summer, Xbox sales take the lead over Nintendo heading in to Christmas, with Chart Track reporting Xbox having shifted 233,503 units in total in the UK, compared to 230,876 Gamecubes.
30th November 2002: Ahead of its full European roll-out in March 2003, “Xbox Live Test Drive” goes live in the UK, priced £39.99. Encompassing a Communicator headset, MotoGP, Whacked! and 12 month subscription, the starter packs are available exclusively through Xbox.com. Aside from the bundled games, Unreal Championship, MechAssault and Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon are also available for online play. Rare departs Nintendo for pastures new (Microsoft).
December 2002: In the first of two quiet months for software, Medal of Honor: Frontline (released on PS2 in June 2002 and Gamecube in December 2002), Big Mutha Truckers, Minority Report: Everybody Runs, BMX XXX, Nickelodeon Party Blast, Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon series debuts, Robotech: Battlecry, Monopoly Party, and Xbox exclusive Superman: The Man of Steel are released. Woolworths offers up a console bundle with SEGA GT 2002, Jet Set Radio (pack-in) and Blinx: The Time Sweeper for £179.97. According to Chart Track, by early December Xbox had now moved 589,284 units in the UK, compared to 436,488 Gamecube’s. By the w/e 22nd December 2002, Xbox more than doubling sales of the Gamecube (38,727 to Nintendo's 15,943). By the 29th, Xbox had managed 31,735 to Gamecube's paltry 10,866. “Xbox is the next generation video game system of choice and the clear number 2 across the United States, Canada and throughout Europe.” says Robbie Bach, Senior Vice President of Microsoft. “As far as we’re concerned, we’re still number two in Europe. We had sold 1.5 million units across Europe up until Christmas, and our records show that this puts us in the second spot…we’re confident our figure is correct,” says Nintendo’s Shelly Friend, being not so friendly in response.
January 2003: Xbox Gamer Magazine (formerly X-Gamer) rebrands as ‘the smarter read for Xbox’ and relaunches with BABES and DVD. Furious Karting is released. Presumably anyone that bought it was also furious.
February 2003: Dead to Rights launches onto Xbox (6 months ahead of other formats), along with the return of Mortal Kombat - now fully in 3D - with Deadly Alliance, Shrek Super Party, Fire Blade, Legends of Wrestling II, Battle Engine Aquila and ATV: Quad Power Racing 2.
March 2003: After a long hiatus, and in a month of numerous SEGA titles, ToeJam & Earl return exclusively to Xbox with their third outing: Mission to Earth, alongside system exclusives Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball, Panzer Dragoon Orta, and The House of the Dead III. Shenmue II (released on Dreamcast in November 2001), Metal Gear Solid II: Substance (expanded version of Sons of Liberty, released in March 2002 on PlayStation 2), The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (released in November 2002 on PS2), Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc, Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance (released on PS2 in December 2001), Lotus Challenge (released on PS2 in November 2001), Dr. Muto, Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb (5 months ahead of PS2), and MX Superfly (out on PS2 and Gamecube in October 2002) are also released. Xbox Live officially launches across Europe and the UK - Virgin Megastores offers a £5 voucher in various publications, bringing the price down to £34.99. Xbox exclusive Steel Battalion closes out the month, accompanied by an ENORMOUS and very expensive controller.
Sources: Official Xbox Magazine UK, Xbox Gamer, Wikipedia, MCV, NGC, XBM, Metacritic, EDGE.