Twenty-five years ago, Microsoft entered the console market with a hulking black machine, an enormous controller and a game called Halo. What followed changed the industry in ways few could have predicted, and today, the original Xbox is finding an unlikely new home in our pockets.

The original Xbox turns 25 today! Well, since it is midnight now …right now!

On 15 November 2001, Microsoft entered the console market with an enormous black box, an equally enormous controller, and a little game called Halo. At the time, Sony was dominating with the PlayStation 2, Nintendo was preparing to launch the GameCube, and Sega had just bowed out of the hardware business. It was quite a gamble, especially for a company that had never made a games console before.

I’ve written a little retrospective article, just looking back at how the original Xbox came together, the people behind it, the games that made it special, and how Xbox Live helped change console gaming forever. I’ve also included some quotes from the people involved in its creation and launch, and finished with a look at how projects like hakuX are bringing original Xbox emulation to Android handhelds. I recently had Jet Set Radio Future running at 4× resolution and a steady 60 FPS on my Odin 3 Portal, which still feels a little ridiculous considering the size of the original machine.

Happy 25th birthday, Xbox!