Xbox Live 20 years old on 15th November!

[Paulando]

I also remember it was the days before most people had routers too, so I had to connect my Xbox to my PC with a crossover ethernet cable and enter a fake MAC address in the settings to get it to connect. Good times.

 

I haven’t been interested in a MotoGP game before or since, but I loved MotoGP. It looked great, the controls were fabulous, and playing it online with voice chat and loads of decent people was just magical.

 

Then came Ghost Recon, PGR2, RTCW, and Rallisport 2. Again, just a wonderful time to be playing games, playing online with forumites and voice chat.

[MattyP]

8 hours ago, geldra said:

20 years though. Fuck me. I feel like I’ve lived three or four different lives since then. 

Scary. Moved house a few times two children married (and divorced) it goes on... However one constant has been Xbox and Xbox Live in all that time....

[Paulando]

I mean look at this:

 

https://youtu.be/oDq1HaITccY

 

That was 20 years ago. I bet these games are exactly the same now, just with some extra lighting effects and higher res textures. Probably ruined with micro transactions though.

 

And anyone playing online today will be hardcore MotoGP fans, all amazing at the game. Back then we were all shite, and I don’t think any of us were into MotoGP. All caning that first corner, most of us falling off. Great times.

 

[geldra]

53 minutes ago, simms said:

yes I was on UC. I was on all of the early Xbox live games and we most likely played together or on other games

most definitely. 
 

I seem to remember @ColinMac being a name from back then too. Maybe from ghost recon? 
 

Also was it @Hodge who was an absolute beast on PGR2?

[RubberJohnny]

21 hours ago, SMD said:

yeah thanks for making something that's free on pc paid microsoft, kudos

 

Actually around 2001 there were still paid online services on PC, you still had stuff like Gamespy Arcade for £5/£10 per month that offered servers for a bunch of games and voice chat, basically the XBL service.

 

They were kind of on their way out though, a holdover from the late 90s AOL era where everything was these little gated communities, you had Heat.net (bought by Sega for the DC, and killed by it) which was another and TEN.net, which was £30(!) a month that eventually just became a site for flash games.

 

A big selling point of Blizzards games at the time was that their online service, Battle.net, was free - but they never really capitalised on that and expanded it to third parties like Valve did with Steam, which is ultimately what did the paid ones in.

[Qazimod]

47 minutes ago, RubberJohnny said:

Actually around 2001 there were still paid online services on PC, you still had stuff like Gamespy Arcade for £5/£10 per month that offered servers for a bunch of games and voice chat, basically the XBL service.

 

BT Wireplay was the one I recall being pushed on every demo disc. Enjoy charges for your online gaming on top of the dial-up charges you're already paying.

[Kramer]

A few other memories of the golden era of online gaming...

Unreal Championship - a shooter I was good at, unusually. My flatmate and I used to swap the controller, doing a round each. My gamer tag was 'o_Kramer_o' and I had an amazing round, ridiculously high kills and then across the speakers someone said "oh,kramero (pronounced like that) who is this guy??!!" and they all started talking as if I was a mythical online player, the best that ever lived.

 

That phrase is still legendary amongst my friends who were with me that day.

 

 

Topspin - on Microsoft tournament thingy (with Links 2004) - I won the tournament and I was more nervous than when I actually did high-ish level athletics at the time!

 

Burnout 2 - overall 2nd in the world. I worked hard for that and had a great time working my way up the scoreboard.

[Banjaxed]

20 years, bloody hell. 
 

I distinctly remember thinking this won’t work for me, so I stupidly let Xbox choose my GamerTag, HellishInk only lived for 1 year, everyone I chatted too thought I was a tattoo artist!! 
 

MotoGP was amazing, one stick for rider position the other for acceleration and braking, that feeling for racing against real people for the first time. Then PGR2 and Ghost Recon, glorious days and very late nights, seemed like everyone you chatted to was decent, brilliant decision of MS to include the headset. 

[Naysonymous]

I jumped in in 2003, so not quite an OG but I do remember the very early days of stuff like Crimson Skies, PGR2, Rainbow Six and Pandora Tomorrow and how easily pleased I was that in Rainbow Six when somebody spoke on Xbox Live their character's mouth move in game too. 

 

Once thing I liked about Xbox Live back then, and this is probably true of the early days of a lot of similar services is that the people who were there tended to be the people who really wanted to be there so you could just strike up conversations with random folk you bumped into and get to know them.  You'd be matched against the same people quite a lot too.  I've still got friends now I met in the first couple of years of Xbox Live and the joy of having an Xbox Live handle which doesn't have little numbers after it. 

[Paulando]

17 minutes ago, Naysonymous said:

Once thing I liked about Xbox Live back then, and this is probably true of the early days of a lot of similar services is that the people who were there tended to be the people who really wanted to be there so you could just strike up conversations with random folk you bumped into and get to know them.

Yeah, this is so true. I don’t really play online these days as I tend to find most games impenetrable, and there’s probably too many to choose from.

 

There was something really nice about being stuck with a handful of games at the time. People didn’t play to win, they went on to have fun and chat shit.

[Rob Rymond]

36 minutes ago, Paulando said:

Yeah, this is so true. I don’t really play online these days as I tend to find most games impenetrable, and there’s probably too many to choose from.

 

There was something really nice about being stuck with a handful of games at the time. People didn’t play to win, they went on to have fun and chat shit.

 

It is too saturated now with games so those friendships can't be striked up. You'd often bump into the same people on PGR2 from time to time and hence make friendships with them. Remember the random Cat and Mouse games when there was no playlist for it. Try organising that now in an open match.

[simms]

4 hours ago, geldra said:

most definitely. 
 

I seem to remember @ColinMac being a name from back then too. Maybe from ghost recon? 
 

Also was it @Hodge who was an absolute beast on PGR2?

omg yes I remember now

[MattyP]

2 hours ago, Rob Rymond said:

 

It is too saturated now with games so those friendships can't be striked up. You'd often bump into the same people on PGR2 from time to time and hence make friendships with them. Remember the random Cat and Mouse games when there was no playlist for it. Try organising that now in an open match.

Indeed...  Felt more of a community back then and remember playing with randoms that were actually friendly and could string words together. I expect BB was less prevalent so only a few could access it and get live etc. 

 

Think I mostly don't play online these days because I don't really have huge amounts of time to get better at multiplayer games and there is just so much choice out there its hard to find a group that plays the same game for more than a month...

[ZOK]

On 06/11/2022 at 11:09, Paulando said:

Wonderful times. Ghost Recon was truly magical. That Embassy level, holy shit. Discovering you could climb under the barracks on the Castle stage, stand up, then shoot people through the walls was amazing.

Yes, I had the beta kit and GR was all I used to play…always seemed to be thoughtful and nicely spoken Americans, which was absolutely not an indication of what was to come.

[Hodge]

11 hours ago, geldra said:

most definitely. 
 

I seem to remember @ColinMac being a name from back then too. Maybe from ghost recon? 
 

Also was it @Hodge who was an absolute beast on PGR2?

Thanks for reminder 😀 PGR2 was sheer perfection when it came to online racing though. Still miss the simplicity what that game offered online compared to today's racers (looking at you Forza horizon) One of my greatest gaming achievements, was completing it on platinums for the speed 12.

 

All my years of Xbox, the early years were the most memorable with the folks on here, family and friends.

 

Had some fantastic sessions on PGR2 and Moto GP with rllmuk's. Always remember @geldra @Dukesy@simms boozytheclown hovering round my vicinity alot, whilst trying to make my way through the pack 😀. 

 

Chats were alway lively and plenty of trash talk. Good times.

 

[Dukesy]

On 07/11/2022 at 19:54, Hodge said:

Thanks for reminder 😀 PGR2 was sheer perfection when it came to online racing though. Still miss the simplicity what that game offered online compared to today's racers (looking at you Forza horizon) One of my greatest gaming achievements, was completing it on platinums for the speed 12.

 

All my years of Xbox, the early years were the most memorable with the folks on here, family and friends.

 

Had some fantastic sessions on PGR2 and Moto GP with rllmuk's. Always remember @geldra @Dukesy@simms boozytheclown hovering round my vicinity alot, whilst trying to make my way through the pack 😀. 

 

Chats were alway lively and plenty of trash talk. Good times.

 

The first 1-2 years of Xbox Live was special, lots of fun playing MotoGP, PGR2 and Midtown Madness 3 with you all.