It is quite challenging to compare the Xbox 360, regarded as the pinnacle of Xbox history, with the current generation of games. Comparing the cost of development and the number of copies sold without acknowledging the shift in gaming culture would be shortsighted. Between 2005, the year the Xbox 360 launched, and 2020, the year the Xbox Series X|S launched, the relationship between gamers and games evolved to new levels.
It has to be deeper than losing the digital catalog generation of the Xbox One and PlayStation 4, right? To fall so far from gaming grace, with one generation enough that even with Game Pass and owning arguably one of the most money-printing IPs with Call of Duty. They are still looked at as the runt of the big three console-selling companies.
Metacritic is not everything, but it will be used as a reference point. I will be listing full games that are not arcade, DLC, or ports when comparing top user-rated games from Xbox 360 to Xbox Series X|S games.
The overall type of Xbox 360 games rated highly by users can be summarized as a bunch of sequels. Gears of War 2, Batman: Arkham City, Mass Effect 2, Assassin’s Creed 2, Portal 2, and hell, even Red Dead Redemption (debatable). But for the Series X|S games, it is more new IPs, remakes/remasters, indies, and “AA” games that carry the higher user scores on Metacritic. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Outer Wilds, Hi-Fi Rush, The First Berserker: Khazan, Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, It Takes Two, Undertale, and Steelrising. Honorable mentions are Balatro and Chained Echoes. Looking at the lists of games for the Series X|S, only one game is a sequel; every other game is a unique IP.
The gaming landscape clearly shifted based on user ratings alone. It is fascinating to see the number of indie and AA games in the top Series X|S list compared to those on Xbox 360. I can’t overlook how the process of developing video games has become more accessible over the years, along with the increased access to a wider variety of games through Game Pass; however, it remains interesting to observe.
The Days of Old
Mobile gaming, handhelds, and PC gaming were already in full swing in 2005. According to Gameindustry.Biz, titles such as Love a Lemming, TETRIS, Tomb Raider – The Osiris Codex, and Splinter Cell Chaos Theory from Gameloft were some of the games topping download charts on Mobile devices. Then, on PC, according to Metacritic, some top-rated games such as Civilization IV, Battlefield 2, Dungeon Siege 2, Guild Wars, Age of Empires 3, and more were released this year. Not at all what it is today, but mobile and PC Gaming were already established and somewhat normal at this point.
Now I believe mentioning this matters because often mobile and PC gaming are used to explain why there has been a major shift away from Xbox Series X|S, especially when compared to Xbox 360. But the biggest impact I have noticed is the lack of free time from the last generation of console-centric gamers. Free-to-play and mobile games are king for various reasons, depending on what age range you look at.
Using Me and Mine To Look At the Shift
I’ll use myself (30s), my brother (20s), and my kids (under 10) to lay out how the gaming space has shifted. For myself, I simply don’t have the free time to be able to sit in front of the TV and boot up my consoles like I would in the past. Therefore, I supplement my gaming with PC handhelds and cloud gaming through Game Pass. My brother plays a large amount of Call of Duty Mobile. He still plays on console but will upgrade his tablet for a better COD Mobile experience. He is part of the gaming generation that started to lean away from traditional heavy console gaming. When it comes to my kids, they are first and foremost tablet kids. Touchscreen gaming is their first real introduction to video games. I have gone out of my way to introduce them to the ways of old with console gaming, but will often find my kids playing Minecraft on a touchscreen device.
The younger they are, the less often they buy games (at least in my family). I will buy at least one game a month, my brother maybe one game a quarter, and for my kids, outside of microtransactions, they ask me to buy them a new game once or twice a year. This also matches up with how often we play free-to-play games.
This started off as a think piece about why Xbox has fallen so far from grace, but it turned into a brief exploration of the changes in the gaming landscape. Now, Xbox has many issues it needs to address, including poor messaging, significant layoffs, studio closures, and steep price hikes. But to be real, free-to-play, cost, lack of free time, and a huge thing, livestreaming, have drastically changed gaming. I don’t think we will ever go back, and I don’t know if that is a bad or good thing.
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