The Xbox 360 launched with a series of viral marketing campaigns; OurColony, Origen Xbox 360 and Hex168 all of which helped build hype and built up to a glittering TV reveal on MTV and a November 2005 release date - timed to be around but not necessarily ahead of the PS3.
As it happened, delays for Sony gave Microsoft's console a clear path, and the demand was so great the stocks of the console were quickly sold out.
Built using ATI graphics and a PowerPC processor, the Xbox 360 wasn't without its early problems, with Microsoft having to dig deep to correct a problem with the hardware - but it quickly won a loyal following.
As you would imagine, it is games that are at the heart of the Xbox 360 story. Halo was already an established brand but its third incarnation shattered records for an entertainment launch, and Mass Effect and Gears of War had joined Halo as major Xbox franchises by the end of 2007.
The biggest multi-platform games were also successes: the likes of EA's peerless Orange Box brought some of the PC's greatest ever games to the 360, Call of Duty's various incarnations were smash hits and football games like Pro Evolution and EA Sports' FIFA franchise were standout performers.
And let's not forget Grand Theft Auto 3, which became one of the all time greats and announced a new start for what might be gaming's most recognisable series.
Assassin's Creed, BioShock, Guitar Hero, Forza, Saints Row - big games on a major console brought rich new gaming worlds with huge fanbases.
Kinect
As hardcore gamers enjoyed one of the most halcyon periods of console gaming history, Nintendo's Wii had become a huge hit for a more casual audience - and by 2010 Microsoft was ready to unleash its own motion controller - the Kinect.
The concept, which started off as "Project Natal", was shown off at E3 in the summer of 2009 and made available to the public consumers in November 2010. It was a huge hit for Microsoft's big fan base.
Microsoft said in February that 24 million Kinects had been sold and inevitably it was a big part of the planning for the successor to the Xbox 360.
One more thing
Rumours about an 'Xbox 720' had been in circulation for years, but the official announcement of the Xbox One was made on May 21 2013.
The console went on sale on November 22 2013, selling more than 2 million units in its first 18 days and is now set to continue the story of the Xbox into the eighth generation.
