Welcome to 30 Ridiculous Retro Rumors, a brand new series that will run daily between November 26 and December 25, 2015. This is a series where we debunk some of the craziest rumors and predictions of all time. Today we're going to figure out if the Xbox is real or not. After months of rumors, Electronic Gaming Monthly is about ready to give up covering the Xbox. Find out why Microsoft's next-generation console isn't going to happen in the ninth episode of 30 Ridiculous Retro Rumors.


This is a real rumor taken directly from the March 2000 issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly ...


It's official: Electronic Gaming Monthly is sick of talking about the Xbox. After two years of rumors and speculation, this is Quartermann throwing in the towel. With no news from Comdex and the Consumer Electronics Show, it looked like Bill Gates had given up the dream of video game domination. Sorry gang, but the Xbox just ain't happening.

While I'm sure Nintendo, Sony and Sega desperately wanted this rumor to be true, it obviously turned out to be false. Not only did the Xbox happen, but it spawned two sequels and a wildly inconsistent numbering system. Microsoft's entrance into the console race led to Halo, Forza, Gears of War and Crackdown. And while it also led to two different versions of the Kinect, I'm choosing to not hold that against the Xbox for the sake of this article.

While I'm in a generous mood, I might as well also let Quartermann off the hook. Technically, he's right; Microsoft opted against unveiling the system at 2000 Comdex and CES. Instead, they chose to send The Rock on stage to officially unveil the Xbox one year later, on January 3, 2001. The system was released later that year and went on to sell 25 million units. While that's nowhere near the PlayStation 2's 155 million, it's also not bad for a system reportedly canceled due to losing an antitrust case.