2008, it was predicted, was to be the beginning of the end for Microsoft. It’s lead over Sony was born of an early launch and the competition fumbling its first year, some said. But with the forward-looking PS3 picking up steam, the 360 would slowly lose market share and eventually cede the year, sales-wise, to Sony.

Now however, it looks like that won’t be the case, and the reason for the turn-around is also the story of the console’s 2008—a series of strong management decisions and wise market reads that could give the business the strength to power through the entirety of the generation.

Edge will also be covering Sony, Nintendo and the PC's past 12 months in the days to come.

HD-DVD Dies, 360 Player Goes With It
February 25
Our Original Coverage

When HD-DVD threw in the towel at the beginning of the year, it marked the end of the bitter high-definition format war. Microsoft, which had been touting a value-priced HD-DVD addition to the 360 at the time, found itself on the losing side. It quickly discontinued the add-on and liquidated inventory, in the process losing one of its primary counter-attacks against the built-in Blu-Ray capabilities of the PS3. The long-term fallout of this event was felt throughout the year—partially in the recurrence of baseless Blu-Ray 360 rumors, but also in Microsoft’s redoubled efforts to the digital distribution of video to the console. The apex of this was New Xbox Experience’s streaming Netflix capability.

Sony, MS, Duke it Out for GTA Supremacy
May 15
Our Original Coverage

A defining battle in the console war, this was watched intently by industry analysts. Some predictions said that the release of Grand Theft Auto IV would spike PS3 sales, with the result being a net “win” for Sony. What actually happened wasn’t so dramatic; PS3 sales did jump a little bit, by just over 20k consoles in May. And Xbox sales did remain largely flat throughout the period, leading MS into a summer where it was losing, YTD sales-wise, to Sony. But a massive majority of GTA IV copies were sold on 360, and perhaps being outsold by this slight margin was enough to kick Microsoft into high gear—it wasn’t so long after this that MS made significant E3 announcements that took some of the wind out of Sony’s sails.

Shane Kim Gets Promoted
June 12
Our Original Coverage

When Shane Kim left his position as head of Microsoft Games Studios to take on the more all-encompassing role of corporate VP of the entire Interactive Entertainment Business division, it was more than an important personal milestone for Kim. It was also a statement of success from Microsoft Games Studios itself, that under Kim the first-party publisher had met its goals and was in a position to weather a change in leadership. Kim now directs Microsoft’s entire gaming business, with former MGS Europe head Phil Spencer taking Kim’s old job.

Microsoft Wrests Final Fantasy XIII Exclusivity from Sony
July 14
Our Original Coverage

Microsoft ended its E3 press conference with a fanboy bombshell: that Final Fantasy XIII, which for years had been touted as a PS3 exclusive, would also launch on Xbox 360. It takes a bit of tortured logic to explain why this is so important—it’s the first time a numbered, non-remake Final Fantasy has appeared on a non-Sony console (PC doesn’t count) since 1994, not including the online-only Final Fantasy XI. Nevertheless it had the intended effect—Sony stalwarts were outraged, while 360 owners crossed one more reason to switch off the list. Though forums consider this some sort of foul treachery on the part of Square Enix, it really was the only sound business decision to make.

Microsoft Undercuts Wii’s Value Price Point
September 5
Our Original Coverage

Since its launch in late 2006, the Wii has been the cheapest current generation console on the market—and everyone knows how that turned out for the system. But that changed in September, with the slashing of the hard drive-less 360 Arcade to $199. This price has long been considered the sweet spot for consoles, and the effect was immediate, with sales bouncing as the 360 seeped deeper into the mass-market demographics. Though the sales results have since shown that having the lowest price point is no longer an important or necessary part of the Wii’s marketing mix, Sony’s reluctance to counter increased the perceived value of the 360 dramatically.

Halo Wars Becomes Ensemble’s Swan Song
September 9
Our Original Coverage

Microsoft’s announcement that venerable Age of Empires developer Ensemble would be shut down after its first 360 game, Halo Wars, was completed, was an event that shocked the industry—including Ensemble Studios itself. At the time, it seemed like a curious decision; Ensemble has long been a profit-bearing entity for Microsoft Games Studios, so the idea that it was being shut down for long-term financial reasons seemed confusing. But the subsequent halting of the economy provides some new perspective—that this could have been a pre-emptive belt-tightening, with the casualty being a PC-centric branch of a publisher that needed to put its full weight behind its console. But that’s just speculation. That real-time strategy lost one of its most endearing and talented groups in the process is cold, disheartening fact.

Japanese 360 Sales Get Surprising Surge
September 17
Our Original Coverage
 
Did the 360 actually beat the Wii in Japanese sales that one week ending September 14? Maybe not, but that it was even close showed that Microsoft’s box was fighting well above its usual weight class in the region. This September sales spike wasn’t the only one for the console, either; sales soared earlier and later, thanks to exclusive JRPGs releases like Tales of Vesperia and The Last Remnant. Though the verdict is still out on whether these signs represent a permanent reversal of fortune for the western console in Japan, that the 360 would have stood any sort of chance in that regard would have been laughable a year ago.

Gears of Wars 2’s 2 Million Weekend
November 12
Our Original Coverage

The 360’s biggest exclusive of 2008 didn’t disappoint in achieving instant blockbuster status. Strong reviews, prominent marketing and a simultaneous worldwide launch allowed Epic’s shooter to score two million sold copies out the gate, with possibly the vast majority immediately jumping into the online arena: 1.5m players did, according to Microsoft. Of course no aspect of this launch was on the same scale as 2007’s Halo 3 launch, and really, what could be? This was still an indication that, for the core audience, the 360 remains the console of choice.

New Xbox Experience Launches to Success
November 19
Our Original Coverage

The rollout of the New Xbox Experience should become a textbook example of an innovative launch done right. Despite the fact that no company has ever done anything quite like a global rollout of brand new interface software for a consumer technology product, Microsoft managed it without any notable consumer distress. And thanks to the marketing, this was less like a Windows Service Pack and more like an entertainment event, with PR whipping the media into a frenzy for what could have been perceived as a necessary dashboard update. To top it off, new features like Netflix streaming and Community Games gave the console incredible added value for a free update. Everyone did their job properly, resulting in a gaming event that will be studied by hardware manufacturers for years.

Xbox 360 Outsells its Predecessor
November 24
Our Original Coverage

Everybody already knew that Microsoft was exceeding its past efforts this generation, but the news that 360 needed only three years to beat the original Xbox’s 25 million sales showed just how much the company had improved. It took the first Xbox about five years—from launch to obsolescence—to meet this number. Part of this success can be attributed to the general increased size of the market, but to disregard Microsoft’s role in that growth, or to ignore how well its managed to grow the Xbox brand beyond “a big black box for shooters,” would do the company’s work a disservice. The proof is in the statistics.