Source: http://www.gamesradar.com/six-reasons-xbox-best-system-all-time/?page=1

1. It brought shooters to consoles for real

PCs owned the first-person shooter genre until the last generation. Thanks to the one-two punch of mouse and keyboard controls mixed with online play, games like Counter-Strike, Battlefield, and Rainbow Six flourished while consoles got stuck with half-baked ports and infrequent successes. Sure, there was Perfect Dark and GoldenEye, but be honest: those ended up being seen as party games, not game-changing shooters.

Above: Hate on Chief if you will, but he was the first real console FPS hero

Once Halo was released, that all changed. It truly perfected FPS controls with a controller in a way that none have before, making it feel comfortable to use joysticks, even for those who grew up with a mouse and keyboard. Once Halo 2 came out it really kicked the shift into high-gear, and set the stage for FPS on consoles becoming more commonplace in the coming generations

2. It successfully pulled off online gaming

Speaking of Xbox Live – the original Xbox’s addition of Live service completely changed the industry. Even though the Dreamcast tried to do the same thing, the ability to add friends online and play games with them seamlessly hadn’t been perfected on consoles until the Xbox.

Above: Limited, ugly, and revolutionary

This was partially because of Microsoft’s relatively ballsy decision to disallow dial-up connections – something that was still relatively common when the Xbox launched. By refusing to allow slow connections, Microsoft was able to build the framework for fast, competent online multiplayer that would change the industry forever. 

3. It had a hard drive, but didn't abuse it

The inclusion of hard drives has undoubtedly changed the industry forever. Beyond making it possible to save games without needless peripherals (see: memory cards), it also gave way to one of the most important additions to this console generation: downloadable games. It opened up consoles to smaller, more inventive games that wouldn’t be worthy of a full disc, but also wouldn’t have been developed if not for the console crowd. Games like Stacking, Journey, and Shadow Complex likely wouldn’t exist if not for consoles having hard drives, and consoles may not have hard drives if not for the Xbox.

Above: Like this, except inside the system and smaller

More importantly, it didn’t abuse the hard drive. This generation’s games come with mandatory installs, or optional installs that might as well be mandatory. The Xbox didn’t dabble in such things, and made sure game developers kept their full, disc-based games on the disc where they belong. Microsoft was (rightfully) strict when it came to handling the hard drive space, a stance it should likely have stood behind moving into the 360.

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4. It made consoles easier to develop for

Game developers constantly complained about making games for the PlayStation 2. They needed to, because it was the biggest console around, but it was apparently a pain in the ass to develop for. Sony simply didn’t care about making it easy on developers – they knew that if their system was popular enough, it wouldn’t matter how hard it was to develop for. They were right.

Above: Let's ignore how much better the PC versions were

But with the Xbox, Microsoft made sure that developing for the system was as simple as possible. The company made it like developing games for the PC, which has always been the easiest platform to work with (and to port from). Id Software ported over Doom 3 and added in console-exclusive features, and Valve even put its extremely popular Half-Life 2 onto the Xbox (even if it didn’t run all that well).

5. It made the West more important to the industry

During the 1990s, there was a mentality that Japanese game developers were significantly better than those based in Europe or the US. That was likely due, in part, to the fact that all of the console makers were based out of Japan – they shared more with their own countrymen, giving them earlier access to early development kits while massive US companies like EA were forced to purchase retail hardware from Japan and reverse-engineer it in order to make their games. Simply put, Nintendo, Sony, and Sega didn’t always play nice with foreign developers.

Above: One of these things is not like the other

But once the Xbox hit the scene, they had to. Suddenly, there was a large American console on the market, made by a company with a history of supporting developers. It opened the door for a number of studios to start making games on consoles that otherwise would have stuck to PC development, and led to a massive spike in the number of US and European publishers making AAA games.  

6. It made it a three-horse race

First it was Nintendo against Sega, and then it was Nintendo against Sony, but Sega’s haste in pushing the Dreamcast out the door (and its quick death) meant that it looked like the console market was going to be back to a tango between two developers for the sixth generation. That is until Microsoft announced it was entering the race with the Xbox, joining the GameCube and PlayStation 2 in creating the first real three-way duel for console supremacy.

Above: Remember controller ports? Good times

With the Xbox nipping at the heels of the PlayStation 2 during the last generation, Sony needed to step it up with first-party exclusives. Games like God of War were born, while other developers, like Naughty Dog and Insomniac, were pushed to create more inventive games. They did, and the industry as a whole, spurred on by fresh competition, grew.

Everything about the Xbox was risky. It was a big, goofy, unwieldy machine with a massive controller and an unproven company (when it came to gaming) at the helm. But despite it all, the system was a success. Microsoft took many risks with the original Xbox, and though they didn't all pay off completely, they helped shape the industry, moving it forward and helping it grow to the staggering size it is today.

These sound more like reasons why the Xbox was a great console... They're all good points

I resent #5 though, I wish we had more japanese games

I see some innovatations but I have to agreee with the horse.

Don't agree. It's a great console but the best ever? No way.

1. I'm not particulary happy with this
2. This was really good.
3. I don't really care.
4. Agree.
5. Hell NO! DOWN with western domination!!!
6. Well, it was certainly fun.

The Xbox did some great things for console the best of all time though not a chance!

5.) I liked the period when the Japanese ruled the games industry. Not to say I don't like Western games, but that period for me at least was a quality era.

#4, why is it wrong to challenge game devs?? if anything does it not make them better developers? ie. Naughty Dog

Nº 1 alone makes it an hideous console.

Nº 2 and 3 are fair enough, but hardly make it the best.

Nº 4 is bullshit as some of the previous consoles were also easy to develop for, but they only chose to compare it to PS2. As if that was a fair comparison to Xbox, poor thing.

Nº 5 depends on taste but more importantly it wasn't due to Xbox, but to the fact that the most prominent japanese developers didn't adapt to western tastes as that target audience was the one that expanded the most. Non-point really.

Nº 6 is grasping at straws. PS2 was the absolute leader and is still unmatched, even by the portable DS. At most, that generation was ruled by PS2 and the other 2 trailed behind at similar pace.