Microsoft Announces Xbox 25th Anniversary Collection

Microsoft is celebrating a quarter-century of Xbox with a new Xbox 25th Anniversary Collection, bringing one of gaming’s most recognizable designs back in a modern limited-edition package.

The centerpiece is the Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition, featuring a translucent green design inspired by the original Xbox. Microsoft has also introduced a matching Xbox Wireless Controller X25 Special Edition, giving longtime Xbox fans a nostalgic way to celebrate 25 years of gaming.

The anniversary collection is particularly significant because Xbox originally launched in 2001, changing the console gaming landscape with franchises such as Halo, Forza Motorsport, Fable, and Gears of War.

Xbox Series X25 Brings Back the Classic Green Design

The Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition is designed as a modern tribute to the original Xbox.

Its translucent “OG Green” exterior allows fans to see internal components while recalling the distinctive green styling associated with early Xbox hardware. Microsoft says the design includes hidden tributes and details celebrating the company’s 25-year history with its gaming community.

Underneath the nostalgic exterior, however, the Xbox Series X25 remains a modern Xbox Series X. The console includes 1TB of storage and the performance expected from the current-generation Xbox Series X platform.

Every anniversary console is also individually numbered and uniquely engraved, making the system more attractive to collectors.

Halo: Campaign Evolved Is Included

Microsoft has added another major incentive for fans.

Every Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition console includes a full-game download of Halo: Campaign Evolved, the modernized remake of the campaign that helped establish Xbox as a major force in the video game industry.

The inclusion connects Microsoft’s newest anniversary hardware directly to one of the most important franchises in Xbox history.

For longtime Xbox players, the combination of the translucent green hardware and Halo is an obvious callback to the early years of the original Xbox.

Xbox X25 Special Edition Controller

The anniversary celebration isn’t limited to the console.

Microsoft is also releasing the Xbox Wireless Controller X25 Special Edition, which uses the same translucent OG Green aesthetic.

The controller incorporates several historical design touches, including the original ABXY button colors and details inspired by the classic “Duke” controller that shipped with the original Xbox.

The controller will also be sold separately, making it an easier option for gamers who want a piece of Xbox history without purchasing the complete anniversary console.

The special-edition controller launches October 20, 2026.

Xbox 25th Anniversary Collection Price and Release Date

Microsoft has now confirmed the pricing and release information.

The Xbox 25th Anniversary Collection costs $899.99 in the United States and launches on November 13, 2026. Microsoft notes that pricing can vary by market.

Preorders are opening in select markets, with broader preorder availability beginning August 27 at 7 a.m. PDT through Xbox and participating retailers, while supplies last. Microsoft is limiting purchases to one anniversary collection per customer.

The high price positions the Xbox Series X25 as a premium collector-oriented product rather than simply another Xbox Series X configuration.

More Xbox 25th Anniversary Gear Is Coming

Microsoft’s anniversary celebration extends well beyond the console and controller.

The company has introduced a Designed for Xbox 25th Anniversary Collection featuring accessories from several gaming hardware partners. The collection uses the same translucent green aesthetic and includes products such as gaming mice, keyboards, earbuds and mobile gaming accessories.

Microsoft has also launched Xbox Gear, an official merchandise destination featuring collections inspired by Xbox history and its gaming community.

That means fans who don’t want to spend nearly $900 on the anniversary console still have several ways to participate in the celebration.

Xbox Is Celebrating 25 Years of Gaming

The hardware is only one part of Microsoft’s broader Xbox 25th anniversary campaign.

Microsoft has introduced specially curated Xbox Game Pass collections featuring games representing different generations of Xbox. The collections include titles such as Fable Anniversary, Halo: The Master Chief Collection, Fallout 4, and Psychonauts 2.

Xbox players can also receive a special 25th Anniversary profile badge by signing into their Xbox account on console, PC or the Xbox mobile app.

The company is also taking its FanFest celebration to cities around the world, including Cologne, Tokyo, London, Mexico City, Sydney and Toronto.

Why the Xbox Series X25 Matters

The Xbox 25th Anniversary Collection is about more than a new console color.

The original Xbox helped Microsoft establish itself as a major player in the video game industry. Twenty-five years later, the company is using its anniversary to celebrate the hardware, games and community that built the Xbox brand.

The translucent green Xbox Series X25 is particularly effective as a piece of nostalgia because it visually connects the modern console to the original Xbox era.

For collectors, the individually numbered consoles and limited-edition design could make the hardware especially appealing. For ordinary gamers, however, the $899.99 price means the anniversary edition will likely be a luxury purchase rather than a mainstream Xbox upgrade.

The Future of Xbox Meets Its Past

Microsoft is celebrating the past while simultaneously looking toward the future.

Earlier this year, Xbox announced plans for its next-generation hardware, with alpha versions expected to reach developers beginning in 2027. Microsoft has also been working to make Xbox games increasingly portable across consoles, PCs and handheld devices.

At the same time, Xbox has begun expanding backward compatibility to PC and handheld devices, giving players more ways to experience classic Xbox games.

That makes the 25th anniversary campaign particularly interesting. Microsoft isn’t simply looking backward at its first console. It is using the anniversary to highlight how Xbox is evolving across hardware, PC, cloud gaming and handheld platforms.

Final Thoughts

The Xbox 25th Anniversary Collection is a celebration of where Xbox came from and where Microsoft hopes to take gaming next.

With its translucent OG Green design, individually numbered console, matching X25 controller and included Halo: Campaign Evolved download, the Xbox Series X25 is clearly aimed at longtime fans and collectors.

At $899.99, it won’t be an impulse purchase for most gamers. But for Xbox fans who remember the original console and want a unique piece of gaming history, the anniversary edition could become one of the most memorable Xbox products of 2026.

Microsoft’s 25th anniversary celebration demonstrates just how far Xbox has come since 2001—and suggests that the next 25 years could look very different from the first.


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