PixlBit

It's fun to go down the list of best of all time on Metacritic and make a personal list of favorites. Here are mine for the original Xbox. 

I got a Xbox in 2002 to play Halo with my friend Mad Krammer. The system became the shooter box for the most part. I played all multiconsole release titles there as it was my main system at the time. PS2 and NGC were for their exclusvies. 

Halo: Combat Evolved (MC #1), Halo 2 (#3) - I got the system for Halo CE and it was worth it because Mad Krammer and I played it co-op every weekend until Halo 2 came out in 2004. That's a lot of beach landings on The Silent Cartographer level. 

Burnout 3: Takedown (#6), Revenge (#32), Burnout (#314) - I don't remember how we found out about this series, but boy did we spend a lot of time with it when we did. Agressive racing, even crashing strategically, was the right formula for MK and I. We followed this style of racing game from Destruction Derby 2 to Burnout to Forza Horizon with a few in between like Totaled! and Mayhem. Burnout Revenge was really the last Critereon made Burnout in the traditional style. Open world style Burnout Paradise followed which I could never quite get into. 

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (#7) - I played this many times without finishing it. I thought this was an excellent setting for a new Star Wars property but the movie studios didn't pick up on it. There were several comic series, though, I used to follow that were really good at the time. I still yearn for a new take on this. 

Half-Life 2 (#23) - I had the first one on PS2, it being an exclusive there. Really great. I played this sequel as a standalone and then again with extra chapters as part of The Orange Box. Why on Earth has this series not been remastered after all this time is some sort of crime of gaming.

Max Payne (#39) - Not a game I have a strong interest in returning to, but at the time it was a favorite of MK and I. It had a Matrix inspired bullet-time slow mo feature that made gun fights really fun. The story was a good Noir thriller as well. 

Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30 (#46), Earned in Blood (#103) - Gearbox before Borderlands! These WWII shooters emphasized team mechanics over direct shooting, trying to be more realistic. I definitely appreciated the unique twist on what is usually just a run-and-gun shoot fest. 

Psychonauts (#47) - DoubleFine! And also it is double fine. I find their games really creative with insightful stories and interesting characters. Oh and funny too. 

Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge (#60) - One issue I have with most air battle games is the inevitable circling you do to try and get behind and enemy. In this you can flip your plane in a tight loop to go the other direction making long turns obsolete. Thank you!

TimeSplitters 2 (#61) - The first game was mostly multiplayer but subsequent games had full stories, campaign co-op, and were just a lot of fun. I always looked for campaign co-op modes in games, my favorite way to play with others. FreeRadical went on to make Haze on PS3 and then became Crytek. They always do excellent shooting mechanics in games. 

Beyond Good and Evil (#72) - I always go for games with photography mechanics and this had plenty of it because it was your main source of income. I liked hunting down creatures to photograph more than the combat or stealth segements. 

Mecenaries: Playground of Destruction (#80) - This is just a super fun game by the now defunct Pandemic Studios. I was a big fan of the studio as they did the Destroy All Humans and Star Wars Battlefront series among others. You can do missions any way you want, jump into vehicles, snipe or whatever. Controls are solid. They're just a great studio that got gobbled up by EA in 2008. 

Far Cry (#91) - Near the very end of my PC gaming in 2005 I played this on PC first and then Xbox soon after. It got an enhanced version for 360 a year later and I played it again there. The series is still going but I've kind of fallen off it since Far Cry 3. Its just a really good FPS that expanded into more open world gameplay as the series progressed. 

Fable (#95) - We're still waiting for Fable 4. Will it ever arrive? This is where it started though and it was good. The system needed a good action RPG and this delivered along with it's interesting moral choice story arcs. 

The Warriors (#102) - If you could call Fable Xbox's Zelda, then you could call this Xbox's Final Fight or Streets of Rage. It's based on a 70s cult favorite film of the same name about NYC street gangs. The game is a good brawler. Xbox needed that. There's few Fist of the North Star type games on the system. 

Return to Castle Wolfenstein (#108) - MK and I always played the Wolfenstein games and this was an good one. It just has very solid controls. 

Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy (#129) - A Midway game. Third-person shooter with Star Wars The Force type psychic powers. It was just fun to throw things around in this game. 

Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance (#132), DA 2 (#272) - I seem to remember the first one coming out on PS2 first and waiting excitedly for the Xbox version to drop. This was the action RPG version of the CRPG game series. Playing co-op was a must and MK and I played both to the end.  

Call of Duty 3 (143), COD2: Big Red One (#249), Finest Hour (#376) - The first two are the first Treyarch made COD games. COD 3 came out on 360 but Big Red One didn't. MK and I ate these games up. They're just very solid shooters and I've since appreciated every Treyarch made COD game even into the Black Ops series. Finest Hour was by Spark Unlimited, a dev made up from people who worked on Medal of Honor. They ended their time with Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z, a game I had a lot of fun with much later. 

Marvel Ultimate Alliance (#152) - The above BG: Dark Alliance but with Marvel characters. Of course MK and I played this like crazy. Too bad the licensing agreements make this impossible to make back compat or get a remaster. 

Sid Meier's Pirates (#193) - A perenial favorite of MK and I. We've played this many times and is always replayable thanks to back compat. From real-time ship to ship battles, to business management, to turn based land battles, to a dancing ryhthm game, this game has so many gameplay styles and they're all fun. Add to that your own story which plays out in real time over the course of the game and gives you a final assessment at the end.

Links 2004 (#203) - I'm always on the lookout for that sports game with just the right feel. Not too simmy, not too kiddy. This hits the mark perfectly. I tried to get into other Microsoft Games Studios games like Top Spin but I couldn't get the hang of those games. At least, not yet. 

Hunter: The Reckoning (#214) Redeemer (#398) - Co-op heaven again, at least I remember it that way. Take the Baldur's Gate Dark Alliance style of gameplay and make it a gothic-punk horror show. I loved this and it's sequel. 

Gun (#217) - There were many 2005 Xbox games that got an imediate rerelease on Xbox 360 the very next year like Far Cry and Burnout Revenge. So what system do I attach them too? I feel like putting this one here 'cause I played it on both systems. This was Tony Hawk dev Neversoft's action game and it was good. An action role-playing game in the old west. It feels a lot like an early Red Dead Redemption now I think of it. 

Armed & Dangerous (#226) - Who doesn't want a land shark gun? I found this a very funny third-person shooter. 

Star Wars: Republic Commando (#255) - I guess in a similar vein to the Brothers in Arms series, this tends to emphasize team commands over just shooting. I always liked the story and setting, another area not covered in the films. 

Ultimate Spider-Man (#275) - I love cell-shaded style games and this one is by Treyarch. So great gameplay and look. Win win. It's my favorite Spider-Man game. 

Black (#276) - There can be a lot said of good sound and feel in FPS games and this has one of the best. I think only the Machine Games' Wolfenstein games match this for the feel of power you have with these weapons in the game. Destructible environments help too. 

Destroy All Humans! (#298), DAH 2 (#344)- This series won my heart with the funny characters, voice work by Richard Horvitz (Invader Zim, Skylander's Kaos), zany messin' with the humans gameplay and Pandemic Studios (Mercenaries) excent design. I even had the soundtrack to both games at one point. Some good work there by Skrillez and futue Bioshock composer Gary Schyman. 

Darkwatch (#322) - Just a good game by High Moon Studios, makers of the Deadpool game. It's a FPS with western and horror elements. Very solid and fun. 

Just Cause (#328) - Man, I played this a lot. Loved the open world environment and freedom to do any mission the way you want. I especially liked the use of helicopters to get around the environment and the tether you could shoot to grab onto just about anything and catch a ride or grab and throw objects. I completed this and then again on 360. I followed the series here and there but none completed like this first one. 

Serious Sam II (#379) - I had to include this series because it's all old favorite of MK and I. It's just run-and-gun fun with hoards of enemies. 

Urban Chaos: Riot Response (#380) - Rocksteady before Batman Arkham Asylum! This is a hidden gem imo. It's both a FPS and a firefighting game and is a load of fun. Mechanics of this game art rock solid and the story and voice work reminds me of RoboCop. 

Dungeons & Dragons Heroes (#396) - Co-op Guantlet style gaming in the DnD universe. A match made in heaven. MK and I dug this. 

Total Overdose (#406) - Another underrated gem imo. A third-person shooter with a lot of over-the-top attitude and combo moves built into the main gameplay with the scoreing used in Bulletstorm story missions. MK and I played this in tandem and giggled at all the silly jokes in the game. 

And that's about it. I went a little beyond the 75 score limit I usually use to get to Total Overdose at an outrageous 71. There are many more I've only played a little bit that I could go back to and many more to try when I get a chance. Lots of unique titles to play on this console even today.