A closer look
Microsoft designed the original Xbox console with such a ridiculously massive physical footprint that it actually struggled to gain a foothold in the Japanese gaming market because it literally did not fit on standard entertainment centers. The brutalist black plastic casing and the notoriously gigantic 'Duke' controller were seemingly engineered for players with hands the size of frying pans and living rooms the size of airplane hangars. The company eventually had to release a much smaller, redesigned controller specifically for Japan just so normal human beings could comfortably reach the thumbsticks. It stands as a glorious monument to early 2000s American corporate hubris to manufacture a consumer electronic device that doubles as heavy furniture!
