Official Xbox Magazine (OXM) was a monthly video game magazine that began in November 2001, around the time the original Xbox was released. A preview issue was published at E3 2001, and another preview issue was released in November 2001. Each magazine came with a disc that included game demos, preview videos, trailers, and updates about games or the Xbox. The discs also allowed users to play original Xbox games on the Xbox 360 through backward compatibility, which was helpful for people without broadband or Xbox Live access. Starting in January 2012, OXM no longer included a demo disc. In mid-2014, the American version of the magazine was combined with the British version on the website, but this lasted only a few months. Future plc, the company that owned the magazine, later announced it would close its website and other publications, such as Edge and Computer and Video Games. In February 2015, OXM and other Future video game websites were redirected to GamesRadar.

The magazine was closed in April 2020 by its owners, Future Publishing, with May 2020 as the final issue. The company said the COVID-19 pandemic was one of the reasons for the shutdown. A Chinese version of the magazine was released during the "Xbox Summer Video Game Show" held by Microsoft Taiwan on August 21 and 22, 2004, at the Third World Trade Center in Taipei. This version was limited to 200 copies.

Content

The magazine "OXM" included a demo disc with Xbox 360 and Xbox Live Arcade games in each issue. However, in January 2012, the magazine stopped including these discs, stating that readers no longer wanted them. The last demo disc, number 131, was included in the same issue. Each disc had special items, such as gamer pictures and hidden game content. Gamers could play the games and watch videos on the disc to earn points. These points were used to collect resources and build items in the in-game world called "OXM Universe." The "OXM Universe" section ended in the magazine's 100th issue.

The magazine also featured sections about Xbox business news, gaming updates, reviews of Xbox-related tools, and recommendations for low-cost games. Other sections included monthly codes, highlights of car designs from "Forza Motorsport 2," challenges to play games against the OXM team, discussions about movies and books related to games, and a column showing Xbox Live usernames. A section called "Ask Dr. Gamer" provided gaming advice from a health doctor named Freddy Chen. Another section, "The (insert something here) of Xbox," covered topics about the Xbox world. The "Business of Xbox" column was written by Geoff Keighley until May 2007 and later by Christ Morris until 2015. Starting with Issue #71, the final page of the magazine featured guest writers, including game creators Tim Schafer, Denis Dyack, and Randy Pitchford.

Staff

• Editor: Chris Burke
• Games Editor: Dave Meikleham
• Staff Writer: Adam Bryant
• Production Editor: Drew Sleep
• Senior Art Editor: Warren Brown

Review system

Before issue #52, the Official Xbox Magazine (OXM) used a 100-point system, scoring games out of 10.0 with steps of 0.1. Games that received at least a 9.0 score were given an Editor's Choice award. Starting with issue #53 (Holiday 2005), the US edition of OXM changed to a 20-point system, scoring games out of 10.0 with steps of 0.5. The UK edition changed to a 10-point system, scoring games out of 10. This scoring method was explained on the introduction page of every issue's review section. A score of 10.0 was not considered perfect, but was called "Classic" and described as "one of those rare and very best of games." OXM's review scale also included a score of 11.0 (called "Mecha Godzilla's Choice") as "Perfect," but the description for that score was "The unicorn. Will never happen. Never."

Twenty games received a 10/10 score from OXM, but only BioShock, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, and Grand Theft Auto V received this score from both the US and UK editions. The nine 10/10 games from the US edition included: Fight Night Round 3, Gears of War, Fallout 3, Halo 3, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Mass Effect, Gears of War 3, and Batman: Arkham City. The nine 10/10 games from the UK edition included: Grand Theft Auto IV, Project Gotham Racing 4, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, Mass Effect 2, Halo: Reach, Portal 2, Deus Ex: Human Revolution, and Mass Effect 3.

OXM also began reviewing Xbox Live Downloadable Content (DLC) using a three-point scale: Buy, Fanboys Only, and Deny. An exception was The Elder Scrolls IV: Shivering Isles expansion pack in issue 70, which was reviewed on the normal 20-point scale because the game was larger than usual. It received an 8.5 (Great) score. (The game was later released as an expansion on DVD.)

Bonus materials

Some disks included extra items for Xbox games. Early versions of the demo disks had a costume expansion for Dead or Alive 3 and hidden features that could be unlocked by entering a code on the controller. Some content that was only available for download on Xbox Live was also included on demo disks. Until 2015, most US demo discs featured gamer pictures centered on a game.

• Issue #53 included a free exclusive early version of Final Fantasy XI.
• Issue #67 included the Wizard's Tower and Thieves Den quests for The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion.
• Issue #69 included Chapter 2 for Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter.
• Issue #73 included an exclusive demo for the Japanese RPG Eternal Sonata.
• Issue #74 included an exclusive demo for Beautiful Katamari.
• Issue #77 included a special demo for Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock. (The demo is also found in copies of Tony Hawk's Proving Ground.)
• Issue #80 included the Harmonix Track Pack 01: 3 exclusive songs for the popular video game Rock Band.
• Issue #82 included the downloadable song Halo Theme MJOLNIR Mix for Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock.
• Issue #46 (UK edition) included the NXE update for the Xbox 360 dashboard.
• Issue #54 (UK edition) included a Left 4 Dead 2 Xbox 360 theme.
• Issue #116 included an Assassin's Creed pamphlet.

Podcasts

KOXM was the weekly Official Xbox Magazine podcast, led by OXM Senior Editor Dave Rudden. Before Dave Rudden, Ryan McCaffrey hosted the show until he moved to IGN. Dan Amrich was McCaffrey's co-host, but he left the magazine and podcast to work at Activision/Blizzard. The audio podcast included a review of events and game releases from the past week, two trivia contests (Name That Xbox Sound Effect and Stick it to the Dan [formerly Dan's Useless Trivia]) for prizes like a T-shirt or Xbox Live Arcade game, and interviews with game developers. The show was produced by Andy Bauman.

Before 2015, the OXM Video Podcast was updated less often, with long gaps between episodes. The video podcast slowed until it became part of Inside Xbox, a short Xbox Live program that OXM joined in 2008. The OXM Report on Inside Xbox included similar video content to the original podcast but focused on more recent news about games like Gears of War 2 and Mirror's Edge. It was posted on Xbox Live every other Sunday.