A while back I saw this clickbait video of "Gen Z trying out the original XBOX" and man that was a reality check as to how much time has passed.
For OG xbox, I was a definition script kiddie but I learned how to use FTP, how to connect via crossover cable, how to solder, the basics of what exploits are and how they work, and a ton of other skills that I use daily.
X360 required me to take the damn thing apart (which was terrifying as a 14 year old who wouldn't get a replacement if I broke things). I learned about firmware, SATA connections, the bits (I forget the name) that specify whether something was retail or not, why the exploit wouldn't let you run unsigned code, etc.
I was just a broke kid who wanted to watch movies and play games I couldn't afford, but it literally got me into tinkering and hacking, even though what I was doing wasn't much more than "follow a guide, script kiddy"
My computing journey started earlier on DOS but XBOX kept me going through a period of post 9/11 depression where the excitement of childhood and an amazing future was slowly disappearing. I stopped even playing video games after the end of the XBOX lifecycle (despite continuing to buy new gen hardware just so I could take it apart and admire the internals).
Now living in the post ChatGPT days and wondering about my future, i'm looking back wishing I could live through those late nights one more time.
They were playing the long-con game.
Gen Z is a pretty wide group. I am Gen Z and played on an original xbox. However at the time the PS3 was already out, as it came out not much later.
And in my region, the PS2 was much more popular than the xbox.
My sister however, who is only a few years younger, is definitely part of the iPad generation.
Everybody played the Wii though, hell I still play the Wii.
So 97 would put you around 4-5 years old when the XBOX came out. The video made it look like the XBOX was some ancient artifact to the Gen Z people. I guess if you were born in 2012 it is an ancient artifact?