Bossieman has nailed it for me. PS2 represents the future, Xbox is an attempt to reach for the maximum possible using the old PC architecture. Offering a promise of the box being 3x more powerful than PS2... okay, maybe. Three times more fantastic than what PS2 is showing now? No way, not even close.
Right or wrong, I think most everyone sees the dislike for the xbox as spillover hatred for MS. With its closed OS maintaining a stranglehold on any real competition, MS gathered mega wealth and major resentment by selling licences and upgrades for a buggy operating system they alone are allowed to tweak at the roots. In effect holding the industry back more than moving it forward.
So Billy boy decides to enter and dominate a playground with a level field. Does it surprise or dismay anyone that many of us chillies expect to see him leave with his pants down around his ankles?