Xbox's Translucent Green X25 Controller Is Out Now for Its 25th Anniversary

Microsoft's silver-anniversary hardware is finally in players' hands. The Xbox Wireless Controller X25 Special Edition, a translucent "OG Green" reissue of the original 2001 pad's color scheme, shipped on October 20 and is now sold individually through Xbox's own storefront at a list price of $79.99 (£74.99 / €79.99), after going up for pre-order in late August.

The controller is the first piece of Xbox's 25th-anniversary collection to actually reach shelves, four weeks ahead of the numbered Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition console it was designed to accompany. Both products trace back to Microsoft's reveal at the Xbox Games Showcase in June, where Jason Ronald, Xbox's VP of Next Generation, framed the collection as a thank-you to players rather than a simple paint job.

A Deliberate Trip Back to 2001

Every detail on the X25 pad is a callback. The ABXY buttons return to their original green, yellow, blue and red layout, last seen before Microsoft standardized the controller face for cross-generation consistency. The bumpers are finished in black and white, a nod to the bulky "Duke" pad that shipped with the first Xbox, and the back case and battery door are fully transparent, exposing the classic green "X" logo inside the shell.

Functionally, the controller is a standard modern Xbox pad underneath the throwback shell. It keeps a dedicated Share button, runs on AA batteries rated for up to 40 hours, and pairs over both Xbox Wireless and Bluetooth with Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Windows 10 and 11, Android and iOS. Button mapping is handled through the Xbox Accessories app, the same tool used for every other first-party pad Microsoft currently sells.

A Numbered Console to Match

The controller is also sold as part of the Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition, a 1TB Series X finished in the same translucent green and individually numbered on its chassis. Microsoft has said the console bundle will ship separately in November, pairing the X25 controller with a free copy of Halo: Campaign Evolved, Halo Studios' remake of the original Combat Evolved campaign. Powering on the console lights its "X" in green, echoing the startup glow of the 2001 original, and the front panel carries a dedicated 25th-anniversary mark that the standard Series X doesn't have.

Pricing for the bundle sits above the standard console, reflecting the numbered chassis, the translucent shell and the included game. Microsoft has limited orders to one anniversary collection per customer at participating retailers, a restriction aimed squarely at resellers rather than everyday buyers.

Limited Stock, Predictable Demand

Retailer listings tracked since launch day show the controller selling through quickly in several markets, with some storefronts already marking it out of stock while others still show it available to order directly. That pattern tracks with how Microsoft framed the release from the start: a special edition made in finite numbers, not an ongoing catalog item players can expect to restock indefinitely.

Anyone who wants one and hasn't already pre-ordered should treat Xbox's own product page and major retailers as the first stop, since Microsoft has said pricing and stock can vary by region and seller once the first wave of pre-orders is fulfilled.

What Comes Next for the Anniversary

The controller's launch is an early beat in a longer celebration. The original Xbox went on sale on November 15, 2001, which makes this November's console bundle, rather than this week's controller, the date Microsoft is actually building toward. Xbox has already run community design showcases and FanFest tour stops tied to the milestone, and the Xbox brand's 25th year continues to lean on original-console nostalgia as its visual throughline, from the green "X" button glow to the Duke-era bumper colors revived on the new pad.

For now, the X25 controller stands as the first tangible product of that plan: a modern, fully compatible Xbox pad wrapped in a shell built to remind longtime players exactly where the brand started.