Xbox is celebrating 25 years by dressing your console in nostalgia

Xbox is nearing its quarter-century of oversized controllers, achievement hunting, and Halo nights. To celebrate its 25th birthday, Microsoft is letting players open a few birthday presents early. The company has released a free collection of gamerpics, profile backgrounds, themes, and a dynamic Xbox console background created by community artists Klobrille and Ben Kenobi.

The artwork is available now, ahead of the original Xbox’s 25th anniversary on November 15. Microsoft is also giving players a commemorative 25th anniversary profile badge. All you need to do is sign in to your Xbox account through a console, PC, or the Xbox mobile app before the end of 2026 to receive it.

Your Xbox can dress for the birthday party

Console owners can find the new gamerpics and themes under Settings > Profile > Customize profile. The dynamic background lives under Settings > General > Personalization > My background > Dynamic background. PC users can change their gamerpic by opening their profile inside the Xbox app and selecting the pencil icon.

The matching profile theme appears under the Customize Profile menu. Microsoft is also inviting players to submit their own anniversary artwork through X using the #XBOX25 hashtag, with selected designs potentially joining the official collection.

Game Pass is digging through the Xbox attic

Microsoft has also created anniversary collections inside Xbox Game Pass, highlighting games from every Xbox generation. The initial selection includes Fable Anniversary, Halo: The Master Chief Collection, Fallout 4, Psychonauts 2, and Grounded. These are curated sections of the existing Game Pass catalog rather than newly gifted copies that players can permanently keep.

The anniversary celebrations will continue with an international FanFest tour visiting Cologne, Tokyo, London, Mexico City, Sydney, Toronto, and eventually Seattle. Tickets for each event will be distributed through city-specific sweepstakes.

Microsoft also has a translucent green Xbox Series X25 and matching controller coming in November. Those nostalgic pieces of hardware will cost actual money, making the free dynamic background and profile makeover the easier birthday gifts to claim.