On a quiet Tuesday morning in Toronto, 24-year-old Liam Cooper sat sipping his coffee, casually scrolling through his Xbox Rewards dashboard. A gamer since childhood, Liam had racked up countless hours playing Halo, Forza, and FIFA with friends online. But today, something unexpected popped up on his screen — a digital gift card from Xbox worth a staggering $24,000.
“I thought it was a glitch,” Liam later said, laughing. “I refreshed the page three times.”
But it wasn’t.
It turned out that Liam had been unknowingly participating in one of Xbox’s lesser-known loyalty initiatives — an experimental global reward pilot launched during a promotional campaign tied to community engagement and rare in-game achievements
The Hunt Behind the Scenes
Months earlier, Microsoft had rolled out a secret “Achievement Hunt” across select regions, including Canada. Players who hit a specific combination of milestones — ranging from scoring 1 million gamerscore points to discovering hidden Easter eggs in indie titles — were being tracked silently through the Xbox Rewards system.
Unbeknownst to Liam, his 6-year streak of unlocking rare achievements and beta testing new releases had placed him in the top 0.01% of Xbox community contributors in North America.
“He’s the kind of guy who reads every in-game message, finishes every side quest, and reports bugs without being asked,” said one of his gamer friends.
The $24,000 Surprise
The digital gift card came with a congratulatory email from Microsoft’s Xbox Live team, thanking Liam for his “unparalleled loyalty, feedback, and contribution to gaming excellence.” The amount? $24,000 CAD.
This wasn’t just for purchasing games. The gift card could be used across Xbox’s full ecosystem — including hardware, accessories, subscriptions, and third-party titles. Technically, it was enough to buy every major Xbox game released in the past decade — twice.
Viral Moment and Community Buzz
Within hours, Liam’s story exploded on Reddit and gaming forums. Some users were amazed, others skeptical.
“Xbox just gave away a small car as a gift card?” one Reddit user posted.
But it was confirmed. Screenshots of the email, Xbox dashboard, and transaction history made it to Twitter, and eventually Xbox Canada’s official account gave Liam a shoutout:
"Real recognize real. Congrats Liam — thank you for making the Xbox community legendary."
What Did He Do Next?
So, what does one do with $24,000 worth of Xbox credit?
“I upgraded everything,” Liam laughed. “Got the Xbox Series X for my cousin, ordered every game on my wishlist, and I’m setting up a small gaming lounge in my basement.”
He also hinted at launching a YouTube channel where he’ll review games, stream playthroughs, and share tips on unlocking rare achievements — possibly inspiring others to chase their own gaming dreams.
A Message to Gamers
Liam’s story is more than just about luck — it’s about consistency, passion, and community engagement.
In an era where gaming often gets dismissed as a “waste of time,” Liam Cooper proved that being a committed player can lead to real-world surprises — sometimes even worth $24,000.
Moral of the story:
Keep playing. You never know who’s watching… or what rewards are waiting in your inbox.
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