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Almost one million unused Gamertags will be made available to Xbox Live Gold subscribers this Wednesday, according to a press release. Gold members who have been active on the service for at least a year will be able to sift through the abandoned Gamertags starting at 11 a.m. PT on May 18.
Among the IDs to choose from are proper names, pop culture references and "some of the greatest inventions of all time," the team at Xbox Live said. Gold members worldwide can switch their personal Gamertags to one of these instead. They'll roll out over a 24-hour period, meaning the full list won't be available from the get-go.
In a press release, the team at Xbox explained that these Gamertags belonged to accounts made after the first Xbox launched. They have been inactive since before the Xbox 360 came out, with these users never moving to the new console. A similar release of Xbox Live Gamertags occurred in 2011.
Anyone can change their Gamertag at any point. The first change is free; additional changes come at a cost.
