Although overshadowed by the PlayStation 2 and original Xbox during its heyday, the Nintendo GameCube has since developed a devoted fanbase and appreciation for its great library of exclusive games. Sadly, newer gamers have no other option than to hunt down a secondhand GameCube to experience these classic titles, as many noteworthy games are only available on Nintendo's little purple box.
The console is home to many heavy hitters, with several GameCube games holding up well to this day. While some games from that era such as Super Mario Sunshine and The Legend of Zelda: The Windwaker have since been updated for newer Nintendo systems, there still remains a significant number of both first and third party titles left exclusively trapped on the console, sometimes only playable elsewhere on a Wii via backward compatibility. Regardless of which genre gamers prefer, Nintendo's classic console is home to experiences for all tastes.
Iconic Classics
As would be expected, many of Nintendo's most popular mascots have entries on the GameCube including Mario, Link, and the rest of the gang. The F-Zero franchise appears on the system with another high speed racing game in F-Zero GX, testing players wits and split second thinking to survive its deadly courses. Fox McCloud and company offer two installments with StarFox Assault being a more traditional space shooter in line with the rest of the series, while StarFox Adventures breaks away from series conventions with a third person adventure title similar to the Zelda series. Meanwhile, Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door and Super Smash Bros. Melee build upon their predecessors and are arguably still the best games in each respective series. Sadly, these games have never been ported to a more modern Nintendo console, like the Switch.
Pokemon Colosseum and Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness continue the gameplay style seen in Pokemon Stadium on the Nintendo 64 while offering an additional spin to the formula for added depth. For fans of a galaxy far, far away, the Rogue Squadron series is a challenging flight combat series with gorgeous graphics and immersive gameplay, providing a truly authentic Star Wars experience. Furthermore, Battalion Wars offers a different take on the Advance Wars series as a third person shooter mixed with strategy elements, all while Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes is a reimaging of the PS1 original, which should satisfy any fans eagerly anticipating the rumored next gen remake
Hidden Gems
Despite Nintendo's association with family friendly entertainment, the GameCube has a number of titles that are not afraid to dive into darker themes as well. The critically acclaimed horror classic Eternal Darkness Sanity's Requiem is a standout for fans of all thing spooky for its disturbing atmosphere and innovative, mind-bending gameplay. The game is infamous for how it keeps gamers on their toes, always playing mind games (known as Sanity Effects in the game) such as the audio suddenly lowering by itself or the character's own head falling off. For players who prefer supernatural themed games with more of an emphasis on action, Geist revolves around taking control of a disembodied spirit, giving players the ability to possess people (and even objects) to haunt their way to the end of this unique adventure thriller.
The GameCube has strong entries in the RPG department as well with notable standouts such as Lost Kingdoms (developed by FromSoftware, the creator of Dark Souls) which presents players with a rich fantasy setting and real time combat. For gamers that prefer science fiction to fantasy, there is Custom Robo, an engaging action game where customizable robots are pit against each other in combat. Also worth mentioning is the Baiten Kaitos series, an epic and grand scale journey across a kingdom in the clouds, developed by Monolith Software of Xenosaga fame.
Finally, for everything and anything in between, the GameCube is home to many games that can hardly be categorized into a single genre for their often bizarre uniqueness. Odama is a war simulation that plays like a pinball machine that should entertain fans of strategy titles while shoot'em up enthusiasts can find plenty to enjoy in the fast paced excitement of Chaos Field. For extra measure, although Super Mario Sunshine mentioned earlier is the most notable platformer on the console, there are other just as enjoyable entries in the genre like the colorfully cute Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg as well the enormously charming Chibi Robo.