7 Best Games for the Nintendo Gamecube
The Nintendo Gamecube system, although extremely entertaining in most of it's game releases, ended up being overshadowed by the recent release of the Playstation 2 and increased popularity of computer gaming. Since I personally stay away from the next generation systems in an attempt to keep myself more productive, I regularly browse through classic Gamecube hits to add to my collection. Below are the seven best Gamecube titles based on game quality, playability, enjoyment and any other factors I might be able to think of; hopefully this list will help some of you Gamecube or Wii owners out there decide to go out and find a new game.
Mario Kart: Double Dash
The third installment of the popular Mario Kart series, this game is exclusively for the Gamecube and delivers endless hours of racing fun for up to four players. Since this is such an obvious choice for any Nintendo system, some of the ingenuity put into the different gaming modes and overall control system is often overlooked. Sporting cartoonishly dazzling graphics, an absolutely perfect driving and weapons system and plenty of multi and single player game modes to add to the amount of time you can spend playing, Mario Kart: Double Dash undoubtedly deserves a spot on this list.
- New two-seated carts allow for each racer to choose two characters to play as, or two friends to compete against the computer while working together to drive the same vehicle.
- Battle mode makes it possible to skip the racing altogether and speed through small arenas, using any weapon you can get your hands on to eliminate your friends playing alongside you.
- Four difficulty levels to play the game through makes the single-player mode pack a whole lot of gaming time, and you can even bring friends into the circuit races to vie for the trophy at the end, ultimately benefiting both of you through unlockable vehicles and more.
- The ghost system built into the game allows you to test your skills beyond the competition that the computer offers, letting you work to beat your fastest time by a couple of milliseconds while actually watching your "ghost" drive the track at the same time.
Super Smash Bros: Melee
An instant fighting hit, Super Smash Bros was first released for the Nintendo 64 amidst doubts that the game would be a failure. With even more levels, characters and weapons to experiment with, the totally revamped and updated fighting and contact physics of the game only sweeten the deal. This game takes advantage of all four controllers, allowing four players to easily fight in a free for all or on separate teams.
- An amazingly fun game to play with friends, Super Smash is perhaps the best game to play with your friends, and anyone can easily learn the controls of the game in a very short time.
- With dozens of unlockable characters, levels, special event fights and much more, you can spend countless days playing this game even if you don't have any fellow gamers to plug in with.
- A true game of skill, Super Smash Bros: Melee is a game that the most talented gamers can use to pit their skills against each other. Since there is really no limit to how good you can get at this game, you might find yourself training late into the night, preparing for your next big match.
Resident Evil 4
The suspenseful zombie thriller game of the past, Resident Evil, takes a slightly different turn in this first-person shooter release for the Gamecube. Instead of slowly navigating your way through puzzle-filled hallways from a camera angle that ensures a spooky vibe, this game focuses more on the action and places the camera just behind your right shoulder. This game is one of the only first person shooters released for the Gamecube that carries with it any quality or playability, and the extensive weaponry system and special "Mercenaries" game mode makes for quite a bit of fun.
- The cash system implemented into the game allows for new weapon purchases and upgrades, allowing you to choose the tools you use to fight off the zombie hordes based on your personal preferences.
- The ever difficult Mercenaries mode that you unlock upon completion of the game features four exciting levels and a scoring system that allows you to compete with your friends against the clock.
- After completing the rather long story mode, you are able to restart the game without having to give up all of the weapons and accessories you've earned along the way. This feature is a whole lot of fun if you are looking to cause some serious damage.
Spider-Man 2
Your friendly neighborhood superhero returns in this web-slinging masterpiece for the Gamecube console. With completely realistic swinging physics and dynamics, along with a complete model of New York city to use as your playground, this game would be a bunch of fun even if all you did was wander around aimlessly. The game follows Spider Man's struggle against Doctor Octopus as depicted in the second movie released, but brings in a whole team of Spidey favorites to fill in some of the blanks and give the game a much longer storyline.
- The game is completely free roaming environment that allows you to complete side missions for citizens of New York and hunt for secret tokens scattered throughout the city.
- A complete voice cast eliminates the need to ever read a subtitle or caption, and you'll enjoy hearing all the catchy lines supplied by the cast of the movie just for the game.
- As you complete story missions and side jobs, the hero points you earn allow you to purchase all sorts of combat and swinging upgrades. From a powerful punch and web combination move, to a stylistic flip that can be performed after jumping off a wall: the upgrades keep you wanting more.
- Hundreds of secret tokens scattered all throughout the city allow for a whole bunch of exploration or cruising time before or after you finish the story, and the pizza delivery and Daily Bugle photography jobs give you a completely different story plot to play along with.
Enter the Matrix
Placing you in control of two fellow soldiers of freedom - Ghost and Niobe - who were briefly featured in the Matrix movies, Enter the Matrix is perhaps one of the most exciting Matrix games to be released. Complete with an awesome slow-mo combat and dodging system, you can really get in to the world of The Matrix with this game. The playability of this game is nowhere near as high as almost all of the other games on this list, but it is still a solid grab if your a fan of the series and are looking to try something new.
- An alternate game mode puts you in control of a command prompt that responds just like a real computer, and dares you to hack your way into the Matrix and learn it's secrets. It will take a couple of hours - maybe longer if you don't know much about computers - but you can then use the console to directly affect things that happen in your saved game: just like the "operator" in the Matrix series.
- Slow motion bullet dodging, shooting and combat maneuvers make for some cool visuals, and the combat system of the game is actually pretty challenging. Once you master your skills against the computer opponents, bring your friends in on the action in the multiplayer battle modes that allow you to play as Neo and a whole bunch of other favorites.
Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 2
A breathtaking, fast-paced fighting game that features all of the well known characters from the Dragon Ball Z animated series, as well as some that aren't quite as popular. To generate the non-stop action that Budokai 2 delivers, the fighting mechanics focus on a combination of punches and kicks, ki blast attacks, a number of special moves that are specific to each character and a decent mash-up system that occurs when two powerful moves collide. You can't hope to play through the story mode forever, but since you will be able to unlock certain things for completing certain events using different characters, there is still quite a bit of time that can easily be put towards playing this game without flinching.
- You can unlock characters as you fight your way through the lengthy story mode battles and situational events, and the list of fighters you have to choose from by the time you are all done is truly massive.
- Take any fight to the air easily with the completely functional flying dynamics that are incorporated into every fight - this gives you a whole lot of additional means of smashing your opponent, so make sure to take advantage of it.
The Legend of Zelda: Collector's Edition
This collector's edition features a total of four games in one: The Legend of Zelda, The Adventure of Link, The Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask. Including a brief demo to the soon to be released The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Walker, this slightly pricey purchase really holds a lot of bang for it's buck. Aside from the fact that The Ocarina of Time is essentially one of the best action/adventure games of the era, the additional three games included will allow you to really explore the saga and fully immerse yourself in the game.
It might be hard to find a new copy since this game was never sold commercially, but countless units of it were released through many special offers and Gamecube console bundle packages, so much so that a strategy guide was released that covered all of the games included in the collector's edition. The game is regularly listed on Amazon and Ebay, and you may very well be able to find a new copy if you look hard enough.