What are the best GameCube games?

Ceph · Post by **Ceph** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 7:29 pm

Please accept my apologies for starting yet another one of those "best"-threads; I really do value the input of the nice folks frequenting this board.

I bought my GameCube a few years ago (basically for RE4 and Zelda) and only ever got a handful of games for it.

Now that the commercial lifespan of GC is coming to an end, I'd like to know what the best games are because most are pretty cheap and easy to come by at the moment.

PS. Are there any GC games that were produced in limited quantities?

SuperGrafx · Post by **SuperGrafx** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 7:35 pm

Sounds like you got the must-haves (RE4 and Zelda). I suppose you should consider F-Zero and Metroid Prime as well.

Rarities? Cubivore is one that comes to mind. Can't think of any others really.

mirkvid · Post by **mirkvid** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 7:37 pm

i really liked the metroid prime games, they are probably my favorite games on the system. metal gear is also really fun. the resident evil remake and zero are also really good if you can stand the control scheme...

ikaruga!

Ceph · Post by **Ceph** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 7:44 pm

I got RE Zero. As far as Ikaruga is concerend, that game is not my cup of tea. I do own the DC version though, which is arcade perfect. So no point in getting it for GC.

junkeR · Post by **junkeR** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 7:46 pm

junkeR recommends:

Metal Gear: Twin Snakes
Super Mario Sunshine
Nintendo Puzzle Collection (Jp only)
Mario Kart Double Dash
All the Zelda's
Paper Mario 2
Eternal Darkness

JJG · Post by **JJG** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 7:54 pm

Metal Gear: Twin Snakes
Mario Kart Double Dash
Monkey Ball 2
Resident Evil 4
Naruto Gekitou Ninja Taisen 4
Nintendo Puzzle Collection

Strider77 · Post by **Strider77** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 8:08 pm

F-zero is really good, if you like racers or the older F-zeros. It's tough as nails also.

I'm one of the folks who really liked Killer 7, but folks either hate it or love it.

The Biohazard remake is really nice, I enjoyed that one alot. I played the resident evil series before 4 so all the whining about controls is non-sense to me; it's like a car... steer left and right and up is forward.

shinsage · Post by **shinsage** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 8:11 pm

F-Zero GX. I played that for months on end; the music may be lacking (why did Nintendo go the way of hard rock? The original still has the best...had Silence's theme stuck in my head at work the entire day), but fuckin-A, the speed was out of sight. Love it.

Also, don't believe the hype, Eternal Darkness is OK and all, but definitely not the 'be all, end all' of Cube games.

Monkey Ball is still one of the best, too. After all these years I still can not see how it's humanly possible to beat it on Expert.

But other than that, the Cube's just my Ikaruga-player.

PS Wind Waker is a horrible, horrible game.

JJG · Post by **JJG** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 8:14 pm

I think F-Zero X on N64 was much better than GX on GC. They took out the ability to ram people and spin, so basically they removed the agressive style of play which sucks.

shinsage · Post by **shinsage** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 8:40 pm

Pretty sure ramming other cars is still in GX.

jpolz · Post by **jpolz** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 8:43 pm

My Personal Collection of "essentials":

F-Zero GX
Ikaruga
Metroid Prime
Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
Mario Kart: Double Dash
Zelda Collector's Disc
Paper Mario
Mario Sunshine

BrianC · Post by **BrianC** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 8:44 pm

shinsage wrote: PS Wind Waker is a horrible, horrible game.

I disagree. Wind Waker is not a very hard game, but it is a well designed one. Yes, the sailing can get tedious, but there is a warp that you get later on that makes the going easier. The dungeons are very well designed, especially the ones that have switching between two characters to solve puzzles. The game has a nice charm to it (like when link makes the meow sound and the explination of that one bonus round) too.

I think F-Zero X on N64 was much better than GX on GC. They took out the ability to ram people and spin, so basically they removed the agressive style of play which sucks.

Huh? Both of those are still there in F-Zero GX.

I highly recommend both Super Monkey Balls. Both are very addictive and fun.

I don't recommend Super Mario Sunshine. Parts of it are fun, but it feels rather unpolished, especially compared to other Mario games like Super Mario 64. The game balance is a bit odd too. Some early levels are harder than the later levels and the Ill Pantismo (or whatever his name is) boss levels for each level are very easy.

JJG · Post by **JJG** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 8:55 pm

Hmm I don't remember why I don't like GX then, maybe it's the speed. I just like F-Zero X more for some reason, I think the soundtrack is much better also.

Blade · Post by **Blade** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 8:58 pm

Well if you're shmup hunting you'll want these:

Ikaruga
Shikigami no Shiro (Japan only, but freeloader helps)
Chaos Field (although it's not that great)

Daigohji · Post by **Daigohji** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 9:03 pm

Animal Crossing
Eternal Darkness
Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life
Killer7
Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour
Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes
Metroid Prime
P.N.03
Resident Evil
Resident Evil 0
Resident Evil 4
Star Wars: Rogue Leader
Super Mario Sunshine
Super Monkey Ball

professor ganson · Post by **professor ganson** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 9:06 pm

Honestly, GC has about as many must-own titles as N64, hardly any. The best game is probably Shiki II and it does look great on the GC, but you can get it for any next-gen system, obviously.

My daughter loves games like Animal Crossing, Mario Kart, Pikmin, Harvest Moon... Basically, I don't use the GC unless I'm playing multiplayer w/ her.

I do think I'd like Paper Mario, but I never finished the N64 game so I'd go back to that before shelling out $20.

shinsage · Post by **shinsage** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 9:07 pm

Can't believe I forgot P.N.03; if you see it, then it'll most likely be cheap. I recommend it, for sure. Too bad P.N.04 never materialized, but after all the bad review coverage it got, I'm not surprised.

I didn't mention Killer7 because I played the PS2 port, but yeah. That's my game of the year for 2005, and it's in my top 10 of all time.
I think I'll go ahead and play some Cloudman later on.

Limbrooke · Post by **Limbrooke** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 9:09 pm

Super Smash Bros. Melee
Resident Evil
Resident Evil Zero
Metroid Prime
Metroid Prime 2 Echoes
Eternal Darkness
The Legend of Zelda The Wind Waker (I'm sorry but I really like this game apart from the obvious sailing)
Super Mario Sunshine (It's ok, but again it has a certain charm I like)

Those are the only games I've played and enjoyed (Ikaruga although not mentioned is an obvious choice).

Neon · Post by **Neon** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 9:15 pm

Nintendo Puzzle Collection

Whoa, what's this?

Didn't the Monkey Ball series come out on ps2 and xbox? Better to just get it there

Buy Mr. Driller Drill Land or go to hell

BrianC · Post by **BrianC** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 9:35 pm

Neon wrote: Didn't the Monkey Ball series come out on ps2 and xbox? Better to just get it there

Yes it did, but the PS2 one ended up with inferior textures and a lowered framerate. Also, the Xbox one turned out better than the PS2 version, but it supposedly has inferior control compared to the GCN one.

Mr. Driller Drill Land is a sweet game, but it doesn't save properly with Freeloader.

JJG · Post by **JJG** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 9:49 pm

Nintendo Puzzle Collection is 3 classic puzzle games of which I only remember Puzzle de Pon (that is the only one that matters after all).

I also can't believe I forgot to mention Baten Kaitos and it's sequel, best RPG's I've played in a long time.

Rob · Post by **Rob** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 9:50 pm

My legit and joke answer in one: Sonic Mega Collection. The only games I'd remotely recommend are widely known to be good.

I'm also looking into Fire Emblem, but who has played that one?

Klatrymadon · Post by **Klatrymadon** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 9:51 pm

P.N. 03 is an absolute belter. The soulless art direction and restricted controls are deliberate, Captain Philistine.

JJG · Post by **JJG** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 9:52 pm

P.N. 03 is definitely one of the worst games I've played in my life, worse than the matrix games.

BrianC · Post by **BrianC** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 10:05 pm

JJG wrote:Nintendo Puzzle Collection is 3 classic puzzle games of which I only remember Puzzle de Pon (that is the only one that matters after all).

The name of the game is Panel de Pon. The other games in the collection are Dr. Mario and Yoshi's cookie. Also, Panel de Pon in Nintendo Puzzle Collection is supposedly based on the N64 Pokemon Puzzle League, but with the characters and story of the SNES Panel de Pon.

Klatrymadon · Post by **Klatrymadon** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 10:09 pm

Jesus, the Matrix games are just cynical, spiritless shite.

JJG · Post by **JJG** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 10:11 pm

I always played it as Tetris Attack or Pokemon Puzzle League so that's why I didn't know the name. The only thing different on the Pokemon Puzzle League version would be the added 3D version and maybe some options.

Pirate1019 · Post by **Pirate1019** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 11:27 pm

Rob wrote:My legit and joke answer in one: Sonic Mega Collection. The only games I'd remotely recommend are widely known to be good.

I'm also looking into Fire Emblem, but who has played that one?

I own the Fire emblem. It's good, but essentially the same game as the GBA ones except for a few monor changes, like adding bonus exp to your characters while 'at base'. I got it for $20 at gamestop instead of $40 at walmart. Worth it, I'd say.

Everyone has pretty much recommended everything you absolutely need, although there are a few titles that are worth checking out, but not buying.
Personally I loved Tales of Symphonia. The Linear Motion Battle system works great and is an awesome substitute to turn based gameplay.

Ehh...Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life is pretty good, although different from the rest in the series.

Alien Hominid if you don't own it for something else.

The Batan Kaitos games are the only card based RPG's I have ever liked and they look beautiful.

Just look around. I was surprised how well it turned out as my only current (last?) generation system.

CMoon · Post by **CMoon** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 11:37 pm

JJG wrote:P.N. 03 is definitely one of the worst games I've played in my life, worse than the matrix games.

Hilarious! One of my favorite games on the cube, though that isn't saying much...

Klatrymadon · Post by **Klatrymadon** » Wed Nov 29, 2006 12:44 am

Aye, let's remain friendly, of course. I can definitely see why certain folks would regard P.N. 03 as a piece of cack...