50 Best GameCube Games of All Time

The handle, the weird disc thing, the easter eggs — the GameCube was a very playful console. But funny jingles and weird controller buttons can only take you so far. Luckily, the GameCube also wasn’t struggling for amazing games in its library during its short but jam-packed life. Here are the 50 best GameCube games ever made.

 

50. WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$!

Wario had been his own star already before the release of the GameCube and the GBA, but both of those consoles gave the yellow-clad chunkster a bigger chance to shine. Shout to Wario World, which was a decent 3D beat ‘em up/platformer if not quite good enough for this list, but we have to acknowledge the goliath that is WarioWare, Inc.

While the series started just before its GameCube release with MegaMicro Games on the GBA, the GC release a few months later, Mega Party Game$!, ported the authentic experience to home consoles. That might sound like a bit of a low-effort port, which does explain its lower position on this list, but one thing that did elevate this version above the original GBA release is the inclusion of 8-player multiplayer, and this is still a fun game to revisit.

 

49. WWE WrestleMania XIX

There’s one reason and one reason alone why WWE WrestleMania XIX is one of the best GameCube games you can play, and that’s because of the absolutely unhinged Revenge Mode.

Revenge allows you to pick from a roster of the Ruthless Aggression-era’s finest wrestlers (and Val Venis), and you’re immediately fired by Vince McMahon. Fortunately, his daughter Stephanie is also in the business of getting back at Daddy, and orders you to sabotage WrestleMania XIX’s planning. How? By fighting mall cops, security guards and construction workers, with one of the levels taking place on a suspended construction site over a seemingly bottomless Hellmouth where Vince wants to host Mania. Bonkers stuff.

Taking it in turns to yeet Village People cosplayers to their doom is simply endless joy.

 

48. Super Mario Strikers

With the success of Tennis and Golf, it’s not surprising that Nintendo wanted to try their hand at other sports for Mario too. Baseball might not have been the home-run that Nintendo were looking for, considering there wasn’t another one afterwards, but Super Mario Strikers proved there was enough room in the Mushroom Kingdom for some footy pitches.

Super Mario Strikers let players form teams from some of the most iconic Mario characters to play kickabout. Naturally, the Mario connection meant this was a little bit more than just a normal game of FIFA, with items that you can use to get an advantage over your opponents and super-powered shots that feel lifted out of Captain Tsubasa. The single player modes might have been paltry, hence the lower place, but grab some friends and you’ll have a whale of a time.

 

47. Donkey Konga

While PlayStation and Xbox were handing their players plastic guitars and giving them the goal of becoming the next Slash or Tom Morrello, Nintendo were aiming for the percussionists of the world. Granted, a set of plastic bongoes isn’t quite the same as a replica drumkit in the same way Guitar Hero emulated being a rockstar, but Donkey Konga was yet another example of Nintendo zigging while everyone else zagged, creating something memorable and enjoyable in the process.

Developed by the same folks who did the Taiko no Tatsujin series, people who know a thing or two about smacking drums as hard as possible, the Donkey Konga series of games included various rock songs and Nintendo bangers to create a one of a kind rhythm-action experience. Fun at parties, and different from other peripheral-based rhythm games, Donkey Konga is great stuff.

 

46. Ultimate Muscle: Legends VS New Generation

We promise we’re not trying to load this video up with wrestling games, but there’s a couple of exclusive GameCube wrestling games that deserve to be spotlighted. We’ve mentioned one, but the other one is Ultimate Muscle: Legends VS New Generation, based on the anime and manga of the same name. If that’s not enough to get people excited about this, Ultimate Muscle: Legends VS New Generation is also developed by AKI, the same guys behind WWF No Mercy, so you know it’s incredibly fun.

A who’s who collection of the biggest characters from the history of the series, Ultimate Muscle: Legends VS New Generation lets up to four players join together for a game that blends wrestling with fighting game-esque juggles and aerial combat. It’s faithful to the source material while being easy enough to play that both dedicated fans and casual players can get a kick out of this game at parties. In the end, isn’t that what the GameCube is all about?

 

45. Resident Evil 0

It feels fair to say that, especially compared to the other Resident Evil games that appeared on the GameCube, Resident Evil 0 is considered somewhat to be the red-headed stepchild of the RE series. Why? Most of that is either due to the game’s partner system, where players need to pass items between both lead characters Billy and Rebecca, solving puzzles by using their different strengths, which some consider to just be a….giant pain in the arse.

Resident Evil 0, as the number implies, is actually a prequel to the events of the original game, with Rebecca and Billy sharing an ill-fated train ride as the events of Umbrella’s bio-engineering experiments begin to wreck havoc across the Arklay Mountains. While you don’t end up at the same mansion as the original game, RE 0 offered the same traditional gameplay while filling in a lot of the blanks within the game’s lore. It absolutely peaks on that train, but you might still have fun here.

 

44. Phantasy Star Online Episode 1 & 2

Welcome to the first “Dreamcast port of a game that deserved better” entry of this video. At least SEGA had the foresight to port them to a console that would get a better shake of things… Oh, wait. Anyway, Phantasy Star Online was arguably one of the few breakout hits on the Dreamcast, and SEGA wanted the MMO series to continue on the next generation of console, with the GameCube picking up that mantle.

Phantasy Star Online Episode 1 & 2 combines all the content people loved from the original release, albeit with a bunch of new characters and weapons to keep returning fans invested. As one of the few online enabled games available on the GameCube, PSO Episode 1 & 2 is unique within the console’s library, and with the game’s best-in-class RPG gameplay, PSO is definitely ranking among the best GameCube games of all time.

 

43. Burnout 2: Point Of Impact

One of the biggest shames of the Nintendo GameCube is the fact that Burnout 3: Takedown didn’t release on the platform. But that doesn’t mean thatthe prior game isn’t worthy of your attention. In fact, Burnout 2: Point Of Impact tends to get completely overlooked in favour of Takedown, but it’s definitely still worth checking out.

Burnout 2 improved on the first game in a big way, with more modes, faster cars and better looking tracks, but perhaps the best addition of all was Crash Mode. Yes, the mode where you launch a car into a junction at high speed was actually a Burnout 2 creation. Again, most would consider Burnout 3 or Burnout Revenge to be the apex of the series, but Burnout 2 was the franchise’s last stop on the GameCube. Talk about leaving them wanting more.

 

42. Red Faction 2

Red Faction and Nintendo haven’t really shared the spotlight with each other too often, but when they did, we got Red Faction 2, which is up there with the best first person shooters of the sixth generation of consoles. Hey, it’s definitely much better to play than Geist.

Unlike the first game, which was set entirely on Mars, Red Faction is set a couple of years later on Earth. You control Alias, as you join together with the titular group of rebels to fight back against oppression and tyranny, using powerful weapons and some environmental destruction to get the job done. Sure, the destruction was scaled back, but the core gameplay is still fantastic, and among the best shooters on the GameCube.

Rest in peace, Red Faction, you were a real one.

 

41. Hitman 2: Silent Assassin

There’s a world in which bringing the stealth-action gameplay of Hitman to console just flopped. Something about the specific way of playing Hitman screams that it’s for PC gaming sickos. There could have been a huge chance of Hitman 2’s continuation of the formula not going down well with an audience that were more concerned with gunning everything down rather than meticulously planning an assassination, but Hitman 2: Silent Assassin managed to launch the franchise in the stratosphere.

Once again following the adventures of big baldy barcode-neck 47, Hitman 2 sees the assassin return to the life of life-ending in order to try and rescue a kidnapped priest. Levels are open with multiple paths to complete your objectives, and over a dozen sandboxes to play around in, there’s enough Hitman content here to make all the sickos happy.

 

40. The Legend Of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures

Zelda had a pretty good run on the GameCube, and hey: The Ocarina of Time – Master Quest was pretty decent too. One title that’s a bit more underrated though is The Legend Of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures, and yeah, that might be because you need to grab three other players, each with their own GBA to serve as a controller, in order to get the most out of it. Turning Zelda into a co-op game was a huge gamble, but with the right squad of Links, this is definitely worth your time.

Essentially a sequel to Four Swords on the GBA, albeit with enhanced graphics, Four Swords Adventures sees Link cloned three times and sent on an adventure to save Hyrule from the Shadow Link. The combat and puzzles stand among those in the bigger Zelda games, making this underappreciated adventure worthy of a second look.

 

39. Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell

You can argue among yourselves about which one in the series actually deserves to be mentioned on this list, as all of Sam Fisher’s adventures on the GameCube offered some best in class stealth gameplay. Whether it’s the original, Chaos Theory or Pandora Tomorrow, Splinter Cell became a stealth franchise for the ages based on its unique approach to gameplay and level design, along with the sheer amount of gadgets on offer and the brilliant voice acting from Michael Ironside.

Playing as the super agent Sam Fisher, Splinter Cell sees the lad travelling across the world behind enemy lines in order to try and avert a global catastrophe. It’s never chill in Tom Clancy’s world. With all the improvements to the stealth genre that Splinter Cell offered, it’s a crying shame we haven’t seen more games in the series for a long time.

 

38. Mario Power Tennis

If there’s one thing that Mario loves more than rescuing Princess Peach from an angry, spiky turtle, it’s playing sports with said turtle, along with the other denizens of the Mushroom Kingdom. We’ve covered football, we’ll get to others soon, but for now, let’s enjoy a few games of Mario Power Tennis, Nintendo’s second attempt on home consoles at having Mario and the gang play with some rackets and balls.

Feeling like it’s taking a few cues from Virtua Tennis in trying to make an accessible, arcadey tennis experience, Mario Power Tennis allows for your bog standard rounds of tennis. However, there’s also power-ups, special shots for each character, gimmick courts which introduce their own hazards and mechanics, and a whole host of mini-games to complete. It’s tennis, but better because it’s filled to the brim with Nintendo nonsense. Face it, Wimbledon would be improved if all the players had to qualify by facing off with Petey Piranha.

 

37. Wave Race: Blue Storm

Whenever a new console launches, the manufacturer often creates a game purely for the purposes of showcasing what the console is capable of. Some shiny new graphics for the shiny new toy. Wave Race: Blue Storm fits that mold perfectly, as Nintendo not only created a fun racing game that captures the excitement of aquatic motorsport, but they made one of the best looking games on the entire console. The water physics alone put some modern games to shame.

The third and regrettably final Wave Race game, Blue Storm allows players to pick from several vibrant characters and compete in grand prix events across a range of varied locales. Look, we’ll be the first to admit that the game doesn’t have a tonne of depth, especially compared to other GameCube racing games, but as a statement piece of what the GameCube was capable of, it was perfect.

 

36. Freedom Fighters

People love to tell stories of America being invaded and subjugated by a foreign force, and it tends to lead to good films, like the original Red Dawn. Games? Not so much. Does anyone remember Turning Point: Fall of Liberty? Also, the less said about Homefront, the better. Still, if you want the perfect game of defending the land of liberty from those dirty commies, the GameCube has you covered with IO Interactive’s Freedom Fighters.

Opening with an alternate history New York City under siege from the Soviets, you control a plumber called Chris Stone as he finds his way underground and helps to lead an underground resistance movement against the occupying force. While it could have been a generic third person shooter, Freedom Fighters lets you control a squad of up to 12 followers, who can attack and defend according to your orders, adding to the chaos of this excellent slightly forgotten shooter.

 

35. Star Fox Adventures

Given how Star Fox had been a key pillar of Nintendo’s strategy for years before the release of the GameCube, it felt like the time was right for Fox McCloud to step outside of the Arwing and do some exploration planetside. Perhaps many wouldn’t have guessed that said exploration would become a Legend Of Zelda inspired journey developed by Rare that would also lead to a rise of furries in the 2000s generation (thanks, Krystal), but Star Fox Adventures is still pretty good.

Originally designed to be a game called Dinosaur Planet on the N64, Star Fox Adventures sees Fox landing on said Dinosaur Planet to investigate an invasion, finding a planet that’s been cracked open like the USG Ishimura was spotted in the vicinity. Granted, Star Fox Adventures isn’t the most original game ever made, with the actual Zelda games ranking higher here, but this is still a ball to play.

 

34. Super Monkey Ball 2

Who keeps sticking these monkeys in balls? Who? What kind of sicko locks simians in spheres like this? We’d love to know, so we can thank them considering that Super Monkey Ball 2 is one of the best examples of a puzzle platformer ever made. Sure, the PS2 and Xbox might have received the superior Super Monkey Ball Deluxe, which combined content from the first two games, but for a time there, Super Monkey Ball 2 for the Nintendo GameCube was the superlative SMB experience.

Playing as one of four cute monkeys, you’re literally dropped into one of hundreds of mazes, using physics to tilt the maze in order to guide the monkey home. It’s simple in theory, but the execution required of you during later stages is bordering on the ridiculous, and that’s all part of the charm. Throw in plenty of mini-games that are fun for up to four players, and you’ve got one of the best party games not only on this system, but of all time.

 

33. Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour

You know how they say that “golf is a good walk ruined”? Nothing about it would be ruined if golf were a bit more like it was depicted in Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour. The follow-up to the N64’s aptly titled Mario Golf, Toadstool Tour is the “yes, and?” sequel, with more courses, characters and modes for players to get stuck into. While there were plenty of other golf games for players to enjoy on the GameCube, like Ace Golf (named Swingerz Golf in America), or the Tiger Woods series, Toadstool Tour stands at the pinnacle of the genre.

Part of that charm is the accessibility of the 3-click swing method, seen in other games like Everybody’s Golf. One click to start, one to set power, one to set accuracy. Simple, effective and, most importantly, it can be played by anyone. Throw in a mountain of unlockable characters and modes, and you’ve got a golf game for the ages.

 

32. Def Jam: Fight For New York

We promise we’re done with wrestling games after this. Scout’s honour. We were never in the scouts, mind you, but hey. Look, wrestling is cool and all on its own, but when you throw in some of the biggest names in hip hop and rap to have a throwdown, you’ve got something special. Add in the special sauce that is AKI as developers, who heightened the unrealistic violence to feel like something out of a comic book, and you’ve got Def Jam: Fight For New York, a cultural touchstone for the mid-2000s.

A follow-up to Def Jam: Vendetta, a worthy grappler in its own right, FFNY has players create their own bruiser, rising through the ranks of New York City’s underground fight network and squaring off with Snoop Dogg in the process. It’s silly, it’s incredibly fun to play, and like many of the best GameCube games, it comes into its own when four players are involved.

 

31. Medal of Honor Frontline

Like the fallen soldiers it was so adept at depicting, it feels like the Medal Of Honor series has been taken from us far too soon. EA are clearly busy right now having more fun with the Battlefield series, meaning there’s little room in their portfolio for a series like Medal of Honor. Back in the day though, Medal of Honor had FPS fans in a chokehold with its depiction of World War 2 before Call of Duty was even a twinkle in the milkman’s eye. Frontline just so happens to be the best of the best on that front.

Whether it’s the haunting main menu music that’s up there with some of the most beautiful orchestral scores in gaming, to the opening level that’s arguably the greatest depiction of the storming of Normandy in any game, Frontline is an FPS masterpiece. Mechanically, has it aged the best compared to modern shooters? Probably not, but it’s still a highlight of the GameCube’s library.

 

30. Spider-Man 2

For some people, Spider-Man 2 might be a bit low on this list, as it’s considered to be an all-timer of a superhero game, proving that the larger than life world of comic books could translate to video games in ways more nuanced than a simple beat ‘em up. If anything, time has been the biggest enemy of Spider-Man 2, as while it was the first to truly be ambitious with Spidey’s web-swinging and aerial combat, later games have really perfected it.

Still, future success should never take away from the original’s glory, and Spider-Man 2 was without a doubt the best game the wallcrawler had seen up until that point. A fully explorable New York City, plenty of villains to fight and best in class abilities that allowed players to embody the Webhead meant Spider-Man 2 was a lot of people’s favourite superhero game. Special mention to Ultimate Spider-Man though, which was just as good and included Venom.

 

29. Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings & The Lost Ocean

This one is bursting at the seams with creative ideas.

It’s a turn-based deck building RPG where the cards you use are captured elements of the real world. Sometimes the cards are animals or elemental attacks, and sometimes the cards are just food and water. The world is one where the surface of the planet was long ago destroyed, and now people with wings survive on floating islands.

The blend of high fantasy and sci-fi concepts, the unique battle system, and the vibrant world and characters made Baten Kaitos a true sleeper hit on the GameCube, and a worthy pick for one of the best GameCube games.

It even got a prequel, Baten Kaitos Origins, also on the GameCube in 2006, because Baten Kaitos was too fascinating a world for just one game.

 

28. Star Wars Rogue Squadron 2: Rogue Leader

These days, the tired teats of Star Wars enable dozens of spin-off TV shows and movies to be milked, and it becomes impossible to keep up with it all. Back in the 2000s, it just meant creating tie-in video games of varying quality (and a few pretty decent cartoons). Shadows Of The Empire and Masters Of Teras Kasi might not have been the best games ever made, but most games would look poor in comparison to Star Wars Rogue Squadron 2: Rogue Leader.

The follow-up to what is undoubtedly the best Star Wars game on N64, Rogue Squadron 2 continues the vehicle focused approach, retelling both events from the film and some new scenarios entirely to create exciting gameplay both in the air and in space. While follow-up release Rogue Squadron 3 expanded things even further with new vehicles and on-foot sections, RS2 is considered to be the best pure experience and it still looks bloody great.

 

27. Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes

Now, here’s a game everyone has something to say about. The Twin Snakes gave the recent (at the time) Metal Gear Solid a serious facelift and some quality-of-life improvements to make it feel more like the second game. An easier time getting into first person and improved enemy AI make The Twin Snakes a sharper, but some might say easier, endeavor than the original.

The rock-solid stealth gameplay and immaculate sense of atmosphere comes through even more clearly with the GameCube’s improved hardware. But the Twin Snakes is somewhat controversial for how it does alter the original MGS experience by turning the Michael Bay dial up to 9000 alongside some quite sleepy voice acting. It’s as big a change as the RE remake, but doesn’t land everything like that one does. Still absolutely worth playing though.

 

26. Skies Of Arcadia Legends

Skies of Arcadia wowed role-playing fans when it launched on the Dreamcast in the year 2000, but as mentioned, no one bloody bought one. SEGA obviously wanted some bigger return on their investment, hence the idea of porting the game to the GameCube as Skies of Arcadia Legends. Launching in late 2002, Legends took the original adventure of Vyse and the gang and juiced it up a bit, adding new content to the mix.

Self-described by SEGA staff as a kind of director’s cut edition to the original game, Skies of Arcadia Legends added new quests, subplots, hidden items to find and a whole new list of bounties to collect. Combine that with an already excellent base game that contains sky pirates and some of the most likeable characters in RPG history, and you’ve got something that deserves to be part of your GameCube library.

 

25. TimeSplitters 2

While TimeSplitters 1 never made the transition to consoles other than the PS2, TimeSplitters 2 and Future Perfect came over to the GameCube and enjoyed all the success you could imagine. Two excellent multiplayer FPS games on a console designed for up to four players? TimeSplitters 2 and Future Perfect were mathematically designed in a lab to be soulmates for the GameCube, and even though you could make an argument for Future Perfect’s stronger single-player offerings making it a better game, TimeSplitters 2 is simply too unhinged to be denied.

A time-travelling adventure of fighting aliens across nearly five hundred years of past, present and future, TimeSplitters 2 hops from perspective to perspective as you try and deal with the pesky titular aliens. The story is surplus to requirements when the real highlights are the bonkers challenge mode, the map creation tool and the endless fun of four player fragging action.

 

24. Tony Hawk’s Underground

Trying to pick the best Tony Hawk’s game is like trying to pick your favourite child or something similar. All the GameCube Tony Hawk games are phenomenal. Sure, some of the off-colour jokes might have aged poorly, especially when you get to Tony Hawk’s Underground 2, but for the most part, the gameplay then is still incredibly fun and engaging now. Heck, just look at the recent remakes of Pro Skater 3+4. It was fun then, it’s still fun now, even if we miss the career mode that THPS 4 introduced.

For our money though, the best of the best is Tony Hawk’s Underground. Not only is it a culmination of all the gameplay upgrades and changes that Neversoft introduced up until that point, but the new features like being able to step off your board and explore the map in a new way fundamentally reinvigorated the entire formula. Less good though: Eric Sparrow sucks.

 

23. Viewtiful Joe

Not enough Viewtiful Joe chat around here lately.

Viewtiful Joe focuses on a slacker movie buff getting sucked into a cinematic world and blessed with movie-related superpowers (slowing down time, extreme close-ups, etc.). The cel-shaded art style and inventive level design made this 2D action platformer feel vibrant and alive, and the story, cribbing from inspiration like Power Rangers, the Matrix, old monster movies, and more made Viewtiful Joe a stellar GameCube title.

Viewtiful Joe would eventually be ported to the PS2 and see several sequels, a manga, and an anime adaptation. While the Viewtiful Joe machine has been silent for a long time now, the original title, and its sequels, all still hold up as well-crafted, eye-popping whippers.

 

22. The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction

Before your Skyrims, your Cyberpunks, and your various Creeds, the concept of an ‘open world’ was a more flexible concept, and the term ‘sandbox game’ was more commonly used to describe them. Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction makes its sandbox out of New York City, and lets you loose as the big green machine. The results are pure giddy serotonin.

Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction puts you in Bruce Banner’s gamma-irradiated shoes, as you punch, throw, smash, jump, and wreck shop all over the game’s sizable map. Hulk can turn cars into boxing gloves, swing light poles like bats, and use all kinds of other environmental improvised weapons.

Hulk probably reached his video game design potential peak here. Are we being controversial by sticking this above Spider-Man 2? Probably, but there’s never been a better Hulk game.

 

21. SSX 3

The snowboarding genre might not be as (EA Sports) big as it once was. Yeah, sure, you’ve got games like Descenders Next and Riders Republic, but we’re seemingly never going back to the dizzying heights of the mid-2000s, when doing big tricks on a snowy mountain was the coolest thing in the world. It’s no wonder then that the SSX series became such a mainstay for a while there, as they effortlessly blended arcade racing with Tony Hawk-like tricks to create an extreme sports masterpiece.

As for which SSX game deserves the most love, anyone who prefers SSX Tricky over SSX 3 is perfectly valid in that opinion. The more involved career mode, ambitious map design and ability to free roam in SSX 3 made it a highlight for many, but if you preferred just simple arcade racing and tricking, Tricky is unbeatable. Even SSX On Tour, with its Nintendo guest characters, deserves a mention. God, we miss the SSX series.

 

20. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time resurrected the long-dormant side-scrolling platformer franchise, bringing it into the 21st century and the 3rd dimension.

What’s more, the developers at Ubisoft Montreal added a new time travel gimmick to let players rewind time and navigate tricky obstacles. Always love that. The game’s mix of action and clever parkour-inspired traversal made it a hit, and led to a brief resurgence of the Prince of Persia franchise (including that movie starring Jake Gyllenhaal). Remember that? Hello?

The Sands of Time stands out as one of a few stellar examples of how to reboot your game without losing sight of what made it good. A series that had mostly fallen by the wayside received a new lease on life and a new audience. It received several sequels on the GameCube, and they’re all at least worth playing – but the Sands of Time remains on top.

 

19. Beyond Good & Evil

Beyond Good & Evil was released to critical acclaim in 2003, with critics lauding its story, atmosphere, and world design. Protagonist Jade’s investigation into an interstellar war and the corruption fueling it still holds up as a moving and ambitious story.

Unfortunately, all of this praise did not manifest into financial gain, and Beyond Good & Evil failed to light up the sales charts. Still, it’s a rock-solid game with dazzlingly complex ideas, and well worth your time, with a truly memorable story, world, and cast of characters that have stuck in fans’ minds for so many years. Play it and you’ll definitely join the dedicated crowd singing Beyond Good & Evil’s praises.

Just don’t hold your breath on that sequel. They’re still trying to work out how to make microtransactions out of giant talking pigs.

 

18. Chibi-Robo!

Chibi-Robo! puts players in control of a centimeters-high cleaning robot and sets them loose in a house full of enough health and safety negligence to make Helen Lovejoy faint.

As players scrub, wipe, and wash away the grime, they’ll fix everyone’s personal problems and uncover a surprisingly deep story about families, both found and biological. It’s also full of beautiful, bright and dynamic environments and characters that are still endearing and hilarious today.

Chibi-Robo! is a fantastic spin on 3D platforming that never runs out of new ideas. While its follow-up titles couldn’t recapture the same lightning in a bottle, the original title still holds up as a clever, engaging and memorable GameCube highlight.

 

17. Killer7

We mentioned style in reference to Viewtiful Joe earlier, but possibly the most stylish game on the GameCube, if not in all of gaming, is Suda51’s Killer7.

The studio that would eventually give us No More Heroes presents an incredible fever dream of a game in Killer7. You control 7 assassins who happen to share a body, and hunt down members of a terrorist group called Heaven Smile and their zombie-adjacent minions.

While the gameplay is a bit finicky at first – it’s a sort of on-rails third person shooter with some adventure game-style puzzle elements–learning the ropes is well worth your time. Inventive level design, bonkers enemies, and an unrivaled atmosphere of unhinged cool all combine to make killer7 a singular vision and definitely one of the best GameCube games ever made, for those who can tune into its frequency.

 

16. Animal Crossing

The title that launched a thousand cosy YouTubers, Animal Crossing actually first landed on the N64 in Japan, before getting re-released for the rest of the world on the GameCube in 2002.

The cozy small-town life sim has so much of its core DNA figured out right from the jump. The lovable and distinct animal neighbors, the vast furniture collection to customize your house, the lovely low-key aesthetic and music that makes it so easy to lose a full day in-game — it’s all here.

While subsequent titles have definitely made major improvements to streamline the process, the original Animal Crossing was already a juggernaut force when it first dropped. In a post-New Horizons world, going back might seem crazy, but the original Animal Crossing is still a worthwhile destination to visit.

 

15. Pikmin

The first Pikmin saw Captain Olimar crash landing onto a strange alien world filled with giant artifacts and tiny plant-headed creatures ready to take his orders. He only has 30 in-game days to repair his ship and make his escape, about half of which he spends watching his little mates drown. Nutter.

Pikmin started an entire franchise for Nintendo, and the pretty brilliant Pikmin 4 on the Switch speaks to the longevity of Captain Olimar and his garden of pals. This first game still isn’t bad at all.

All of the appeal of the series is on full display here: clever puzzles that involve managing your Pikmin and their elemental affinities, a fascinating and strange “alien” world to get lost in, and a consistently gratifying gameplay loop that’ll have you restarting Olimar’s journey over and over again. Because everyone drowned.

 

14. Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem

While Nintendo has often been saddled with the weighty label of “the kiddies’ game company” with fewer mature-minded titles than their competitors, the GameCube hosted one of the highlights of the entire survival horror genre, Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem.

Released in 2002, developers Silicon Knights had actually been developing this devious doozy of cosmic horror for the N64, before retooling it for the newer console generation. With a story that spans centuries and jumps around with abandon, Eternal Darkness follows a group of disparate souls as they each uncover elements of a dark, ominous mystery. As players’ health and sanity meters deplete, the game will actually distort images, throw jumpscares at the screen, and even fake audio-visual bugs to spook the player as badly as the characters.

This is a boundary breaking, genre-pushing survival horror gem, and easily one of the greatest GameCube games of all time.

 

13. Super Mario Sunshine

Mario’s 3D follow-up to the era-defining Super Mario 64 saw everyone’s favorite plumber, though I am quite keen on Thomas Crapper, taking a much-deserved vacation. Unfortunately, when danger follows him to the tropical Isle Delfino and he ends up framed for crimes he didn’t commit, Mario has to suit up with his new pal FLUDD, a talking water-spraying backpack to clear his name and save Princess Peach yet again.

Super Mario Sunshine has some devious level designs, asking for nigh-perfect jumps at times, but the challenge doesn’t detract tooo much from a game that’s dripping in beautiful environments, inventive level design, and a constant stream of fresh ideas that Mario always does so well. It’s not many people’s favourite Mario ever, but it’s still got a feel to it that is pretty unique, and I’d love to see FLUDD again.

 

12. Fire Emblem: Path Of Radiance

Despite being one of Nintendo’s tentpole franchises, Fire Emblem only had one game on the GameCube. Most of the early to mid-2000s era of the series was spent servicing the Game Boy Advance players, which makes sense considering it was just a portable SNES in terms of output and capabilities. For a home console release though, Intelligent Systems would have to up the ante in a big way, and they certainly did with Path Of Radiance, setting the tone for the home console Fire Emblem games going forward.

The first Fire Emblem game to be fully 3D with full motion cutscenes and voice acting, Path Of Radiance is a huge step up in terms of presentation, while retaining the excellent gameplay and storytelling that the series had become known for. The results paid off, as it’s the best tactical RPG on the console. Granted, that’s not a big pool of applicants, but first place is first place, you know?

 

11. F-Zero GX

What’s nuts is that F-Zero GX remains the final home console title in the series since its release in 2003.

When a game is as good as F-Zero GX, it makes sense that fans would keep holding so tightly for hope of a revival. The new story mode that made Captain Falcon feel more like a central character, the white-knuckle speed, the sense of danger around every curve, the vicious difficulty that makes victory all the sweeter – F-Zero GX really is the kind of game you’ll think about for nearly 20 years and remember it like you unboxed it yesterday.

Shame Nintendo forgot about it, mind you.

 

10. Luigi’s Mansion

You’d think that Capcom would have the monopoly on exploring spooky mansions, right? Still, Nintendo wanted a piece of the horror pie, albeit with their own family friendly spin, and decided they’d give perennial runner-up Luigi the leading man spot to do so. The end result was Luigi’s Mansion, a game that deservingly launched an entire series for the “other” brother by offering us, well, not scares, but puzzles and fun aplenty either way.

With Mario decommissioned because of supernatural shenanigans, Luigi teams with Professor E.Gadd and his spectral sucking technology (he has a vacuum for ghosts, get your mind out of the gutter) to rid a haunted mansion of its pesky inhabitants. Cue hours of Luigi timidly entering rooms calling for Mario then getting spooked by his own shadow. It’s utterly wonderful stuff, and a testament to the imagination the GameCube channelled on a regular basis.

 

9. Soulcalibur 2

If you were to try and list the best 3D fighting games ever made, Tekken and Soulcalibur would be duelling eternally at the top of the list, and while Tekken was never available on the GameCube, Namco stablemate Soulcalibur sure was. A follow-up to what was considered by some to be the greatest Dreamcast game ever made, Soulcalibur 2 had a lot to live up to, and boy did it over deliver.

A bigger sequel, with more modes, a more expanded Weapon Master experience and a host of features to dig into, Soulcalibur 2 beautifully built on the foundations that Soul Edge and Soulcalibur lay before it. On all three platforms, the PS2, Xbox and GameCube, SC2 is an all-timer. What cements the GameCube version as superior though is the guest character, with Link from Zelda joining the battle. Compared to Heihachi on PS2 and Spawn on Xbox, Nintendo fans got the best out of the three.

 

8. Resident Evil

Guys, every game from here on could very feasibly be #1, and if you think any of them should be, that is completely fine by us.

The GameCube remake of Capcom’s survival horror classic Resident Evil has long been heralded among the greatest remakes of all time. It’s also the scariest game I have ever played, and I still do a scream every time I encounter my first Crimson Head.

You see, reducing REmake as it’s affectionately known to just a visual overhaul is underselling the game entirely. This enhanced vision for Resident Evil also offered improved voice acting, new explorable areas and even an entire subplot that was removed from the original, making it even more of a Director’s Cut than the Director’s Cut version of the original for the PS1. The tank controls might not be for everyone, but this version is available everywhere and still deserves to be played.

 

7. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

The second of Link’s adventures to land on the purple cube, Twilight Princess saw a more grim, overtly dark turn in Hyrule.

In Twilight Princess, Link must battle across two dimensions and transform into a wolf, as he does battle with a new foe and uncovers the mystery of the Twilight Realm. With influences taken more from the Majora’s Mask side of the Zelda franchise, Twilight Princess felt both like a return to older Zelda titles and its own bold iteration.

Twilight Princess was a major success at the time of its release, exemplifying the brilliance of the GameCube era as the console went out swinging. The Wii U remaster in 2016 speaks to the staying power of this adventure, and the appeal of Link being a big fluffy boy.

 

6. Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year-Door

The critically-lauded follow up to the N64 Paper Mario drops the 2-D version of Mario into a brand new globe-spanning adventure to gather seven legendary crystal stars and stop an ancient evil from destroying the world. This is the last Paper Mario game to use a tried-and-true turn-based battle system without adding too many odd bells and whistles, and it’s a heck of a mission statement that works so well that it’s truly baffling Nintendo tried to move away from it.

The Thousand-Year-Door is full of lavishly-designed environments and fantastic supporting characters, like the punkish Yoshi kid and professional thief Ms. Mowz. Mario’s more papery qualities also get more attention in this title, as he can turn into a paper airplane or a paper boat to better navigate the environment.

All told, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year-Door is a top tier GameCube game, RPG, and Mario title all in one.

 

5. Resident Evil 4

Kicking off the top 5 of our best GameCube games ever list is one of the most critically beloved games ever, Resident Evil 4.

When the daughter of the President of the United States is kidnapped, seasoned zombie killer Leon S. Kennedy must journey to a remote Spanish village and battle hordes of murderous cult members and tiny little manboys to save the day.

Resident Evil 4 made huge strides forward for the genre of third-person shooters, situating players comfortably over Leon’s shoulder and placing a stronger focus on spacial management and action-first gameplay. The result is a nonstop rollercoaster of a game, as Leon rockets from one adrenaline-chugging major set piece to the next.

Resident Evil 4 still casts a long shadow as an apex of its genre and its franchise. It’s even so nice that they released it like another ten times, even for the Zeebo. You don’t know what the Zeebo is? Wow.

 

4. Metroid Prime

While the Metroid series was absent from the N64, and so Samus didn’t get the same franchise-defining jump to 3D that Mario and Link did, she more than made up for it with her shift to first-person shooter with 2002’s Metroid Prime.

Cor, what a looker this was, and still is.

Metroid Prime effortlessly blended 3D action and spectacle with the usual nuanced exploration of the Metroid series. Its clear new direction for Samus continued in two sequels and several handheld spin-offs, as well as an eventual remaster on Switch that confused a whole new generation about where the hell they’re supposed to go.

Metroid Prime 4 has been cooking for forever and a day, but the original’s impressive pedigree continues to stand tall above other FPS titles and remain a pillar of Nintendo’s gift for reinvention.

 

3. Mario Kart: Double Dash

Mario Kart upped the ante for its GameCube installment by letting players pick two characters and swap them at will. This tiny tweak leads to a staggering amount of strategic depth, making Double Dash an extra frenetic whirlwind and one of the tightest, most mechanically sound Mario Karts ever.

See, you don’t need to add sandbox stuff for Mario Kart Nintendo, just literally double it.

It helps that Double Dash also has an incredibly stacked course list: DK Mountain, Peach Beach, and a particularly awe-inspiring Rainbow Road for example all stand tall among the entire Mario Kart canon.

All these years later, Double Dash is a guaranteed crowd pleaser at your next LAN party. It’s still my favourite Mario Kart game ever, and I’m pretty sure the next one is still a lot of people’s favourite in its series too.

 

2. Super Smash Bros. Melee

While Super Smash Bros on the Nintendo 64 was pretty good, 1 hour with Melee proved that this is the kind of game it was destined to be.

Arguably the high point in the Super Smash Bros. series, and certainly the installment with the greatest competitive longevity, Melee is one heck of a sophomore home run. An expanded roster, new courses and items, and a completely airtight control system make Melee a gold standard against which all platform fighters continue to be compared. All 9000 of them. Better luck next time, Warner Bros.

Melee is also the game that brought way more awareness of a little series called Fire Emblem to the West, with unlockable characters Marth and Roy being the first time most American and European players encountered any representatives of the series. In this way, Melee is a truly historic document, and it finds itself as a hallmark of eSports even in the face of Ultimate today. Pick it up now and you will lose and afternoon.

But of course the best GameCube game of all time has to be:

 

1. The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker

Bright, vibrant, playful, and just a bit underappreciated before its time, Wind Waker is the GameCube.

While its cel-shaded graphics may have scared away some prospective players who wanted a more mature Zelda venture (which they’d eventually get with Twilight Princess), The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker is an unmitigated classic.

Link’s adventure on the high seas in this bright, vivid world exemplifies all things that the Zelda series does best: a joyous sense of discovery, inventive and clever dungeons, whip-smart puzzles, and titanic boss battles.

And it’s crazy how controversial this art style was back in the day!

Of all of the best GameCube games on this list, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker manages to still feel as timeless and fresh now as it did in 2003. Time has been especially kind to this title, and it’s a game you can’t really imagine ever aging.

For anyone who hasn’t played it yet, The Wind Waker is a destination you can’t afford to miss.

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