Obligatory "what games should I get for my 'cube?"

[Chris]

Ok, Nintendo fans, I've pretty much convinced myself to join the dark side (or the bright, primary-colored side if you prefer). I came into some money today and it's burning a hole in my pocket. Here's what I've come up with for starters:

GameCube with Metroid

Wavebird

Memory Card

 

Now, I'm going to need more games than that, so here are some others that I figure I'd probably enjoy:

Eternal Darkness

Animal Crossing

Rogue Leader

Super Monkey Ball

 

Any advice or suggestions would be appreciated.

[Mark E]

Well, you should give us a run-down of what type of games you enjoy, Chris. I can give you a ton that I enjoy, but I don't know whether you'd find that quite as useful .

 

I would personally wait for Rogue Leader, doubly so if you have somebody who'll play co-op with you, as the new one coming out in a few months will have the entire game of Rogue Leader in it as co-op missions plus the brand new single-player.

 

Eternal Darkness can be had for cheap so I recommend that one period. It's got an awesome storyline, doubly so if you like horror titles. One of the best games I've played on my Cube for atmosphere alone (play in the dark for best effect ).

 

Like I say, toss out the genres/titles you like and I'm sure the forum folk will have a ton of helpful suggestions .

[Chris]

Well, I'm an all-around kind of gamer. I pretty much like a little bit of everything, from psychadelic rhythm games to first-person shooters. Here are the games I have for Xbox, PS2 and Dreamcast.

[Mark E]

Interesting. If you enjoyed your Final Fantasy experience (or RPGs in general) I recommend Skies of Arcadia. Just finished that and it was a blast.

 

If you like Resident Evil much, give Remake and Zero a try. They also make great show-off games for the Cube's graphics power, very sweet. Remake is probably a bit better than Zero, though I prefer the story of Zero.

 

Animal Crossing like you mentioned above is a great choice, doubly so if you have other people to move into the community. It's about as addictive as crack as it is. Super Smash Bros Melee is another great one if you have two or three people who like to pound the crap out of each other; my most played Cube game.

 

I stand by my Eternal Darkness recommendation, especially with the cheapness. Your choice of Metroid Prime is also quite good, I expect you'll like that one quite a bit.

 

Finally, the new Zelda is a great little game, doubly so if you can find the free bonus disc that has the N64 Zelda on it. Either one are well worth it. Those are the ones that I have and enjoy most in my collection right at the mo'.

[Chris]

So, I managed to get the thing. The guy claimed that he had no platinum cubes left, but I made him search and sure enough there it was.

 

The games I picked up were:

Metroid Prime

Eternal Darkness

Rogue Leader (whew, that was close, almost typed "Rouge Leader")

 

So far, so good. About fifty bucks total for the games, not too shabby.

 

I still don't feel very Nintendo-ey, though. I think it's the lack of brightly-colored games with talking animals or mushroom-eating plumbers.

 

There seems to be a pretty good trade in trade-ins going around here, so I'll probably check around for some previously enjoyed copies of things like resident evil and animal crossing.

 

Oh, BTW, do you have to turn off the wavebird when you're done using it, or does it auto-off?

 

I infringed on some copyrights and made a nintendo fan sig pic to go along with my new acquisition, but I'm not sure I like it. Maybe tomorrow I'll change it to listing what I'm playing or quoting the romantic poets. Anyone remember that one Romier had a long time ago? It was an animated gif that switched between the logos of the various consoles. Very cool.

[Graeme]

You have to turn off the wavebird.

[Mark E]

I think it's the lack of brightly-colored games with talking animals or mushroom-eating plumbers.

 

That'd be Animal Crossing and Mario Sunshine right there . Though I know some people don't care for Sunshine, it's a decent game. Great little platformer, but not perfect. Actually the camera system is outright annoying . But it does have some fun parts to it.

[Starhawk]

I'd have to agree with everything Pharmboy said.

 

Glad to see you picked up Eternal Darkness. So far, I think that is one of the best, if not the best, game for the Cube right now, and considering its price, it's a no-brainer.

 

I thought Resident Evil was amazing even thought it was a remake. If you liked the other installments, I'd give this one a try. I havent played RE0 yet.

 

If you have a few other people to play with occasionally, Super Smash Bros would be a great game to get. I spent alot of time with this one especially when I had more people over. You will get hooked.

 

Not a populsr pick, but I loved Wave Race: Blue Storm. It was the first game I got for the Cube, and still one of my favorites. It's challenging though. Enough so that many people MISTAKE their inability to effectivly control their racer by claiming the game has terrible contol. This one is not over the top SSX style, but if you like racers (and water) maybe give this a rent one day. I loved it.

 

Like Pharmboy said, SM Sunshine is also very good, despite its frustrating camera problems. I think it just frustrated me more than most, because I still only have like 40 Shines. :?

 

Try Super Monkey Ball (or 2) some time and you will want to buy it immediately. It's hard to explain its appeal, but it is legally declared an addictive drug in some countries.

 

Oh yeah, get Animal Crossing too.

[Chris]

Glad to see you picked up Eternal Darkness. So far, I think that is one of the best, if not the best, game for the Cube right now, and considering its price, it's a no-brainer.

 

Totally agree, after posting last night I got hooked and stayed up all late playing it. I think it's one of those best-played-in-the-dark games. That's another thing I've noticed with the cube, the sound, although not dolby digital or dts, is really good. Surround effects are cool. Some of the sounds are spooky as hell in Eternal Darkness.

[AnthonyVolpe]

Best games for the Cube IMO

 

Eternal Darkness

Super Monkey Ball 2 (one of the best party games EVER)

Star Wars: Rogue Leader - Squadron II (if you don't feel like waiting for the third installment)

Soul Calibur II (yeah, it's only available as an import, but it's still the best game on the system)

Metroid Prime (a close 2nd)

Super Smash Bros. Melee

 

If you have extra money, rent Resident Evil 0 and Resident Evil 1 to see what kind of graphics the GameCube is capable of. And if you want something unique, Pikmin is cool as hell.

 

Wave Race I wasn't thrilled with.

 

Animal Crossing is supposedly the GameCube equivalent of crack, and for that reason I've avoided it.

[Mark E]

I advocate buying the RE's, but that's just because I am RE-whore extraordinaire :mrgreen:. I completely agree about SC2, though it has yet to be released domestic, there's no way this can get screwed (knock wood). I was watching the demo at EB on Friday and it was mind-blowing, the graphics are amazing.

 

Mind you, SC is my favorite fighting series ever, so grain of salt . Animal Crossing is crack for the first months, and I got about sixty hours from it, so I can't complain. If you're not careful you'll find yourself rearranging your life around the game's holidays though . The sequel NEEDS an online component.

[Chris]

I'm loving the games I have so far and am looking forward to picking up Animal Crossing and the RE's in the future. KOTOR is taking up all my gaming time right now, so the gamecube will have to wait for awhile.

 

I had a blast with some friends playing Super Monkey Ball on the weekend. Would you guys suggest getting the sequel as well? Or are they too similar?

 

Oh, and I'll probably get the Xbox version of Soul Calibur. I played the GameCube demo in a store and I wasn't a fan of the controls. Used to the DC pad I guess.

[Mark E]

Chris, I've only played the original Monkey Ball, but my impression was that the mini-games of the original are included in the sequel plus a whack more to boot.

 

I have no choice for the GC version, of course, but I'd pick it up anyway as I generally have no problem with the GC controller (I have yet to try it for fighting games, but I find it ergonomically swank). Also, of all the bonus characters I really find Link the most interesting, even if I think NONE of the bonus characters is a particularly good fit in the SC universe.

 

I am ALSO a Zelda whore

[blackcalx]

Each of the Super Monkey Ball versions has it's strengths and weaknesses:

 

Super Monkey Ball has a limited number of party games (those that are present, however, are quite fun) but it shines in single player compared to the sequel. The courses rely more on skill and finesse than luck and speed.

 

Super Monkey Ball 2 has all of the original party games and more. I've heard complaint that the originals from the first game are not quite as good in #2, but I haven't noticed a difference. Granted, it's been awhile since I played the first game. The single player mode, while fun, is more an exercise in timing, speed and luck as opposed to the skill and practice you needed in the first. Some of the levels are more fun to look at than to play.

[iainl]

Actually, I found the versions of the original party games in 2 really quite different:

 

Bowling - You've now got a variety of "crazy golf"-style alleys available as an option, should you be feeling silly.

 

Target - The dynamic of the game has been completely changed, with an increased emphasis on banana catching, and all four players flying at once means its both a race to catch stuff and that you can knock each other's balls once you land Bowls style.

 

Pool - There are now 4 types of pool. 8 ball and some weird Japanese 4-player pool being the two I remember.

 

Golf - Disappointingly, rather than getting another 18 holes of Crazy Golf its sensible boring golf this time around.

 

 

As for the one player, its not really as good, but it does at least provide you with a stack of new levels when Expert is just getting too much for you (I got well and truly stuck around about 20ish, though Expert 7 is really the stuff of nightmares and took a couple of months to crack at all).

[adamsappel]

I regard the GameCube as my console of choice for multi-player games. It's a truly portable system, especially with one of those dedicated backpacks, so it's perfect for bringing along when visiting someone who doesn't have a console. Two Wavebirds help keep the wire clutter to a minimum.

[AnthonyVolpe]

I completely agree about SC2, though it has yet to be released domestic, there's no way this can get screwed (knock wood).

 

Mind you, SC is my favorite fighting series ever, so grain of salt .

 

I can assure you you'll have nothing to worry about. The only thing Namco needs to do is add American voices and text and add extra characters and outfits. Five months is a long time to do that.

 

Weapon Master mode is even better on this than on the first two games in the series. Each character has 11 weapons, including a joke weapon (Link has a butterfly net) that makes weird noises when you use it.

 

Plus, Hwang, Rock, and Lizardman will all be returning (and this time Lizardman plays and feels somewhat differently... he's no longer a bullshit Sophitia clone). Rock and Hwang were represented in the Japanese version by two scrub characters called "Berserker" and "Assassin" respectively. In the import you can only play as Berserker, Lizardman and Assassin in Weapon Master mode on one or two levels, but Lizardman is a ton of fun to use this time.

 

The American version will also have extra outfits and stages.

 

I'm getting the XBox version when it comes out. I was able to do quite well with the GameCube's controls and I was shocked at how well Link turned out, so I'm keeping the GC import too.

[Mark E]

Well, Sophitia is back as a hidden character isn't she? And if not her daughter is there, so I'm sated. She's no question my favorite character in the series. I haven't been this stoked for a fighter to come out in ages .

 

Thanks for the import impressions though Anthony, that really alleviates some fears.

[Chris]

Whew! Rolled the credits in KOTOR finally. Bow before your dark lord!

Anyhow, this allowed me to get back to my GameCube and I rolled the credits on Eternal Darkness as well (I was right near the end on the day KOTOR came out ). Both games were Canadian developed. I guess I have my countrymen to blame for the 65 hours between the two according to my save files. Yikes!

 

That Eternal Darkness is a wonderful game. Start to finish. Tight design, good story, great graphics. Just excellent.

 

So it's on to more Star Wars for me. I'll be playing Rogue Squadron and Metroid now... at least until Silent Hill 3 comes out.

 

I don't know when I'll find the time for the Resident Evils or Zelda. A good problem to have, I suppose.