The video game industry has become proliferated in many ways, but the different features and perks offered by the contrasting first-party companies show that the console wars are far from over. Nintendo has always been a major player in the industry and their Nintendo 64 pushed them forward in major ways— but the console’s successor, the GameCube, was a much more polarizing console.

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The GameCube is now 20 years old and many of the games that graced the quirky Nintendo console are still viewed in high regard. Not all of these video games have surpassed the test of time, but there are still plenty of GameCube titles that are just as entertaining now as they were two decades ago.

10 Super Smash Bros. Melee Pushed The Crossover Fighter Into The Mainstream

Games super smash bros melee

Nintendo has found an evergreen winner with their Super Smash Bros. fighting series, which has progressed from a celebration of Nintendo’s history into a broader crossover fighter that allows mascots from the entire industry to jump into the fray.

Super Smash Bros. games continue to come out, each one with even more content than before, which is fun but can also be overwhelming. The balance that’s found in the GameCube's Super Smash Bros. Melee has become the benchmark that many fans of the franchise strive for and it’s still considered a high mark in the series, so much so that subsequent entries in the series have still been built to accept GameCube-style controllers for that Melee feel.

9 Super Mario Sunshine Mixes Up The Standard Mario Formula In Creative Ways

Mario uses FLUDD to travel through Pinna Park in Super Mario Sunshine

Nintendo has established a wide range of useful intellectual properties, but Mario remains their most beloved mascot and it’s safe to presume that each new Nintendo console will showcase a new and improved adventure for the plumber.

Super Mario Sunshine is one of the more polarizing entries in the series due to its radical revisions in gameplay, which revolve around Mario’s new F.L.U.D.D. technology. Sunshine takes some time to get used to the changes, but it’s one of the deeper and more challenging Super Mario releases. Even its narrative takes some surprisingly mature turns.

8 Legend Of Zelda: The Wind Waker Is A Visual Masterpiece Of Adventure

video Games wind waker 2

The Legend of Zelda is Nintendo’s other heavy hitter and this legacy franchise often achieves the same enthusiasm that’s associated with the Super Mario games. Zelda titles are no strangers to taking risks and mixing up the formula, but The Wind Waker was groundbreaking for the time due to the new cel-shaded art style that the game introduces.

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The new look provides a beautiful aesthetic to Zelda, especially with the game’s heavy focus on sea exploration. The Wind Waker is a crucial turning point for the series that many still consider as the best Zelda game from its era.

7 Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem Is A Haunting Survival Horror Game

Video Games Eternal Darkness Volume Sanity Effect

It’s quite impressive how survival horror games have been able to evolve from a niche fascination into one of the most successful styles of video games. There are many popular survival horror franchises that continue to turn out new titles, but the GameCube's Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem is a breath of fresh air that remains a cult Nintendo classic.

Eternal Darkness uses an episodic structure to its gameplay with a heavy influence from both Edgar Allen Poe and H.P. Lovecraft. The storytelling is impressive, but it’s the game’s “sanity effects” that are the real selling point. Fans continue to clamor for a sequel, a remake, or at least an HD remaster on modern platforms.

6 F-Zero GX’s Fast-Paced Racing Surpasses The Heights Of Mario Kart

Video Games Gamecube F-Zero GX Race

The original F-Zero graced the Super Nintendo alongside Super Mario Kart, but the futuristic, fast-paced racer has often struggled in the shadow of Nintendo’s more playful racing franchise. Mario Kart is the more mainstream and palatable experience, but hardcore racing genre fans can appreciate the detail and nuance that’s put into F-Zero GX.

The GameCube extension of the series is insanely fast and has a challenging learning curve, but one that never feels unfair. Audiences are hungry for a new F-Zero game and it’s GX that should be used as the template.

5 Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door Is The Crown Jewel Of The Series

Video Games Paper Mario The Thousand Year Door

Mario is a Nintendo character who’s been able to rejuvenate a number of genres purely through his presence and so it’s only natural that the mascot would enter the genre of RPGs. The Nintendo 64’s Paper Mario officially kicks off this RPG spin-off series, but it’s the GameCube's sequel, The Thousand-Year Door, where the Paper Mario games truly come alive.

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There’s a level of simplicity that’s held back the more recent Paper Mario titles, but this GameCube entry is deeply diverse with each of its different objectives leaning into a different genre, like solving an Agatha Christie-esque mystery.

4 Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader Is A Love Letter To The Sci-Fi Franchise

Video Games Gamecube Gamecube Star Wars Rogue Squadron II Rogue Leader

Star Wars is another property that’s had a long history with video games, yet the universe has become more protective and restrictive after the return of new cinematic Star Wars content. The original Rogue Squadron was one of the better games for the Nintendo 64, and Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader was even a launch title for the GameCube.

Despite it being one of the GameCube's first games, it doesn’t feel unpolished in the slightest. It’s a deeper game than the original and it explores a large portion of the sci-fi series’ timeline, even ambitiously including portions of the game that take place on foot and play out as a third-person shooter.

3 Metroid Prime 2: Echoes Further Establishes Samus Aran As A Shooter Heroine

Video Games Metroid Prime 2 Echoes Boost Guardian Introduction Scene

Nintendo has sometimes struggled to figure out what to do with Metroid, but the ambitious decision to transform the action-platformer series into a grim first-person shooter has turned out to be a stroke of brilliance. Both Metroid Prime and its sequel, Echoes, are some of the GameCube's strongest entries and there’s split consensus on which is the superior title.

Both are excellent shooters in their own right, but their adaptation of Metroid’s lore is incredibly satisfying for longtime fans. Nintendo isn’t finished with the Metroid Prime series, but it will be hard to top what was accomplished on the GameCube.

2 Viewtiful Joe 2 Is A Bombastic Beat-’Em-Up In Need Of A Return

Joe punching an enemy in Viewtiful Joe 2 game

A major coup for the GameCube was that Nintendo entered an exclusive deal with Capcom to develop some original titles for their console. This resulted in some groundbreaking Resident Evil entries, but it also led to the debut of a few new IPs, including Viewtiful Joe.

The Viewtiful Joe games are a throwback to kinetic side-scrolling beat-’em-up titles, but it leans into a meta narrative that deconstructs the artifice of movies and entertainment. Viewtiful Joe 2 offers slightly more than the original and it’s a truly joyful combination of tight gameplay, a distinct art style, and a charming sense of humor.

1 Killer7 Delivers A Definitive Suda51 Experience That’s Weird & Wild

Target Practice In The Gamecube's Killer7

Any video game that comes from developer Suda51 is going to be one of the player’s stranger gaming experiences. Every title from the developer takes major swings with its storytelling, characters, and there are often gameplay elements that seem downright resentful of the industry.

Killer7 is a striking title that stands out even more as a GameCube game. There’s a litany of deadly assassins, but at its core the game details an ancient war between demi-gods. Killer7’s presentation style, exaggerated violence, and unusual control scheme all make it a necessary piece of gaming.

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