Every entertainment industry makes massive leaps forward when new technology becomes accessible, but there’s been considerable growth with what’s become possible in the realm of video games. The latest gaming consoles offer unprecedented hardware power and features that would have seemed impossible a decade ago, but it’s also important to not forget the past and what helped the industry reach this level of power.
Nintendo’s Gamecube was a crucial console for the company but it's received a mixed reception over time. Nintendo has made some big changes following the Gamecube’s release, but the console also had a lot of personality and unique features that sometimes don’t get their due.
10 Didn’t Deserve: Its Games Were Compatible With The Wii
Sometimes a video game console can initially struggle, only for it to suddenly gain a new lease on life in the next gaming generation. While technically more a perk of the Wii than the Gamecube, there was still a major push in the sale of Gamecube games and players giving old titles a fresh look after it was announced that the Wii would be backwards compatible with Gamecube games.
This synergy between Nintendo’s two consoles benefitted them both and even though the Gamecube used the unusual mini-disc format, Nintendo still made sure that they’d work with the Wii.
9 Did Deserve: Its Lack Of Interest In Online Gaming
Nintendo has broken ground in many areas in the video game industry, but one field in which they’re routinely in last place is their approach to online gaming. In the sixth generation of the video game industry, there was already a heavy push for online gaming with Microsoft, Sony, and even Sega’s Dreamcast properly taking internet capabilities into consideration.
Even now, Nintendo struggles with archaic friend codes and a lack of voice chat capabilities. The Gamecube does offer a few games with online features, but they’re few and far between and involve extra accessories to properly engage in.
8 Didn’t Deserve: Its Use Of Game Boy Advance Connectivity
Nintendo has been in a unique position for most of the gaming generations due to how they’ve been able to tackle not only the home console market, but also the handheld realm of games.
Nintendo has always been looking for creative ways to meld these worlds and the Gamecube developed a link system with the Game Boy Advance. This connectivity could be used to unlock new content in games, but also use the Game Boy Advance for an extra controller and for other innovative purposes.
7 Did Deserve: It Had Inferior Hardware Tech In Comparison To Its Competitors
One factor that can be tricky for the console wars to workaround is that there’s a lot of temptation to be the first one to enter a new generation of gaming, but doing so can also limit one’s technology. Nintendo is often the first into the next generation and as a result, their new console can often feel like it’s not that much of an improvement from its predecessor in terms of hardware and graphical capabilities.
The Gamecube is a huge step up from the Nintendo 64, but it pales in comparison to the PlayStation 2 or the Xbox.
6 Didn’t Deserve: Its Revival Of Old Intellectual Properties And Establishing New Ones
A major way in which consoles are able to assert their dominance over the competition is through their established intellectual properties and mascots, which Nintendo greatly benefits from with their storied history in the industry. The Gamecube was a breakthrough console for Nintendo because it featured the return of many of their beloved franchises that had been dormant for years, like Wave Race, 1080 Snowboarding, F-Zero, and Fire Emblem.
Additionally, the Gamecube helped establish many new first-party franchises for Nintendo, like Pikmin, Luigi’s Mansion, Donkey Konga, and more.
5 Did Deserve: Its Lack Of Third-Party Support
The sixth generation of gaming helped solidify a lot of the relationships in the industry that are still present today. Sony’s PlayStation 2 and Microsoft’s Xbox made major strides with the third-party developers that they were able to bring over to their consoles. Nintendo wasn’t without these relationships, but the bulk of their acclaimed games were the ones that they made themselves.
It felt like Nintendo were the only ones that had a solid grasp on how to get the most of the Gamecube, while other developers created edgier content that the PS2 and Xbox could properly showcase.
4 Didn’t Deserve: The “Capcom Five” Deal That It Made Happen
Exclusivity deals can be crucial when it comes to a video game console’s popularity. The Gamecube always found the most success with its first-party titles, but the console pulled off a considerable achievement in the form of a partnership with Capcom that was colloquially known as the “Capcom Five.”
Five titles, P.N.03, Resident Evil 4, Viewtiful Joe, Killer7, and the canceled Dead Phoenix, were meant to be Gamecube exclusives and led to the console moving more units based on this arrangement. The exclusivity of these titles on the Gamecube would eventually disappear but stuck for a while.
3 Did Deserve: The Awkward Controllers
A gaming console’s strength is paramount, but what’s nearly just as significant is the audience’s relationship with the console’s controller. There can be unexpectedly high pressure over coming up with a new controller that’s both innovative and comfortable. Sony and Microsoft have developed a model that they’ve more or less stuck with for each new console, but Nintendo continues to drastically switch things up.
The Gamecube’s controller is incredibly busy with a wealth of buttons, some of which don’t at all initially feel natural. Pressure-sensitive triggers are innovative, but there are few games that properly take advantage of the feature.
2 Didn’t Deserve: Its Embrace Of Retro And Anniversary Releases
Video game consoles are always looking towards the future and how to deliver the next step forward in technology, but it’s also important to not turn one’s back on the past and to understand the value in a company’s past. The Gamecube offers up lots of new content, but there are a number of anniversary and retro collections that allow new audiences to experience old games for the first time.
The Legend of Zelda: Collector’s Edition includes the first two Zelda games as well as the Nintendo 64 entries. Animal Crossing also features many NES classics built into the game.
1 Did Deserve: The Bulk Of Its Library Has Since Been Ported And Improved On Future Consoles
A standard aspect of the video game industry is that older games receive remasters so that they can be appreciated by a modern audience. Nintendo has a habit to re-release games from its previous generation, which can often make the original version feel irrelevant as a result. Nearly all of the Gamecube’s best games can now be experienced on other Nintendo consoles.
The Wii even has “New Play Control” versions of certain Gamecube games, which incorporate motion controls, and make the Gamecube versions feel like betas in comparison.