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The Console that could have, but didn't
Published by CatalystiCam
01-18-2010
Author review
Graphics
5.0
Sound
5.0
Replay value
5.0
Challenge
N/A
Tilt
4.0
Average 95%
+2 (+2/-0)
The Nintendo Gamecube (Review)
The Nintendo GameCube
Cam3ron36
Was it a fail in the history of gaming…? Was it Nintendo’s weak point…? Let’s delve into the personal history of the GameCube and find out…
The GameCube… Where do I start on this subject? The GameCube was simply great and a credit to Nintendo’s history. It was the companies peak in console producing, so many people were sitting blinded to the reality of the consoles greatness, including Nintendo themselves, and they all still are thinking the same. The GameCube gives you a sense of what it’s like to be playing with true power; every single aspect of the GameCube is simply wonderful. It gives you infinite years in gaming and a hell of a lot of awesome titles that just don’t grow old. This is one console that you will not want to miss. Remove all your current thoughts and opinions on the console right now, forget Sony, forget Microsoft, and just read my thoughts.
Let’s begin with the history: The GameCube was released in Japan first as per usual on September 14th, 2001 to compete with its enemies; the Dreamcast and the dreadful PS2. Nintendo, like Sega was really trying to recover after the onslaught of the PS1. Both Sega and Nintendo had lost tremendously to the PS1 back in Gen 5, which I believe is a load of crap. I won’t start on my personal feelings and confusion against Sony and their success… all that I can say on that topic in absolute crap. Anyways, the PS2 had already beaten the Dreamcast down in respects to better graphics, and the feature of the DVD player on the PS2. That was the big thing with the PS2; it was the cheapest DVD player out at the time. “Why not buy one” is what people thought. I just shake my head at that… Now here it comes, Nintendo with the powerhouse GameCube, without a DVD player, shades of the Dreamcast now suggest that nothing good can come of this.
The GameCube launched, it had trouble grasping on to the competition when the Xbox & PS2 were out. Again & again, game after game, Nintendo released great titles that just were overlooked because no one wanted the GameCube… It was considered a console for kids. Why was this? Maybe it was because everyone just adores FPS games. The GameCube had those; it had some of the best FPS games that were out there, but I suppose that it lacked some of the popular game series’ like Grand Theft auto & Halo. Not enough reason in my opinion, but people was persistent. Every one that I knew had a PS2. The GameCube struggled continually until it was discontinued in 2007.
Some Release Titles:
The overall design of the GameCube was sleek, compact, attractive, convenient and comfortable. Let’s start with the console, it was everything said above. The part that I most enjoyed about it was the compact and strong design. The console was a tank, much like the SNES, it was hard to break. I remember reading about people dropping a GameCube off a Skyscraper, and the dang thing still worked to an extent where as the Xbox & PS2 broke off impact. My brother’s friend also dropped one down a flight of stairs and it still worked as good as new, if that doesn’t say great design, then I don’t know what does?
The GameCube had many expansion ports on it for many things, unlike the history of these expansion ports being for an exclusive add-on, they were used for other means. Some were add-ons, but only for things that already had their own console, and for once… for once you didn’t need the GameCube and the add-on, to play the add-ons games (You could still play them on their original console). The first add on, was the Game Boy Player, this came in two different forms. One was an attachment that went on the bottom of the GameCube; allowing you to play Game Boy Advanced games through your GameCube, on to the TV using a GameCube controller, how cool is that? (The N64 & SNES had similar cartridges that allowed you to do the same for Original Game Boy games). The other device was similar; it was like those retro ports you see today, a cord would be attached to the back of your Game Boy Advanced and the other side of the cord would be your average GameCube controller jack to hook into the Controller slot, this version of the add-on however, allowed you to combine your GC & GBA games in unique ways to get different items, game modes, etc. Pretty nifty I say. One of my personal favorite ways to utilize this was on the Pac Man vs. Pac Man World 2 game. It is about the only game that I can think of that allows you to play as the ghosts. That’s right, in this game, the people with the GBAs control ghosts on there GBA screen. They get limited visibility with the ghosts to make it harder for them to track the person playing as Pac man. Where as the person playing as Pac Man gets full visibility like your usual Pac Man game. It is a must try game to anyone with the GBA controller attachment.
In my opinion, it was a nice touch and these add-ons definitely targeted it right and if you’re interested in it; then all power to you! It was a great touch.
Unlike Popular belief, the GameCube was capable of online play. This is what the other port on the bottom of the console was for a Broadband adapter or a Modem Adapter. This was only available for a short time and unfortunately, only four games were compatible…
This can actually still be used offline with other games and more than one GameCube on certain games like Mario Kart: Double Dash and two other racing games, 1080 Avalanche & Kirby Air Ride. Although I have never tried that, nor do I really believe that I could get more than three other people to play games with me, I would most definitely want to try it, and would try it without hesitation.
The Controller is actually my personal favorite controller over any console, and I have this issue, where I just can’t stop buying them… I’m serious, I have 5 GameCube controllers and I usually play by myself! But really, they are great, even… no, especially the third party controllers, I could go on explaining why certain ones, but all I can say is that I’d recommend Intec & i-Cons controllers to anyone any day. The controller that I would say is my personal favorite is MadCatz controller; it’s available in many colors, wired and wireless. Bottom line, the controllers are magnificent!
I think I’ve explained enough on add-ons & controllers, and I promise I will get more interesting after this, but bear with me here and read a little more on third party support…
This was one of the GameCube’s biggest struggles throughout its life. Like I have said before, the GameCube did not get some of the more popular titles like Grand Theft Auto, but this was not the only thing. While The Xbox & PS2 had over 1000 games. The GameCube had about 600 games only, but as my saying goes; if you can find a handful of games that you can enjoy, the console is worth it, and that isn’t to say the 600 games it has are your average “B Games” no, far from it! In fact, most of the games Nintendo did get on the GameCube; they had to fight for, and why would you fight for a mediocre game. No, Nintendo got all the top notch games that they could get their hands on. This is why I call the console a fighter. It fought for good games, and good games is what it got! Quality over Quantity people!
I personally always wanted a GameCube, I loved the N64 and the SNES, so on & so forth. Of course, like anybody, my brothers wanted a PS2; I was only 10 when we were thinking about getting a new console. So we got the stupid PS2, I let them “Settle” for a PS2, at least that’s how I looked at it. We rented a GameCube when it first came out… well, soon after it came out, and I loved it, I was astonished by it. We rented Pikmin & Gauntlet Dark Legacy (We were big fans of this series at the time…) Pikmin was amazing at the time, of course most things were amazing to a kid like me that was that young, but something about the GameCube was just great. I didn’t like the idea of switching over; I never liked PS1, what would change things now?
Life with a PS2 was okay, I mean. The games were good, I liked Time splitters 2 at the time, but the other Ps2 games just weren't fun really. It was a mediocre console; it’s even mediocre to me now. You might just say “Pssh! that’s because you’re a retro guy” okay, I am retro, I like the SNES & the N64 more than anything but truthfully, The GameCube is the newest console that I enjoy at a high level. So just rule that out.
After a while we decided to sell the PS2, for an Xbox… okay, I liked this Idea a bit more, so I went with it. Eventually, finally my brother got offered a GameCube for 60 bucks from his friend in 2004. I begged him to just get it; I wanted him to so bad. When he did I was working my ass off to buy accessories, memory cards and whatnot for the GameCube. We already had Super Smash Bros. on the GameCube, I particularly enjoyed that, but the first day that he got the GameCube, and I mean the very first day. I walked to the video store and rented Pikmin and Super Monkey Ball 2. I loved the games, it was wonderful to play Pikmin again and I’m a sucker for party games. I was out week after week, renting games for the GameCube. The console rocked. Now, you are probably saying “Point proven, you’re a kid, GameCube was for kids” Well, no. If that were true, then why am I still playing it to this day? And a lot I might add.
Despite all that, the bigger issue started with my brother. The console was his; he didn’t want me using it, buying stuff for it. I just got fed up and I bought my own GameCube in 2006. I still have it to this day, but he sold his after I bought mine and then he expected to play mine, Irony anyone? Ugh... that is just funny, but I’m nice unlike him, so I let him play it. I choose to play GameCube games on the actual GameCube over the Wii any day, so a brief history for my experience there.
Having the GameCube is just wonderful. It gives you a feeling of power. You’ve got a great console. It’s unparalleled to the PS2 and Xbox. It stands above most other consoles for me. It’s amongst my top 5 game consoles of all time and why shouldn’t it be? It was a tremendous shoot and a miss, which as you know, I feel is unfair. So why should it be “spat on” so to speak. Just having the console feels way better than anything else. It’s the console you have to just pick up and play a great game like Time Splitters 2, Monkey Ball or Mario Sunshine to play, to re-play and to have for a long time with its unbelievable reliability. The GameCube, is something that you can’t go wrong with, why? Need I explain more? For those that are still in disbelief to the GameCubes greatness, then read on sucka.
Another thing that the GameCube seemed to have held against it was the graphics… Again with the graphics people… Its 3D graphics, it’s decent at that, and who gives a crap? Is Time Splitters 2 any better on PS2 just because it’s slightly better visually? I say not, the triggers alone on the PS2 are not like realistic triggers, and the overall controls on the PS2 are crap compared to the controls on the GameCube, and how about SSX Tricky on Xbox? Okay, need I shed some light on the controls again? Let’s just say I’ve been through 7 Xbox controllers and the 3 I still have left are iffy on working. I’m dead serious on this. Why are graphics so important to people? What is this ongoing trend that says “better graphics = a better game?” I can’t even comprehend why it is so important to people, and this is the main reason people don’t like GameCube. It has more of a cartoony look than realism, to be honest; I like that cartoony look better than the realism look anyways. It appeals more to me but that is not why I like the GameCube, its games a special sparkle to them that just rules, I can say that all I want but come on people! Get over your expensive PS & Xbox consoles, they aren’t better… of course, that is an opinion of my own and I can’t really change peoples minds if they got it set.
One more thing I’d like to pit a battle on is Reliability. Take this, GameCubes rarely, rarely break. I’ve had to open up my Xbox six times to fix it; I sold my PS2 because I was so pissed off at it being broken. So I again compare consoles. If you want an inferior console that will give you 5-10 years of entertainment, sure, buy a PS2 or an Xbox. Now if you want a long term 15-possibly 100 year deal on a superior gaming machine, a GameCube is ideal. It’s superior in every way to other consoles in its gen, and in this gen. Yes the Wii is where I believe the blame should be. Like, Nintendo was so blinded by the fact that people have bad personal preference that they changed everything that they had done with GameCube… Hold on, hold on! Something aint right here, Nintendo had done everything right with the GameCube, they had put out their best efforts to make the GameCube what it was, and how many times should I say?; Dang it, the GameCube is good! But, it is kind of hard not to blame Nintendo on that one, fans were looking the wrong way when the GameCube was out, they were looking at the PS2. So who’s to say if they did everything the same, like they had with GameCube, and improved on it, like Sony & Microsoft had, that this other console that would’ve been in the Wii’s place, wouldn’t have flopped again from Sony fanatics. So, I guess you cannot really blame Nintendo on that one. But this just shows, in my opinion. That the GameCube was like the Climax of Nintendo’s book. I’d say. If we are going to take a metaphor of a book, that the Wii is starting its own book broken off as a counterpart, I say this because the Wii is nothing like its predecessors. The GameCube is really just the unfinished legacy of Nintendo. Should it ever be finished? Or are we doomed to always have over thought, over-creative consoles that involve things like motion and pens? That is my personal outlook on Nintendo today. They aren’t the same. I’m sorry to disappoint some, but that is my bit on the Wii in all of its glory. It seems now, that the standard is set on the wii for one in twelve games to be good. I’d say on GameCube, that one in two games is great. Who’s to change my mind? How can I change Sony Fanatics minds? You can’t. My review is meant to show the GameCube in it’s entirety for those who aren’t seeing the bigger picture here. I’m not set out to mock or beat down the fans of other consoles. Hell, I like the Xbox and few PS2 games, but often the GameCube doesn’t get much attention and deserves to be talked about. So there you have it! The GameCube, reviewed. For once, it will have its fleeting moment to shine in my review!
You've read the review. Now, why don't you experience the gameplay in all it's glory with sound, graphics, whatever you pick up and tell me it isn't good.
I sincerely hope that you enjoyed my review. I put out days and days of work to put out this review for your peoples reading pleasure, to be my big Grande Finale for the year. So please, please comment on any of your concerns, disagreements and personal likes/dislikes. Happy 2009 and to a better Decade!!!
Writers note: please note that this was written... well finished on December 31st originally, so that is why that last comment says what it says. I did write this, originally on another site
great review. just never got into this system. we bought one on a whim when the ps2 broke, way back when. we sold it when we got it back. i loved my N64, but the day i played the original Tony Hawk on PS1, me and nintendo where over.
Last edited by Oldmannes; 01-18-2010 at 10:20 PM..
Reason: terrible spelling
Well, it is nice to see a Gamecube review, and there is a lot of interesting info here.
I own a GC and PS2, but know nothing of the Xbox, so what I say here is limited to that point of view.
I have gotten a game on PS2, and then found the exact same game for GC, and WOW! The GC blows the PS2 graphics out of the water!
(Rogue Ops is a good example)
The difference is similar to seeing on screen objects clearly, as with the GC, and seeing them through a window screen, as with the PS2.
Also I need to add that not all PS2 games suffer poor graphics, but they seem to generally possess the same graphics clarity and sharpness as the 'GTA' series with few exceptions.
That being said, it's my guess that they sacrifice graphics to allow for online play capability.
The PS2 controller is great, but the L3 and R3 button (pushing down on the joysticks) arrangement I find awkward, especially where the game demands constant use of these two 'buttons'.
GC buttons are all easily accessible and no 'shared joystick/button' arrangement is necessary.
I have small hands (as men's hands go), and perhaps this is another reason I prefer the GC controller as it seems to be engineered for smaller hands.
This is further confirmed by a friend of mine I play with whose hands are quite large, and he is not fond of the small GC controller, but prefers the PS2.
The tiny disks they chose for the GC are probably another reason it wasn't as popular as the PS2.
Due to their size they are more fragile, and the data is far more compressed on the tiny disks so one scratch could severely damage them.
Also, the GC is a dedicated game console and doesn't play CD's or DVD's and I imagine a lot of people turned it down because of this as well.
In conclusion, I need to point out that I don't 'choose sides' in favoring one console over another; I play it all and love it on both my GC and PS2.
However, I bet that if the PS2 library of games were available to the GC, and if the GC went online with those games, the GC would have been more popular than it was.
What? Try calming down when using them, those things are built like tanks, unless you break the control sticks, that is all that I've heard of...
the first one broke within a month while i was playing SSBM (the A button stopped working)
they dont COMPLETLY break, its just 1 button that was really needed.
and on the controller i use now, the L button works for Melee, but not for any other game
ahh yes, I don't know if I mentioned it, but my Madcatz controllers 'A' button has to be pressed down so hard to work now. Only because it was rapidly pressed over a million times because of Day of Reckoning.
i also had a madcatz controller where the b button broke. i gave it to my friend, who made the button so sensitive that a slight touch would make it work. the y button will not press down, but it will still work
I had a gamecube and enjoyed it immensely, to be honest, I hold it on the same level as the PS2. I especially liked the controller's lack of joystick buttons.
I would put the GC slightly above the PS2 and I dont know about the broken controllers. I have had my GC for about 3 years, and never had a problem with any\thing breaking, just dust making the controller malfunction until I unplug it and plug it back in.
Hey, the controller works well on the Wii. SVR 2010 for the Wii allows you to use the controller. The Wii's backwards compatibility with the GameCube games will let you have the games and not necessarily replace the GameCube. Truth be told, I'm still replacing my black GameCube at first opportunity.
dust making the controller malfunction until I unplug it and plug it back in.
I thought I had a similar problem with my Gamecube, but this is what it turned out to be:
As the console boots up it does a check on the controller which also sets 'center' for the joysticks.
So if you push the joystick in any direction while the console boots up, it will consider the position the joystick happened to be in at that moment
'center'.
(maybe by leaving the controller upside down on the couch like I did?)
I never had that problem since I never leave my controllers upside down. My sisters are pests because they don't realize doing so leaves dust in places you can't get to and wrecks the controller or the console. My GC needs to be replaced because it won't stop releasing dust on to my game disks.
I find it interesting how when Nintendo puts the best technology into their product, it never does well. But when they take the cheap path and put an underpowered machine they always rake in the money.
Note that I'm looking at sales figures, not general popularity or street cred. Only the money counts here.
Let's take a look....
Wins with the weaker system:
NES vs. Sega Master System - SMS was clearly superior technologically, yet NES wins by landslide.
Gameboy (black and white) vs. Everything else (Game Gear and others) - Gameboy has only 4 shades of gray to display, stomps all other competitors anyways. Ancient custom 8-bit Z80 processor inside developed in 1989, suffices for games until 2000.
Gameboy Color and Advance really had no serious competitors (no, N-Gage does not count) so we'll skip those, but they still won =P.
Nintendo DS vs. Sony PlayStationPortable - DS came in with just barely above PS1 level graphics, yet beats the PSP which can compare with PS2 games. Still alive today in the face of ever stronger competitors like iPhone. Is on track to become best selling videogame system ever.
Wii vs. PS3 and Xbox360 - Wii wins with barely a graphical/CPU upgrade and some motion tech, winning over casual market. Competitors, which before had focused only on "hardcore" attempting to capture said market by developing own motion tech. Recently became Nintendo's best selling home console system ever, surpassing the NES. Victory shows that "hardcore" systems cannot be supported by "hardcore" players only.
(BTW, I hate using the term "hardcore", it's too vague and underdefined by most people)
Losses with overpowered systems
N64 vs PS1 - N64 has faster CPU, more memory, higher polygon count, but programming complexities and disk space issues give PS1 a landslide victory.
Gamecube vs. PS2 and Xbox - Gamecube almost comes second but Halo 2 gives Xbox the last minute push to knock GCN to 3rd place in sales. Technical specs are harder to call here.....but I'll agree with Cam3ron36 and say it was the better system. It had faster load times, better GFX, and more games supported 480p on it. Probably failed due to small disks, lack of DVD replay, kiddie reputation brought about by Wind Waker, and fewer games that PS2. Still I thought it was the best too =D.
And the technically win yet kinda tie case with underpowered system
Super Nintendo vs. Sega Mega Drive/Genesis - Sega's Motorola 68000 runs almost 3x faster than SNES custom CPU. Weak SNES CPU causes MAJOR lag in many games early on (Gradius III, R-Type, many many others) and limits future games to mainly much slower experiences than on Genesis. SNES offers more GFX tricks (i.e. Mode 7 BG rotation/scaling) on hardware but these can be easily faked on Genesis because of high CPU speed (see: Gunstar Heroes).
Anyways, the point is SNES was the weaker system yet comes out with enough tricks to beat Genesis in the long run (also helped A LOT by Sega incompetence). But, it was losing mostly before 1993-1994ish.
So, as you can see here, Nintendo always seems to get no support whenever they put their best into the systems. And then people whine when the Wii and DS sellout hardcore with its underpowered-ness XD.
NES vs. Sega Master System - SMS was clearly superior technologically, yet NES wins by landslide.
Nintendo learned early on if you get a monopoly on 3rd party developers then you can not be stopped. IMO Nintendo's 3rd party contracts are what killed Sega and should have been prevented under monopoly laws.
Quote:
Gameboy (black and white) vs. Everything else (Game Gear and others) -
GB did have better battery life compared to others + 3rd party monopoly still.
Quote:
Wii ... Victory shows that "hardcore" systems cannot be supported by "hardcore" players only.
I'm glad for the change. I hated nearly all games since about the start of N64. I haven't tried many modern games but they look like they are finally going back to fun games instead of hard core cutting edge lameness.
but something about the GameCube was just great. I didn’t like the idea of switching over; I never liked PS1, what would change things now?
those things are built like tanks, unless you break the control sticks, that is all that I've heard of...
Linear Mode
