Meh, more spare time on my hands, even though I can now play backups (I just made backups for Gamecube and Wii games and both work, yay). So, I thought I would give you some insight into my favorite Gamecube games.
Of course, some side notes:
- This is my top 10, not yours. I'll debate with you if you're reasonable.
- I had a pretty crappy selection of Gamecube games. So this list is very odd.
- Super Mario Sunshine is NOT on the list because I haven't played it yet (despite the fact I have a DVD of it right in front of me). Don't be a pest about it.
- Same as above goes for Star Fox games. I'll get around to them soon.
#10: 007 Everything or Nothing
James Bond video games generally used to be none for being good. Goldeneye is pretty much a no-brainer, considered by many the best FPS game of all time. After that, it had a slew of cross-platform games, and they were all pretty damn good. Everything or Nothing was one of those.
Everything or Nothing is like playing a movie. You have the original James Bond cast (for at that time, at least), with Judi Dench, John Cleese, and Pierce Brosnan. Through in Heidi Klum to play the super hot, makes-you-pitch-a-tent villian, and you've got a nice cast, something you hardly see in video games that much anymore. It does tell you the story, and a rather true-to-Bond one, while not packing it with too many or too long cutscenes. It's like played a movie.
Anyway, the gameplay. It's a TPS, a departure from Goldeneye and Nitefire. While this may be an iffy choice, they pulled it off well. The shooting is done rather well, and the option to hind behind walls and crates, duck out and shoot, and hide again is really fun. Not to mention a nicely integrated hand-to-hand combat system and varied missions. The game has an incredibly shitty vs. mode and the single player can feel rather short, but the co-op mode is excellent. It's a nice game overall.
#9: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Way back when, movie-to-video games wasn't always a bad thing. Most people thought that being able to play a movie was pretty cool. However, as time passed, games started getting shittier and shittier. Production values lessened, and video games soon became only a way to market movies, not as a means of entertainment. However, one exception stands out, and that's Lord of the Rings. For movie games, they ain't half bad, and Return of the King isn't bad at all. It's really quite good, and is one of the best hack and slashers of that generation.
What made RotK so great was the co-op. You could play through every mission in the storyline with friends, something you don't see much of nowadays. While some levels are forgettable and not worth playing much, there's some missions that just have massive hordes of enemies and don't get old for a while. On top of that, once you finish the storyline, you unlock a bunch of cheats, and 2 exclusive missions that are brutally tough. The game also featured an incredibly well-done combat system, with different combos, projectile weapons, and upgrades. The system also had a very well-done balance to it. For example, Gandalf and Legolas are the best at projectiles, Aragorn is better at hand to hand combat. Gimli is the most powerful at hand-to-hand combat, but isn't so good with ranged weapons and is slow. The Hobbits aren't great in combat altogether, but move fast. It's very well balanced so each character has their pros and cons. It also features a wide cast of playable characters, from Frodo to Gandalf to even Faramir. Definately a Gamecube essential.
#8: Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
Again, not being a fan of MP in general, this was hard to even make it on the list. By alas, it is. For all the flaws I think MP has in general, they're still overshadowed by the good sides.
Out all 3 "Primes", I played 2 the most. The game had a nice set of levels and bosses, as well as a great soundtrack, nice gameplay, and overall true to Metroid. However, the one thing that stood out to me is the first (and most likely last) Metroid game to feature multiplayer. While many didn't like, I thought it did well. Having a vast variety of beams to choose from, as well as missles and bombs, I thought it was nice. There were some gimmicky features, like the turrets, but overall it was a fun experience.
#7: Mario Kart: Double Dash!!
Let's scoot the giant ape out of the room; Double Dash is probably the worst Mario Kart game. Still, it is a Mario Kart game and it's still a solid Gamecube racer that kept, at its core, the good gameplay mechanics that have made Mario Kart a great success.
The co-op mode for Double Dash was honestly pretty bad. I don't find much fun in sitting in the backseat of a kart pressing the fire button. It was lackluster and not exciting. Still, if you just played it in vs. mode, you'll find it a good Mario Kart experience. Whatever may be said, it still features that shell flying, bomb throwing action, as well as an improved drift mechanic. Regardless of it's flaws, Double Dash is fun.
#6: Soul Caliber II
Soul Caliber, a staple fighting game. And with all it's incarnations, SCII is one of the finest. One of the best combo systems of all time, a large cast of characters, and probably one of the finest uses of a license.
Soul Caliber was honestly fun. The single player was pretty good, for a fighting game. A wide variety of of objectives, from standard "beat the living crap out of them" to survival, the single player had a lot of variety for a fighter. The characters were nicely varied, myself liking Kilik and Talim. Also, Link was a great addition to Soul Caliber, and it's such a shame to not see him come back. Anyway, for all my prejudices against fighting games, this was just that good.
#5: Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Quite honestly, the Wii version is better. The Wii has slicker controls, and that's a big difference. Still, Twilight Princess is possibly the best Zelda game ever made, even over OoT. I don't have much to say about this that hasn't been said in the Wii Top 10, but let's leave it to this: amazing storyline, great gameplay, awesome soundtrack, and top-notch graphics. The only reason this doesn't beat Wind Waker is because the Wii version is a much better buy than this one.
#4: Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker
The first cell-shaded Zelda game (although not the first cartoonish Link game, that goes to Minish Cap), what a change. Link went from the stern, semi-teenage Keebler elf to a cell shaded, significantly shorter, saucer-eyed boy. However, the game was definately a risk that paid off, being another great Zelda title.
The game's art style, for starters, is amazing. Being cell-shaded, the graphics are very unique but very nicely done. Everything seems less realistic and more cartoony. Still, it keeps everything that was true about Zelda still true. The storyline is great, the gameplay is still classic Zelda, and it contains everything to love about it. The soundtrack is very much authentic to Zelda, and there's still no voiceovers (a semi-trademark of Zelda games). Overall, an awesome Zelda game.
#3: Resident Evil 4
Probably the finest Resident Evil yet. With the older RE suffering from dated mechanics, the franchise needed a lift. And man, did it get one. RE4 is simply put, perfect. Everything from the graphics to the gameplay to the storytelling to the audio is amazing.
There's not much to say about RE4 other than, as I said earlier, it's amazing. The gameplay is completely unique, offering a realistic quasi-TPS gameplay. The game, although not a zombiefest, still retains the scariness of Resident Evil. Villagers, who you'll be fighting a majority of the time, are enough to give you the creeps. If that isn't enough, try on the parasitic things that will crawl out of their blasted-off heads, the monstrousities that will be sent after you, and a variety of creepy boss fights from a mutated snake to "El Gigante". The horror-movie soundtrack of suspense will keep you on end, alongside the screams of creepy crawlers and the possessed voices of evil villagers. Oh yeah, and all the Spanish villagers say "shit" a whole lot.
#2: 007 Nightfire
*Head turns* What? You probably didn't expect this game to even be on the list, let alone the #2 pick. Still, this is MY top 10, so deal with it fucker.
Out of my collection of Gamecube games, I've probably spent the most on this. It's an amazing FPS game and tops even Goldeneye for me. I spent atleast 100 hours playing this game. The single player is done nicely, although short, keeping true to Goldeneye's variety of stealth, recon, and "shoot everything that moves" missions. The storyline is well done, and like most James Bond games, features authentic voice overs. Still, while single player was good, multiplayer was un-fucking-believable. It contained a large variety of gameplay types, like classics such as Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, CTF, and King of the Hill, to unique ones like Top Agent (which is a set amount of lives), Goldeneye (where the goal is to collect the pieces of the Goldeneye key to kill someone with a laser), and sabotage-like missions. The maps were also amazing too. There's frantic-firing, close quarters levels like Phoenix Base, large and vast levels like Snowblind, and some classic movie locations like Fort Knox (Goldfinger) and Sub Pen (The Spy Who Loved Me). The one thing I have to compliment largely on is the bot system though. The bots had a large amount of customizability you rarely seen, making it fun to play even alone. There were bots with set personalities and some you can change. And the set personalities were very true to their movie personas. For example, Scaramanga from The Man With the Golden Gun is top-notch at everything, being fast and having dead-on percision. Goldfinger, on the other hand, is greedy and slow and will try to collect as many weapons as possible. You can always, of course, customize some bots with a vast amount of options, including personality (like Greedy, Guardian, etc), health, running speed, accuracy, and agression. Overall, one of (if not) my favorite first person shooters.
#1: Super Smash Bros. Melee
What can you expect for this top spot? Melee is undisputably amazing. While some may criticize Brawl for being too dumbed down and the original for being too old, Melee will always be the middle ground and is, without a doubt, the best local multiplayer game ever made. Period.
Everything in Melee was perfect. The trademarked simple controls and Nintendo characters of the original, but now with an even larger cast, more fields, more game options, improved single player (although who cares about SSB single player?), and just spot-on mechanics. The game was good enough to even get it into Major League Gaming, being the only Nintendo game to do so, and not to mention the only non-Xbox game to make it into any of the games (with the exception of Rainbow Six Vegas 2 and CoD4, but they are played on the 360 and not the PS3). Even for non-Nintendo fans, every hardcore gamer has to give a nod of respect to Melee. It's a game of all games. It's a once-in-a-lifetime game. It's the acme of gaming excellence.
Oh yeah, Wii Top 10:
Linky
Of course, some side notes:
- This is my top 10, not yours. I'll debate with you if you're reasonable.
- I had a pretty crappy selection of Gamecube games. So this list is very odd.
- Super Mario Sunshine is NOT on the list because I haven't played it yet (despite the fact I have a DVD of it right in front of me). Don't be a pest about it.
- Same as above goes for Star Fox games. I'll get around to them soon.
#10: 007 Everything or Nothing
James Bond video games generally used to be none for being good. Goldeneye is pretty much a no-brainer, considered by many the best FPS game of all time. After that, it had a slew of cross-platform games, and they were all pretty damn good. Everything or Nothing was one of those.
Everything or Nothing is like playing a movie. You have the original James Bond cast (for at that time, at least), with Judi Dench, John Cleese, and Pierce Brosnan. Through in Heidi Klum to play the super hot, makes-you-pitch-a-tent villian, and you've got a nice cast, something you hardly see in video games that much anymore. It does tell you the story, and a rather true-to-Bond one, while not packing it with too many or too long cutscenes. It's like played a movie.
Anyway, the gameplay. It's a TPS, a departure from Goldeneye and Nitefire. While this may be an iffy choice, they pulled it off well. The shooting is done rather well, and the option to hind behind walls and crates, duck out and shoot, and hide again is really fun. Not to mention a nicely integrated hand-to-hand combat system and varied missions. The game has an incredibly shitty vs. mode and the single player can feel rather short, but the co-op mode is excellent. It's a nice game overall.
#9: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Way back when, movie-to-video games wasn't always a bad thing. Most people thought that being able to play a movie was pretty cool. However, as time passed, games started getting shittier and shittier. Production values lessened, and video games soon became only a way to market movies, not as a means of entertainment. However, one exception stands out, and that's Lord of the Rings. For movie games, they ain't half bad, and Return of the King isn't bad at all. It's really quite good, and is one of the best hack and slashers of that generation.
What made RotK so great was the co-op. You could play through every mission in the storyline with friends, something you don't see much of nowadays. While some levels are forgettable and not worth playing much, there's some missions that just have massive hordes of enemies and don't get old for a while. On top of that, once you finish the storyline, you unlock a bunch of cheats, and 2 exclusive missions that are brutally tough. The game also featured an incredibly well-done combat system, with different combos, projectile weapons, and upgrades. The system also had a very well-done balance to it. For example, Gandalf and Legolas are the best at projectiles, Aragorn is better at hand to hand combat. Gimli is the most powerful at hand-to-hand combat, but isn't so good with ranged weapons and is slow. The Hobbits aren't great in combat altogether, but move fast. It's very well balanced so each character has their pros and cons. It also features a wide cast of playable characters, from Frodo to Gandalf to even Faramir. Definately a Gamecube essential.
#8: Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
Again, not being a fan of MP in general, this was hard to even make it on the list. By alas, it is. For all the flaws I think MP has in general, they're still overshadowed by the good sides.
Out all 3 "Primes", I played 2 the most. The game had a nice set of levels and bosses, as well as a great soundtrack, nice gameplay, and overall true to Metroid. However, the one thing that stood out to me is the first (and most likely last) Metroid game to feature multiplayer. While many didn't like, I thought it did well. Having a vast variety of beams to choose from, as well as missles and bombs, I thought it was nice. There were some gimmicky features, like the turrets, but overall it was a fun experience.
#7: Mario Kart: Double Dash!!
Let's scoot the giant ape out of the room; Double Dash is probably the worst Mario Kart game. Still, it is a Mario Kart game and it's still a solid Gamecube racer that kept, at its core, the good gameplay mechanics that have made Mario Kart a great success.
The co-op mode for Double Dash was honestly pretty bad. I don't find much fun in sitting in the backseat of a kart pressing the fire button. It was lackluster and not exciting. Still, if you just played it in vs. mode, you'll find it a good Mario Kart experience. Whatever may be said, it still features that shell flying, bomb throwing action, as well as an improved drift mechanic. Regardless of it's flaws, Double Dash is fun.
#6: Soul Caliber II
Soul Caliber, a staple fighting game. And with all it's incarnations, SCII is one of the finest. One of the best combo systems of all time, a large cast of characters, and probably one of the finest uses of a license.
Soul Caliber was honestly fun. The single player was pretty good, for a fighting game. A wide variety of of objectives, from standard "beat the living crap out of them" to survival, the single player had a lot of variety for a fighter. The characters were nicely varied, myself liking Kilik and Talim. Also, Link was a great addition to Soul Caliber, and it's such a shame to not see him come back. Anyway, for all my prejudices against fighting games, this was just that good.
#5: Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Quite honestly, the Wii version is better. The Wii has slicker controls, and that's a big difference. Still, Twilight Princess is possibly the best Zelda game ever made, even over OoT. I don't have much to say about this that hasn't been said in the Wii Top 10, but let's leave it to this: amazing storyline, great gameplay, awesome soundtrack, and top-notch graphics. The only reason this doesn't beat Wind Waker is because the Wii version is a much better buy than this one.
#4: Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker
The first cell-shaded Zelda game (although not the first cartoonish Link game, that goes to Minish Cap), what a change. Link went from the stern, semi-teenage Keebler elf to a cell shaded, significantly shorter, saucer-eyed boy. However, the game was definately a risk that paid off, being another great Zelda title.
The game's art style, for starters, is amazing. Being cell-shaded, the graphics are very unique but very nicely done. Everything seems less realistic and more cartoony. Still, it keeps everything that was true about Zelda still true. The storyline is great, the gameplay is still classic Zelda, and it contains everything to love about it. The soundtrack is very much authentic to Zelda, and there's still no voiceovers (a semi-trademark of Zelda games). Overall, an awesome Zelda game.
#3: Resident Evil 4
Probably the finest Resident Evil yet. With the older RE suffering from dated mechanics, the franchise needed a lift. And man, did it get one. RE4 is simply put, perfect. Everything from the graphics to the gameplay to the storytelling to the audio is amazing.
There's not much to say about RE4 other than, as I said earlier, it's amazing. The gameplay is completely unique, offering a realistic quasi-TPS gameplay. The game, although not a zombiefest, still retains the scariness of Resident Evil. Villagers, who you'll be fighting a majority of the time, are enough to give you the creeps. If that isn't enough, try on the parasitic things that will crawl out of their blasted-off heads, the monstrousities that will be sent after you, and a variety of creepy boss fights from a mutated snake to "El Gigante". The horror-movie soundtrack of suspense will keep you on end, alongside the screams of creepy crawlers and the possessed voices of evil villagers. Oh yeah, and all the Spanish villagers say "shit" a whole lot.
#2: 007 Nightfire
*Head turns* What? You probably didn't expect this game to even be on the list, let alone the #2 pick. Still, this is MY top 10, so deal with it fucker.
Out of my collection of Gamecube games, I've probably spent the most on this. It's an amazing FPS game and tops even Goldeneye for me. I spent atleast 100 hours playing this game. The single player is done nicely, although short, keeping true to Goldeneye's variety of stealth, recon, and "shoot everything that moves" missions. The storyline is well done, and like most James Bond games, features authentic voice overs. Still, while single player was good, multiplayer was un-fucking-believable. It contained a large variety of gameplay types, like classics such as Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, CTF, and King of the Hill, to unique ones like Top Agent (which is a set amount of lives), Goldeneye (where the goal is to collect the pieces of the Goldeneye key to kill someone with a laser), and sabotage-like missions. The maps were also amazing too. There's frantic-firing, close quarters levels like Phoenix Base, large and vast levels like Snowblind, and some classic movie locations like Fort Knox (Goldfinger) and Sub Pen (The Spy Who Loved Me). The one thing I have to compliment largely on is the bot system though. The bots had a large amount of customizability you rarely seen, making it fun to play even alone. There were bots with set personalities and some you can change. And the set personalities were very true to their movie personas. For example, Scaramanga from The Man With the Golden Gun is top-notch at everything, being fast and having dead-on percision. Goldfinger, on the other hand, is greedy and slow and will try to collect as many weapons as possible. You can always, of course, customize some bots with a vast amount of options, including personality (like Greedy, Guardian, etc), health, running speed, accuracy, and agression. Overall, one of (if not) my favorite first person shooters.
#1: Super Smash Bros. Melee
What can you expect for this top spot? Melee is undisputably amazing. While some may criticize Brawl for being too dumbed down and the original for being too old, Melee will always be the middle ground and is, without a doubt, the best local multiplayer game ever made. Period.
Everything in Melee was perfect. The trademarked simple controls and Nintendo characters of the original, but now with an even larger cast, more fields, more game options, improved single player (although who cares about SSB single player?), and just spot-on mechanics. The game was good enough to even get it into Major League Gaming, being the only Nintendo game to do so, and not to mention the only non-Xbox game to make it into any of the games (with the exception of Rainbow Six Vegas 2 and CoD4, but they are played on the 360 and not the PS3). Even for non-Nintendo fans, every hardcore gamer has to give a nod of respect to Melee. It's a game of all games. It's a once-in-a-lifetime game. It's the acme of gaming excellence.
Oh yeah, Wii Top 10:
Linky
