The Nintendo GameCube may have drastically undersold compared to the PlayStation 2 and the original Xbox, but many people still love this little game console. It had many exclusive titles that players look back on very fondly. GameCube’s struggles should not detract from some of the fantastic games available that many players, unfortunately, missed out on. Here are ten of the most criminally underrated Nintendo GameCube games.
Related: The 10 best Wii games of all time, ranked
What are the most underrated Nintendo GameCube games?
Beyond Good and Evil
These days, if you recognize the name Beyond Good and Evil, you likely will first think of the sequel that seems to be in perpetual development. The original game was a sorely overlooked title for various reasons. It is an action-adventure game led by Rayman creator Michel Ancel. The game has you play as Jade, a woman who takes care of orphans before being pulled into a secret network organization to fight back against invading aliens called the DomZ. The combat in the game doesn’t nearly meet today’s standards, but the story and dark atmosphere make it a standout on a console filled with brighter games. Luckily, an HD version was released on Xbox 360.
Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg
Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg is made by Sonic Team, taking a rare step away from their blue hedgehog. In this game, you play as Billy, who by himself isn’t anything amazing, but when he gets his hands on a large egg, he can steamroll enemies and move around the area more agilely. He will need to use his egg abilities to fight back against an army of crows that have overtaken Morning Land, shrouded it in darkness, and plans to do the same to Billy’s world. Nowadays, this development team is so focused on Sonic that we will likely never see them make another weird and fun game like this, which is too bad.
Chibi-Robo! Plug into Adventure
The tale of Chibi-Robo’s struggle to find relevance on every Nintendo console it was released on is really too bad. In the original game, you play as a small robot whose mission is to make the family that bought him happy. However, the Sanderson family is pretty dysfunctional and going through a rough time financially. Chibi-Robo’s job is to go around the house cleaning and earn happy points for doing good deeds. When low on batteries, you must find an electrical outlet to charge yourself up to keep going. At nighttime, toys come to life, giving you more people to interact with and help. Chibi-Robo is gone due to a history of poor sales and an awful 3DS game, but this original GameCube title deserved better than it got.
Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem
We know Nintendo as one of the best gaming companies for developing family-friendly titles. But did you know they developed and released an M-rated horror game on GameCube, which was genuinely terrifying? Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem has one of the more interesting features in any horror game. Your character’s sanity is constantly being tested, and the game will start messing with you when it drops too low. It can show your character’s head falling off, look like it is changing your TV’s volume, and even fool you with a deleted save file. The copyrighted sanity system has been locked away for too long and should make a comeback someday.
Kirby Air Ride
Kirby has always been known as one of Nintendo’s most experimental characters. He has seen all kinds of interesting titles, but one of the more interesting and overlooked ones is Kirby Air Ride. In the final Kirby game made under Masahiro Sakurai, you play as one of the colored Kirbys as you race around the area or play mini-games on a Warp Star. With Kirby being such a kid-friendly game, Air Ride was designed to be easy to understand. You steer with the left stick, and everything else is controlled with A. Sure, this makes it overly simplistic, but if you get the chance to play it, we highly recommend trying City Trial, which would be the main inspiration for Smash Run in Super Smash Bros. for 3DS.
Metal Arms: Glitch in the System
While you are likely to have heard of the titles or the series on this list for the most part, Metal Arms: Glitch in the System probably has gone right past you without you realizing. You play as a recently reactivated robot named Glitch, who aids a rebel group of droids in the fight against General Corrosive. This third-person shooter is a lot of fun for a game that largely goes unrecognized nowadays.
Pokémon Colosseum
Back in the days of GameCube, it would still be a long time before we got our first mainline Pokémon game on a home console. That being said, Pokémon Colosseum was definitely the closest we would get until the Nintendo Switch. In this game, you play as Wes, a former member of Team Snag’em, a group that steals Pokémon and darkens them into shadow versions. Instead of going around catching Pokémon, your main goal here is to battle members of this team and steal back the Pokémon to purify them and add them to your team. This is a game feature you can see today in Pokémon Go.
Star Fox Assault
Star Fox Assault is often overlooked because Star Fox 64 is so great, and Star Fox Adventures was highly disappointing. That being said, we find Assault to be generally a great time. Fox and his team are fighting against a group of insect creatures called Aparoids. Game styles are handled in the Arwing, Landmaster, or on foot, but not everything is on rails like usual in the series. That is still here now and then, but this game has more freedom and a really fun multiplayer mode. We love this game and think it deserves to be mentioned among the best in the series.
The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventure
The biggest problem with The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventure is how difficult it was to play. Back then, you needed to have the game and a GameCube, three friends, four Game Boy Advances, and four Game Boy link cables to get the full experience. That was a lot of money and really difficult to pull off. It received an extremely limited re-release on 3DS, but this is a game we think would be perfect on the Switch.
Viewtiful Joe
Viewtiful Joe is a side-scrolling beat-em-up game made by Hideki Kamiya of Resident Evil 2, Devil May Cry, and Bayonetta fame. What stands out most here is the graphics. The art style of the game looks so good, even today, and the story and gameplay have that Capcom style and substance that so many people love. You become an action hero with powers that emulate a filmed movie. Hopefully, one day, we can get a remaster or remake.
