Our Ten Best- Episode 23: Overlooked and Underrated Gamecube Games

ultimate muscleAlthough it could never quite compare to the Playstation 2 and the Xbox, the Nintendo Gamecube was still a more than solid system that had its fair share of quality games.

In this list, Review Fix counts down 10 of the best games on the system that you’ve never heard of.

10- Robotech Battlecry: Sure, this game was released on all three big systems, but yours truly only played the Gamecube version. Not a tremendously big fan of anime, I ended up falling in love with the cel-shaded characters and super fast gameplay. The opening mission reminds you of PS1 classic, “Warhawk,” while the rest of the game is an homage to an old school anime adventure. If you’re a fan of “Ace Combat” or “MechAssault,” you’ll fall in love with this game.

9- Star Wars: Rogue Squadron 3: OK, we get that hardcore fans of this series were peeved when they were forced to venture out of the cockpit, but give it up. Even with missions on foot, this is still an excellent game and one that is worthy of the series.

8- Warioworld: Not nearly as deep as some of the Mario games on the system, “Warioworld” is still a blast from start to finish.

7- Killer 7: Bloody and tasteless, this game is the older brother of one of the Wii’s best, “No More Heroes.” Solid graphics, tough gameplay and one of the weirdest stories in video game history make this one a true gem.

6- Luigi’s Mansion: Yes, I know what some of you are thinking, but when compared to some of the other first party games on the system, this poor title is all the way at the bottom. Combining the classic gameplay of Mario with “Ghost Busters,” this game is the “Cinderella” of the system.

5- Baten Katos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean:
A great RPG that got lost in the crowd. A true shame considering the system could have used another dozen games just like it.

4- Beach Spikers:
Easily the best volleyball game ever created. It doesn’t have incredibly busty women attempting to play the game, but it’s realistic and addictive.

3- Beyond Good and Evil:
Another game that came out on all three systems, but due to the lack of games on the GC, this should have been a mega hit. It got solid ratings, but for some reason, it sold like crap and is currently on the bottom of the bargain bin at thousands of Gamestops around the country. Nevertheless, it’s an excellent adventure game that has also aged gracefully. An excellent story makes it that much more addicting.

2- Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem: Easily the scariest game on the system. It also boasts rock solid graphics and control. Considering it was Nintendo’s first ever M-rated game on the system, it’s a shame more people didn’t give it a whirl.

1-Ultimate Muscle: Legends vs. New Generation:
From the creators of WCW Revenge and WWE No Mercy, AKI games, comes arguably the most enjoyable wrestling game on the system. Cel-shaded, “Ultimate Muscle” has a fun cast of characters and simple and amazing gameplay to complement some of the best graphics on the system. Add in a ton of unlockables and a decent create a character and it’s easy to see that this is a diamond in the rough. Considering how bad the other wrestling games were on the system, “Ultimate Muscle” is in a league of its own.

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 13821 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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