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"WiiCube Must Plays"

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Sat 03/02/07 at 14:51
Regular
"Peace Respect Punk"
Posts: 8,069
Given that the Wii is backwards compatible and there are a fair few people who may have bought one having never owned a GameCube, I thought I’d give a brief round-up of some of the ‘crème-de-la-crème’ of Cube games.

Feel free to add your own as my list is by no means exhaustive!


Star Wars: Rogue Leader
On release, this was probably the game to have. Great graphics, vast space battles, the original Star Wars Trilogy as a basis… It couldn’t get much better. And (unfortunately) it didn’t. The sequel ‘Rebel Strike’ was spoilt by the addition of some incredibly dull on-foot sections and a seeming lack of source material having exhausted most of the films set pieces in Rogue Leader. In fact, probably the best feature of Rebel Strike was the inclusion of all the missions from Rogue Leader as two player Co-Op levels. If you’re looking for perfect Star Wars space battles, get Rogue Leader.


Super Monkey Ball
Another release game, maybe not so essential if you have the Wii version of Monkey Ball, but you can probably track down the original GameCube version for a reasonably cheap price. Addictive, challenging and fun sum up this title nicely. And there are some very entertaining multiplayer mini-games to boot.


Viewtiful Joe
I saw this pre-owned in Game the other day for only £3! If I didn’t already own it, I would’ve snapped it up in an instant. A wonderful title that marries old-school side scrolling beat-em-up sensibilities with some great abilities that allow you to beat up the baddies more viewtifully as well as solve puzzles hindering your progress. This is a truly challenging game too. Soon you’ll be beset with attack choppers, elite ninja’s and tanks. Well worth getting, especially considering places seem to be selling it for such a knockdown price.


Tales of Symphonia: Legends
Although the GameCube was a little light on ‘proper’ RPGs, Tales of Symphonia: Legends (essentially a port of the Dreamcast title Tales of Symphonia) is a great, epic quest with just about everything you could hope for. There’s a couple of potential love interests for your main character, vast swathes of sub-quests to complete, and the entire world is in imminent peril (as you’d expect). The battles are turn-based, and while they don’t revolutionise things, they are different enough from the bog standard to keep you interested, despite sometimes occurring with greater frequency than you’d like. By any standards this is a good RPG, definitely one of the best from the rather slim selection on the GameCube.


Eternal Darkness
An interesting title to say the least, it seems at first like it’ll be your standard survival horror affair as you fight a variety of undead-like enemies and solve puzzles. But it is made very unique as you take control of a wide variety of characters whose collective fates are all intertwined, and events take a mental toll on each character, meaning they’ll hallucinate. These can be genuinely unsettling, and provide an experience that is unique and compelling. The storyline is also interesting enough to keep you playing, and the combat system has surprising depth. While not as polished as, say, the remake of Resident Evil (or indeed Resi4) it’s an entirely different take on ‘survival horror’ and well worth a look.


Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door
Sometimes criticises for being an ‘RPG-lite’, Paper Mario on the Cube is none-the-less a very worthwhile title. Even if you’re intimidated by the reams of stats and items usually found in RPGs, Paper Mario should prove manageable, and has much more interaction during those turn-based battles than simply selecting skills from a menu. Pretty much everything in battles can be influenced by timing button pushes or flicking the control. Tap the appropriate button as Mario jumps onto an enemies head and he’ll bounce and land again to do more damage. The more complex the move, the more complex the things you’ll be required to do to power it up, but this staves off boredom and inactivity during fights. The story has typical Mario charm and there are genuinely funny moments. It’s not the longest or most complex RPG out there, but it simply oozes fun, character and charm.


Resident Evil 4
In terms of gameplay, this is by far the best Resi game around. Everything about the series has been rebuilt from the ground up. Gone are static camera angles, inaccurate aiming and poorly conceived controls. You see the game from over the shoulder of the main character and fight enemies that are faster, smarter and more deadly than zombies could ever be. As usual, the plot slowly develops as you discover what’s really going on and enemies get ever more deadly and grotesque in appearance. There are puzzles, but everything appears to have been streamlined for Resi4. Backtracking is cut down, ammo and health are easier to come by and death isn’t dealt with quite so harshly, rather you can continue from the beginning of the area you died in. The trade off is that there are many occasions that can result in an instant death, and even more when you’re faced with hordes of foes all vying for your blood. Even if you’ve never liked the Resident Evil series, this is still an essential purchase.


Metroid Prime
While many predicted Samus Aran’s foray into 3D would be disastrous, it turned out very well. Incredibly well in fact. So well that Metroid Prime 3 is easily one of the most anticipated Wii games around. This is because Metroid Prime stayed true to the roots of the game. Rather than opting for your bog standard First Person Shooter interface, they developed a lock-on system, meaning fighting enemies wasn’t about being able to hit them, but rather hitting them with the right weapons and hitting them at the right times, all the while skilfully dodging incoming attacks. But combat is only part of the Metroid experience. Exploration, puzzle-solving, discovering new equipment and exploiting it to access new areas, all are present and correct in an adventure that is regarded by many as a near perfect gaming experience.
Sat 10/02/07 at 10:46
Regular
"Hiro is a Hero"
Posts: 50
Only 1 version (Ver.1) of the American (NTSC) Freeloader worked but the rest don't.
Fri 09/02/07 at 21:05
Regular
"Long time no see!"
Posts: 8,351
Sibs, you might be right in that it could work out A LOT CHEAPER to import a US copy of Tales of Symphonia, maybe even an Austrlian PAL version.

Just look on eBay. I saw several the other week going brand new, sealed for £99.99 Buy It Now!! :o

Even the auction-style bids had starters at £50! :P

You can search the internet high-and-low, but I doubt you'll find this game in stock anywhere, not for a reasonable price (less than £40) certainly.

I'd love to get this game also, and Zelda first, but I can't find the time or energy around work to get in to game right now either. I also want Chibi Robo - in a similar situation, but available on US import for around $15! :O


And hey, I could swear NGamer have stated that the FreeLoader DOES work on the Wii with GameCube games but not Wii ones...?
Thu 08/02/07 at 18:02
Regular
"Hiro is a Hero"
Posts: 50
Unfortunately they don't work, but wait a year or 2 and we'll get a Wii Freeloader and maybe that will include a GC section.
Thu 08/02/07 at 11:42
Regular
"Peace Respect Punk"
Posts: 8,069
Yer, I want to get Tales of Symphonia at some point, but also Baten Kaitos. But I don't have the time to go playing big fat RPGs at the moment anyway, and ToS/BK sell for pretty much £30 on Ebay (PAL copies)...

It might actually be cheaper just to get a freeloader & NTSC copies.


Incidentally, any idea if GC freeloaders work with Wii's? Just for future reference, as I may eventually upgrade to a Wii, and don't then want to find that I can't play any NTSC Cube games I may get because the freeloader won't work on a Wii... :S
Wed 07/02/07 at 17:58
Regular
"Hiro is a Hero"
Posts: 50
I preferred Baten Kaitos 1 to Origins as I don't like the battle system in 2 compared to 1. Well the best RPG's for the cube are those 4, BK1, BK2, Skies, and Tales of Symphonia.
Tue 06/02/07 at 23:51
Regular
Posts: 15,681
As far as RPGs went on the GameCube, I always preferred Baten Kaitos...shame Origins wont see a PAL release...
Tue 06/02/07 at 16:16
Regular
"Peace Respect Punk"
Posts: 8,069
I'm an idiot. I have no idea why I put ToS as opposed to Skies of Arcadia... I don't even have ToS (though I've looked at it longingly on Ebay many times, it's just not worth paying the amount it's selling for at the moment as I wouldn't have time to play it).

Also, I do like Mario Sunshine... Not really sure what it was that made me keep it off the list. Partly because if I made the post too long no-one would read it all!
Sat 03/02/07 at 19:02
Regular
"lets go back"
Posts: 2,661
Star Wars: Rogue Leader was great. The graphics were amazing too compared to the traditional Nintendo style.
Sat 03/02/07 at 18:06
Regular
"Hiro is a Hero"
Posts: 50
Sibs wrote:
> Tales of Symphonia: Legends
> Although the GameCube was a little light on ‘proper’ RPGs, Tales
> of Symphonia: Legends (essentially a port of the Dreamcast title
> Tales of Symphonia) is a great, epic quest with just about
> everything you could hope for. There’s a couple of potential
> love interests for your main character, vast swathes of
> sub-quests to complete, and the entire world is in imminent
> peril (as you’d expect). The battles are turn-based, and while
> they don’t revolutionise things, they are different enough from
> the bog standard to keep you interested, despite sometimes
> occurring with greater frequency than you’d like. By any
> standards this is a good RPG, definitely one of the best from
> the rather slim selection on the GameCube.

That's actually Skies of Arcadia: Legends you are describing, and yes Tales of Symphonia should also be put on this list.
Sat 03/02/07 at 15:57
Regular
Posts: 9,995
I take it you're not a fan of Sunshine?

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