I love my Cube so much. Second best Nintendo system ever. In fact, it's because of the Cube that I didn't pick up a Wii until last month. I've still been buying games and playing games for the Cube. In fact, I'm still on the look out for games for the Cube. Beyond Good and Evil, Ikaruga and Cubivore. I'll probably just have to get them off Ebay now. The Cube introduced me to Sonic games. I never really played the Genesis and or Dreamcast. But with pretty much all of Sonic's games re-released on the Cube I finally experienced all of that history. I went from liking Sonic games to hating Sonic games. (Thank you Sonic Heroes, Shadow the Hedgehog, Sonic Riders). So, it was a pretty eventful 6 years with the Cube.
And I know there are some good games with the Wii but I really can't say I'm that enthused with the line-up so far on it. When I go to EBGames, I just see a wall of shovelware for the Wii with the Nintendo and it just looks so unappealing. But when I see the small section of used games for the Cube, yes, not every one is a hit but there is such a better selection of titles. Even the second tier and third tier titles seem more appealing than half the Wii's selection.
The games on the Cube are just so immersive to me somehow. For instance, allow me to talk about two early launch games for the Cube and why I love them.
Rogue Squadron 2
The aerial combat of Rogue Squadron. Ah, how I love this game. If only there were more like it. Especially the battle of Endor. Getting the massive waves of Ties coming and attacking you while the Capitol Ships are turning around is just such an awesome feeling. Especially when you shoot the leader of a Tie Fighter squad and cause the rest of the Ties to perform their evasive manuevers only to have them run into the Capitol Ships since they were turning around. It was just so immersive that I felt like I was trapped in this small cockpit in the vast reaches of space and that any second another ship could crash into me and that would be it for this ace pilot. I knew what it was like to be in a dogfight. I got so good at the game I could play whole missions in cockpit view whiched added even further to the illusion. Flying in battle and being able to turn and look out the side of the cockpit at my wingmates, watch my x-foils lock in and out of attack position, and Imperial Walkers that I was circling.
What a game. Best thing about Rogue Squadron 3 was having all of Rogue Squadron as a Co-Op game. My brother and I would play that and since we were both Aces in Rogue Squadron, it really felt like we were part of a team, issuing orders to one another knowing the other could take care of the objective given him.
Pikmin
I still can't believe it's rated E. That has to be the most brutal game I've ever played. A pure fight for survival. Such a simple objective. You've crash landed, get your ship fixed or you will die. Yet, it becomes so much more. When you first lead Pikmin against a Bulborb, it's a brutal fight. Pikmin swarming this giant creature, beating it all over and the great beast fighting back eating and swallowing your troops in great number. Even when it's dead, the Pikmin swarm it and and carry the carcass back to their ships where it is swallowed up and regurgitated into new Pikmin spawn.
And as you progress, the creatures grow morry terrifying and brutal like Wollywogs. Those big lumps of muscle that casually jump and crush mass Pikmin to death with no feeling. Losing a swarm of Pikmin to a foe is so devasting because you know it was your tactics that failed them. Leading the few survivors, if any, back to the onions for reinforcements is so depressing because you know you have limited time and resouces and because of your error, you've put yourself in a tighter situation and have now hurt your manpower for the future and lost many good warriors. I.E., the ones who have full flowers on their heads.
Having Pikmin fall in the water and begin to drown as you desperately try to call them back to shore to save them or get burned by flames and die is awful. Even more terrifying is when they get affected by the Puffstool and the Pikmin begin to attack Olimar. I was killed in instant the first time that happened. Perhaps the most savage display of nature is shown in the ending when you fail to collect 25 parts in 30 days. Olimar tries to take off but crashes back down and dies. The Pikmin, instead of mourning this fallen hero who guided them the past 30 days, take his corpse back to an onion where it is sucked up and he is regurgitated as just another of their spawn. It's horrifying, chilling and disturbing as the Pikmin display their animalistic instincts to keep spawning and surviving. I never trusted Pikmin after seeing that.
At the same time, there's an environmental theme worked into Pikmin. In the quest to survive, Olimar really changes the habitat of all these creatures. You break down walls, build bridges, chop down natural beauty for pellets to increase your resources. Where there was once many creatures living, you and your Pikmin have descended like a plague on the land and killed many of the creatures living there. The land is now barren after you leave it than the wonderland it was before you came. When you see the ending after collecting all 30 ship parts in 30 days, you see the Pikmin now able to fight the predators on their own. You've changed the balance of nature and altered that ecosystem. Should you have done that? One is so focused on surviving, they don't realize the damage that is being caused until they are safe.
As regular forum members know, I could go on and I'd like to. I haven't talked about F-Zero GX, Metroid Prime, SSB: Melee, Super Mario Sunshine, The Wind Waker, Chibi-Robo and others which were so great. If you're interested, I could post more of my thoughts on these games later or you could also share your thoughts on why the Cube deserves lovin'. For now, I'll leave it at that.
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Topic: Do you still love your Gamecube? (Read 12784 times)
