Unboxing an UNUSED GameCube Console! 22 Years Later
video description
Date: 2023-11-24
Related videos
Comments and reviews: 20
GreyWolfLeaderTW
I am one of the crazy people who actually went from getting a PS1 as my first home video game console to the GameCube brand-new during its generation (repenting of my Nintendo-fanboy apostasy sin by getting an N64 shortly beforehand. Spyro the Dragon was THE game I wanted a PS1 for over the N64 during the 5th gen.
I saw little that impressed/attracted me to either the Xbox or the PS2 at the time. Even with Halo's popularization of twin-stick controls, I still despised the limited FoV that was commonplace at the time, which was the primary culprit of me constantly getting stuck on terrain geometry and attacked from directions where I couldn't see my attacker (one of the reasons I was petrified of the idea of multiplayer in Goldeneye 007, where you could easily get ambushed and couldn't react quickly with the limited single analog stick controls.
To this day, I still have no interest in GTA, and by the PS2 era Final Fantasy had fully jumped the shark in my eyes. FFVII's early FMV shaded plastic 3D art style and giving Cloud that ridiculous oversized sword, which was everywhere in the marketing, made it feel too alien and Hot Topic-esque to appeal to my taste. The last game in the main series that piqued my interest was FFIX (which even today is still an underexposed masterpiece.
Now the GameCube on the other hand had Pikmin (the action-adventure game with real-time strategy elements and survivalist angle to its setting, themes, and story definitely appealed to my boy scout side, Super Smash Bros Melee (Smash Bros 64 being a particularly popular sleepover game among me and my brother's circle of friends) and Star Fox Adventures early on. All three of these games directly appealed to my own gaming likes.
So, I got a GameCube during the early-midpoint of the console's lifespan and started collecting a lot of games for it. Still have my whole collection of games for the system.
GameCube games, even during the low point of being nearly forgotten by the wider culture, still were more expensive than their PS2 and Xbox counterparts, particularly when you compared the prices of direct ports between them, something I always referred to as the GameCube tax.
It hurts me seeing the prices skyrocket the way they have, given there are a few games for the system I want and still do not have like Killer 7.
Also, just as some encouragement to Clint, highly recommend Metroid Prime and its sequel on the GameCube. Cool little trivia historical fact is that Shigeru Miyamoto went in near the end of development and reworked the controls into the finished form we see in the game. Sure, it is awkward for younger gamers to go back to because they were raised on twin-stick FPSes, but it works with the fact that Metroid Prime was designed as a first-person metroidvania with a heavy emphasis on platforming first and a puzzle-solving acrobatic approach to combat, not a twitch/reaction-based action shooter.
reply
I am one of the crazy people who actually went from getting a PS1 as my first home video game console to the GameCube brand-new during its generation (repenting of my Nintendo-fanboy apostasy sin by getting an N64 shortly beforehand. Spyro the Dragon was THE game I wanted a PS1 for over the N64 during the 5th gen.
I saw little that impressed/attracted me to either the Xbox or the PS2 at the time. Even with Halo's popularization of twin-stick controls, I still despised the limited FoV that was commonplace at the time, which was the primary culprit of me constantly getting stuck on terrain geometry and attacked from directions where I couldn't see my attacker (one of the reasons I was petrified of the idea of multiplayer in Goldeneye 007, where you could easily get ambushed and couldn't react quickly with the limited single analog stick controls.
To this day, I still have no interest in GTA, and by the PS2 era Final Fantasy had fully jumped the shark in my eyes. FFVII's early FMV shaded plastic 3D art style and giving Cloud that ridiculous oversized sword, which was everywhere in the marketing, made it feel too alien and Hot Topic-esque to appeal to my taste. The last game in the main series that piqued my interest was FFIX (which even today is still an underexposed masterpiece.
Now the GameCube on the other hand had Pikmin (the action-adventure game with real-time strategy elements and survivalist angle to its setting, themes, and story definitely appealed to my boy scout side, Super Smash Bros Melee (Smash Bros 64 being a particularly popular sleepover game among me and my brother's circle of friends) and Star Fox Adventures early on. All three of these games directly appealed to my own gaming likes.
So, I got a GameCube during the early-midpoint of the console's lifespan and started collecting a lot of games for it. Still have my whole collection of games for the system.
GameCube games, even during the low point of being nearly forgotten by the wider culture, still were more expensive than their PS2 and Xbox counterparts, particularly when you compared the prices of direct ports between them, something I always referred to as the GameCube tax.
It hurts me seeing the prices skyrocket the way they have, given there are a few games for the system I want and still do not have like Killer 7.
Also, just as some encouragement to Clint, highly recommend Metroid Prime and its sequel on the GameCube. Cool little trivia historical fact is that Shigeru Miyamoto went in near the end of development and reworked the controls into the finished form we see in the game. Sure, it is awkward for younger gamers to go back to because they were raised on twin-stick FPSes, but it works with the fact that Metroid Prime was designed as a first-person metroidvania with a heavy emphasis on platforming first and a puzzle-solving acrobatic approach to combat, not a twitch/reaction-based action shooter.
reply
Tomiply
2: 00 Ironically, the GameCube is more powerful than the PS2. That's why Resident Evil 4's PS2 port had to be downgraded, for instance.
24: 03 Yeah, you definitely need to play Sunshine more. It's easy to see that you're not used to the controls at all. In 2 seconds, I would've switched to the hover nozzle and been over that river. I also do constant side flips, spin jumps, shotgun like blasts with FLUDD to remove lots of goo at once, water spin jumps and so on. And I nearly never hold the trigger all the way in, as that stops Mario's movement. If I need to aim my water for something, I press Y to go in in aiming mode. There are a lot of mechanics in this game that people have no idea about, but maybe you'll learn some of them if you play more. I actually think it's one of the best controlling Marios ever: wall jumps are super easy, so are side flips and spin jumps. Also, the camera is way better than in SM64, even though it can still be annoying at times.
34: 44 Also, not to be rude, but it's easy to see that you don't play that many FPS games. When I saw you walk right up to the face of the enemy instead of shooting it from afar, I was like What is he doing? All good though.
reply
2: 00 Ironically, the GameCube is more powerful than the PS2. That's why Resident Evil 4's PS2 port had to be downgraded, for instance.
24: 03 Yeah, you definitely need to play Sunshine more. It's easy to see that you're not used to the controls at all. In 2 seconds, I would've switched to the hover nozzle and been over that river. I also do constant side flips, spin jumps, shotgun like blasts with FLUDD to remove lots of goo at once, water spin jumps and so on. And I nearly never hold the trigger all the way in, as that stops Mario's movement. If I need to aim my water for something, I press Y to go in in aiming mode. There are a lot of mechanics in this game that people have no idea about, but maybe you'll learn some of them if you play more. I actually think it's one of the best controlling Marios ever: wall jumps are super easy, so are side flips and spin jumps. Also, the camera is way better than in SM64, even though it can still be annoying at times.
34: 44 Also, not to be rude, but it's easy to see that you don't play that many FPS games. When I saw you walk right up to the face of the enemy instead of shooting it from afar, I was like What is he doing? All good though.
reply
Parallax
The GameCube is still one of the consoles I have the fondest memories of. I bought one with Air Miles of all things back in the day and picked up a ton of fantastic used games for it. One of my close friends and his house full of pothead roommates also had one and it was in constant use there. I have so many memories of Soul Calibur 2 and Mario Kart Double Dash! (which is the best Mario Kart game, fight me) with those guys. They were so insanely good at it, they could have played it at a competitive level if that was a thing. We also both found Broadband Adapters and actually networked our GameCubes together for 8 player Double Dash, which was just amazing. We even got four GBA link cables and tried Zelda Four Swords at one point.
They were indestructible systems too. My friend's literally had thousands of hours on it and he never had the console or any of the controllers fail. I still have mine and all my games for it, which I cherish. I even am one of those people who liked the controller. Such an underappreciated gem of a machine.
Nothing compares to the PS1 startup sound, but the GC one and its UI are probably my second favourite.
reply
The GameCube is still one of the consoles I have the fondest memories of. I bought one with Air Miles of all things back in the day and picked up a ton of fantastic used games for it. One of my close friends and his house full of pothead roommates also had one and it was in constant use there. I have so many memories of Soul Calibur 2 and Mario Kart Double Dash! (which is the best Mario Kart game, fight me) with those guys. They were so insanely good at it, they could have played it at a competitive level if that was a thing. We also both found Broadband Adapters and actually networked our GameCubes together for 8 player Double Dash, which was just amazing. We even got four GBA link cables and tried Zelda Four Swords at one point.
They were indestructible systems too. My friend's literally had thousands of hours on it and he never had the console or any of the controllers fail. I still have mine and all my games for it, which I cherish. I even am one of those people who liked the controller. Such an underappreciated gem of a machine.
Nothing compares to the PS1 startup sound, but the GC one and its UI are probably my second favourite.
reply
Dukefazon
The triggers on the Gamecube controller are both a kind of potentiometers and at the end of the button's travel there's a digital push button as well, so it's basically analog with a bit of extra digital flavor.
14: 55 - was this deliberately shot similar to the old LGR intros? I was expecting some fizzy drink after these shorts: )
It's worth to own a Gamecube today or at least a GC compatible Wii because there are many good games that are stuck on the GameCube, like Twin Snakes, Skies of Arcadia, Eternal Darkness just to name a few.
You need to play TimeSplitters 2 and 3, I think you'd like it, especially 3! It's available on other platforms but I own it on GC.
reply
The triggers on the Gamecube controller are both a kind of potentiometers and at the end of the button's travel there's a digital push button as well, so it's basically analog with a bit of extra digital flavor.
14: 55 - was this deliberately shot similar to the old LGR intros? I was expecting some fizzy drink after these shorts: )
It's worth to own a Gamecube today or at least a GC compatible Wii because there are many good games that are stuck on the GameCube, like Twin Snakes, Skies of Arcadia, Eternal Darkness just to name a few.
You need to play TimeSplitters 2 and 3, I think you'd like it, especially 3! It's available on other platforms but I own it on GC.
reply
treedoor
The Gamecube generation was the last console generation where I owned every console. Every console had such a distinct library and great exclusives. I have a hard time deciding between either the Gamecube or Xbox being my personal favorite, but I find it no surprise how well-remembered the Gamecube is and how much love the console still gets to this day. At the time, the PS2 was getting games left and right and the Gamecube was largely forgotten, but 20 years later it's the Gamecube library which still holds up the best. It has many timeless games that still play incredibly well today.
reply
The Gamecube generation was the last console generation where I owned every console. Every console had such a distinct library and great exclusives. I have a hard time deciding between either the Gamecube or Xbox being my personal favorite, but I find it no surprise how well-remembered the Gamecube is and how much love the console still gets to this day. At the time, the PS2 was getting games left and right and the Gamecube was largely forgotten, but 20 years later it's the Gamecube library which still holds up the best. It has many timeless games that still play incredibly well today.
reply
Mr.
Much like you, I also completely missed out on the GameCube. It released just before I went off to college and I took my PS2 with me. Much Final Fantasy was played on that between me, my roommate and my friends. That and many, many DVDs were watched thanks to Netflix by mail. Others in the dorm also had either a PS2 or Xbox, and we had many fun nights connecting up those Xbox systems with cables running across the hall. GameCube just never entered the equation the entire time. By the time I graduated, the Wii was just getting ready to exert its dominance so the Cube was quickly forgotten.
reply
Much like you, I also completely missed out on the GameCube. It released just before I went off to college and I took my PS2 with me. Much Final Fantasy was played on that between me, my roommate and my friends. That and many, many DVDs were watched thanks to Netflix by mail. Others in the dorm also had either a PS2 or Xbox, and we had many fun nights connecting up those Xbox systems with cables running across the hall. GameCube just never entered the equation the entire time. By the time I graduated, the Wii was just getting ready to exert its dominance so the Cube was quickly forgotten.
reply
GiSWiG
I recently went crazy with the GameCube. I got an orange and platinum both with matching GBA players. The orange one has an internal HDMI mod, the other has a Kaico Labs HDMI adapter. (using an HDMI adapter connected to the digital out port is the same thing that the internal HDMI mod does so no need to do the internal mod unless you want to) Both have a Pico w/ PicoBoot and Swiss and sdcards to load games The orange one has a custom controller board that can use Bluetooth controllers. I could probably sell the orange one for 400- 500 with original box and controller.
reply
I recently went crazy with the GameCube. I got an orange and platinum both with matching GBA players. The orange one has an internal HDMI mod, the other has a Kaico Labs HDMI adapter. (using an HDMI adapter connected to the digital out port is the same thing that the internal HDMI mod does so no need to do the internal mod unless you want to) Both have a Pico w/ PicoBoot and Swiss and sdcards to load games The orange one has a custom controller board that can use Bluetooth controllers. I could probably sell the orange one for 400- 500 with original box and controller.
reply
Rob
I have so many fond memories of playing Super Smash Bros. Melee with my friends back in the day. It's the only console I actually got on launch day. The controller is still one of my favorites, and yes those shoulder buttons are fully analog.
I actually have one of those first-party component cables, imported from Japan back in the day. Though, it's not of much use, as my TV doesn't have component inputs; would be better served by getting one of those HDMI adapters (though both that and the component only work on the older model Gamecubes with the digital output.
reply
I have so many fond memories of playing Super Smash Bros. Melee with my friends back in the day. It's the only console I actually got on launch day. The controller is still one of my favorites, and yes those shoulder buttons are fully analog.
I actually have one of those first-party component cables, imported from Japan back in the day. Though, it's not of much use, as my TV doesn't have component inputs; would be better served by getting one of those HDMI adapters (though both that and the component only work on the older model Gamecubes with the digital output.
reply
Direraven
Bought one in 2005 at college and played the out of Resident Evil 4 on it. Odd one as consoles go, but it was good all the same at the time. I do think it was not one of Nintendo's successful consoles, but it was portable and well put together even so. The fact Resident Evil 4 was even on it was a balls-to-the-wall move by Nintendo. As for Mario Sunshine, I agree the concept was interesting but the execution was poor it was like a chore to do it and it got a little annoying given how little water you could store to do levels. Fond memories of it.
reply
Bought one in 2005 at college and played the out of Resident Evil 4 on it. Odd one as consoles go, but it was good all the same at the time. I do think it was not one of Nintendo's successful consoles, but it was portable and well put together even so. The fact Resident Evil 4 was even on it was a balls-to-the-wall move by Nintendo. As for Mario Sunshine, I agree the concept was interesting but the execution was poor it was like a chore to do it and it got a little annoying given how little water you could store to do levels. Fond memories of it.
reply
Punisher6791
dont sleep on gettin a gamecube, i turned mine into a all digital system by replacing the disc drive with a GC Digital optical disc emulator that allows you to run games from a sd card. ive got over 255gb of games on my gamecube now, just about every good game for the gamecube without having to pay a fortune on the actual games since collecting for the system is extremely expensive now. i also have a GCHD MK2 and a Marseille M classic hooked up to it for the best possible picture output.
reply
dont sleep on gettin a gamecube, i turned mine into a all digital system by replacing the disc drive with a GC Digital optical disc emulator that allows you to run games from a sd card. ive got over 255gb of games on my gamecube now, just about every good game for the gamecube without having to pay a fortune on the actual games since collecting for the system is extremely expensive now. i also have a GCHD MK2 and a Marseille M classic hooked up to it for the best possible picture output.
reply
Samuel
Phantasy Star Online, One of the few games I got for the Gamecube.
Other games where Rogue Squadron 2, Sonic Adventure 2 Battle, Smash Bros Melee, What became the Cell shaded Zelda after we where shown something else in the launch trailer, Metroid Prime (the game I got as a trade in for that cell shaded Zelda, Starfox Adventures (which needed more space battles) Metal Gear Solid and Resident Evil 4. Oh and the Super Gameboy Adapter which must have seen the most use by my brothers.
reply
Phantasy Star Online, One of the few games I got for the Gamecube.
Other games where Rogue Squadron 2, Sonic Adventure 2 Battle, Smash Bros Melee, What became the Cell shaded Zelda after we where shown something else in the launch trailer, Metroid Prime (the game I got as a trade in for that cell shaded Zelda, Starfox Adventures (which needed more space battles) Metal Gear Solid and Resident Evil 4. Oh and the Super Gameboy Adapter which must have seen the most use by my brothers.
reply
Vyxel
I owned a Gamecube when it came out and I was like 20. I played Tales of Symphonia, Eternal Darkness and the sort. It wasn't about being 'cool' it was just about having things to do because like any other system, you run out of genre titles you want to play with a single modern console. There weren't a lot of adult games but there were plenty of titles that had quality. I never played any of the Mario titles of the Gamecube era but I did have Smash as I had Smash on N64.
reply
I owned a Gamecube when it came out and I was like 20. I played Tales of Symphonia, Eternal Darkness and the sort. It wasn't about being 'cool' it was just about having things to do because like any other system, you run out of genre titles you want to play with a single modern console. There weren't a lot of adult games but there were plenty of titles that had quality. I never played any of the Mario titles of the Gamecube era but I did have Smash as I had Smash on N64.
reply
makedaevilmage
Modded my GC a while back with a 256gb sd card and bought a HDMI converter that goes into the digital output on the GC, the video looks amazing!
The original game cases looked again different in Europe. This is my first time seeing a US case lol.
Also replaced the original clock battery with a battery holder, to make it more future proof.
Modding the GC with the Picoboot mod is much less of a hassle than dealing with physical discs, I love my mod
reply
Modded my GC a while back with a 256gb sd card and bought a HDMI converter that goes into the digital output on the GC, the video looks amazing!
The original game cases looked again different in Europe. This is my first time seeing a US case lol.
Also replaced the original clock battery with a battery holder, to make it more future proof.
Modding the GC with the Picoboot mod is much less of a hassle than dealing with physical discs, I love my mod
reply
Brian
I loved the GameCube lol. My friends and I played PSO episode 1 and 2 religiously on it as well as other great games like time splitters. The thing was friggen indestructible as well. I dropped mine down said friends wooden stairs and it didn t have a scratch on it and still worked just fine. Also I would like to add if you like the GameCube controller, they sell switch controllers that look like GC controllers that are wireless as well as joycons.
reply
I loved the GameCube lol. My friends and I played PSO episode 1 and 2 religiously on it as well as other great games like time splitters. The thing was friggen indestructible as well. I dropped mine down said friends wooden stairs and it didn t have a scratch on it and still worked just fine. Also I would like to add if you like the GameCube controller, they sell switch controllers that look like GC controllers that are wireless as well as joycons.
reply
Nathan
This and the Dreamcast, still my two favourite consoles. Glad you loved Metroid Prime, that blew me away back in the day. What got me was the creatures in the world. In so many games everything tries to kill you, it's unrealistic and spoils the atmosphere. My favourite moment in Metroid was just walking along a corridor and noticing I walked past this beetle thing. I turned to look at it, it looked at me. No battles, just chilling together.
reply
This and the Dreamcast, still my two favourite consoles. Glad you loved Metroid Prime, that blew me away back in the day. What got me was the creatures in the world. In so many games everything tries to kill you, it's unrealistic and spoils the atmosphere. My favourite moment in Metroid was just walking along a corridor and noticing I walked past this beetle thing. I turned to look at it, it looked at me. No battles, just chilling together.
reply
Orion117
So I'm a huge SW fan and I played the crap out of the N64 Star Wars games, so when it was Christmas time I was playing a game cube in Toys R Us, Rogue Squadron 2, I wanted it and the console so bad, but when Xmas came I got an Xbox with Halo, Munches Odyssey and another game. and I've been an Xbox Fan boy ever since, I did eventually get a game cube much later when I was older and managed to play both RS games
reply
So I'm a huge SW fan and I played the crap out of the N64 Star Wars games, so when it was Christmas time I was playing a game cube in Toys R Us, Rogue Squadron 2, I wanted it and the console so bad, but when Xmas came I got an Xbox with Halo, Munches Odyssey and another game. and I've been an Xbox Fan boy ever since, I did eventually get a game cube much later when I was older and managed to play both RS games
reply
Matthew
Glad to see you giving the GameCube a fair shot. Yeah, the games can be expensive, so I really don t blame those who resort to emulation. Fortunately, we seem to be getting more and more GameCube games re-released on Switch, so we can finally see what we missed. Now that you ve unboxed the Dreamcast, Xbox and GameCube does this mean you re unboxing the PS2 next? Definitely looking forward to that.
reply
Glad to see you giving the GameCube a fair shot. Yeah, the games can be expensive, so I really don t blame those who resort to emulation. Fortunately, we seem to be getting more and more GameCube games re-released on Switch, so we can finally see what we missed. Now that you ve unboxed the Dreamcast, Xbox and GameCube does this mean you re unboxing the PS2 next? Definitely looking forward to that.
reply
wryyyy
Used GC's are still fairly inexpensive, and hacking them for homebrew software has become quite easy and affordable. So something like SD card loading games is entirely a possibility (and a bunch of retro console emulators. Not to mention homebrew opens up to video signal optimisation for flatscreen TVs. With a good HDMI adapter, one can get absolutely stunning (480p) video quality out of the GC.
reply
Used GC's are still fairly inexpensive, and hacking them for homebrew software has become quite easy and affordable. So something like SD card loading games is entirely a possibility (and a bunch of retro console emulators. Not to mention homebrew opens up to video signal optimisation for flatscreen TVs. With a good HDMI adapter, one can get absolutely stunning (480p) video quality out of the GC.
reply
K6
You could burn pirated games to those mini DVDs but they were quite expensive, instead you could actually just buy a top shell replacement that allowed you to use full size DVD media in the Gamecube! Crazy to think these days you can also mod a Wii and play the entire library of Gamecube games from a 1TB external hard drive on that (maybe even a SD card)
reply
You could burn pirated games to those mini DVDs but they were quite expensive, instead you could actually just buy a top shell replacement that allowed you to use full size DVD media in the Gamecube! Crazy to think these days you can also mod a Wii and play the entire library of Gamecube games from a 1TB external hard drive on that (maybe even a SD card)
reply
Paraphrase1234
What a pleasant surprise. Thanks for sharing this with us. I have very fond memories of the system. I bought one after my Xbox was stolen, right before Wind Waker was released, and that got me through some rough times.
If you get the urge to go down the route of using the fancy video out, I can whole heartedly recommended the CARBY.
reply
What a pleasant surprise. Thanks for sharing this with us. I have very fond memories of the system. I bought one after my Xbox was stolen, right before Wind Waker was released, and that got me through some rough times.
If you get the urge to go down the route of using the fancy video out, I can whole heartedly recommended the CARBY.
reply
Add a review, comment
Other channel videos
