The Time Has Come For GameCube Acquisitions

[JustRob]

I've been thinking, now would be the best time to binge of GC stuff. Gamestop just dropped the price of the used systems to $29.99, and every store I've been to is in final liquidations of the games.

What do you think, should we be liberating these poor games before they hit the dumpsters, or should we wait just a little bit longer?

[heybtbm]

If you're just focusing on getting good GC games, this "acquisition" shouldn't take too long. Ha!

Note to the DP Nintendo Mafia: Just kidding.

[studvicious]

For someone who hates all that is Nintendo, you seem to be one of the first to reply in every Nintendo related thread. Just an observation.

And as for the topic, I do think that this would be a good time to load up on some great deals out there.

[Trebuken]

You shoulda' started last week with the Buy 2 Get 1 sale....it'll probably be months before they have another...

[heybtbm]

For someone who hates all that is Nintendo, you seem to be one of the first to reply in every Nintendo related thread. Just an observation.

I don't hate anything about Nintendo...just their idiotic fan-boys. Hate is too strong of a word anyway, it's more of a strong dislike or constant annoyance.

Anyway,

My advice is "wait a bit longer".

Maybe Super Smash Brothers Melee will finally drop to $20 (for the 3 GC owners left who don't actually have the game yet). You've got to give the big "N" credit for still selling a 6+ year old game for $30. That's how much I paid for it almost 5 years ago.

Besides SSBM, what (non players choice or overly kiddy) games are even available at retail nowdays? I haven't even seen a GC copy of Twilight Princess for a few months.

[JustRob]

This was one of those slow gradual realizations on my part. I'd been in and out of the gamestops in this area pre-christmas and noticed that all the GC stuff was getting third-class citizen treatment. All of the games were shunted to one of the movie racks (another item they're phasing out). There were stacks of GCs in the pre-owned boxes in little pyramids in the aisles. As christmas got closer, the stacks got taller and the price got lower. I'd overheard one employee talking to a customer about how they're all on blowout.

Anyway, I blew my load this paycheck paying off the few christmas debts I'd incurred, so I'll have to wait another two weeks to actually get in there and gobble shit up, but believe me, I'll be there.

[Mangar]

I've been looking at picking up some GC games I missed, since the Wii is backwards compatible. Prices haven't dropped however, which is unlike the PS2 where the average game is 9.99 or lower. (Picked up Heroes of Might and Magic, Theme Park Rollercoaster, and Culdcept for that today)

[Doonzmore]

I've been stocking up on cheap gamecube stuff for some time now.

From Best Buy (all 9.99):
Ty the Tasmanian Tiger 2
Pool Paradise
Rave Master
One-Piece Grand Adventure
One-Piece Pirate Carnival
From Russia with Love
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Dragon Ball Z: Sagas
The Ant Bully

From K-Mart:
Fight Night Round 2 (10.00)
NFL Street 2 (9.99)
Tomb Raider Legend (14:99)

From Gamestop during the buy 2 get one free sale:
Tak and the Power of Juju (Free)
NFL Street (Free)
StarFox Adventures (6.99)
Ed, Edd n Eddy: The Mis-Edventures (8.99)
TMNT 3: Mutant Nightmare (7:99)
Bad Boys: Miami Takedown (Free)
F-Zero GX (7.99)
Midway Arcade Treasures 2 (7.99)

And i recieved Reign of Fire (4.99) and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (4.99) from a secret santa.

I'd say start keeping an eye on prices. Gamestop will be sure to supply Gamecube titles for a few years longer but the retail chains have got to start getting rid of their stock. The only titles that will probably remain above 40 dollars are some first party ones like Twilight Princess.

[Gorez]

nice finds doonz i havent been that fortunate in my hunts for GC games. but considering you named each store and the price they are...maybe ill have some better luck

[roushimsx]

I finally scared up a copy of Phantasy Star Online III and was happy to see it was only $10/complete. At Game Rush, of all places!

They also had Call of Duty 2: Big Red One (CE) (Xbox), Playboy Mansion (PS2), and Pikmin 2 (GC) for good prices, but they ended up not having their instruction manuals. :'( All three were on my hit list for games I've been wanting to pick up, too

[joshnickerson]

Up until Christmas, my Gamestop had a huge selection of Cube games, but I went in a week ago and the Cube section was almost empty. I assumed that they shipped a bunch back to the warehouse, but upon talking to the clerk, they had a MASSIVE rush of sales on Cube games. I'm guessing a lot of Wii adoptors were looking for some cheap games to play.

My Best Buy also clearanced out all their GC and GBA games at 50% discount. Sadly, by the time I got there, all that was left was a bunch of Lizzie McGuire GBA games and a stack of Smash Bros Melee.

[Neil Koch]

My local EB doesn't even carry GC stuff anymore. It's a small store, and they said it's a company-wide thing... so if you're looking to get some finds there, time is running out...

[Rob2600]

Besides SSBM, what (non players choice or overly kiddy) games are even available at retail nowdays? I haven't even seen a GC copy of Twilight Princess for a few months.

I've been going to Best Buy and Circuit City this week and checking out the GameCube games. Both stores have plenty of copies of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess in stock. They also have Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy, Madden NFL 08, and, as you pointed out, Super Smash Bros. Melee and several cartoony games.

I've also been checking out the local GameStop stores (against my better judgement) and bought a used copy of Prince of Persia: Sands of Time for $12.99. I also saw a used copy of Killer 7 for $5.99. One of the locations I went to still had new, official GameCube controllers, too.

[Icarus Moonsight]

Gamecube games worth owning are becoming a bitch to find. In pawn shops around here they'll have a wall full of PS2/Xbox games, but only a stack of 5-10 or on a great day 15 GC titles. They are also priced higher than the PS2/Xbox stuff on average. I've seen Xbox games at local pawns @ 4 for $20 while GC stuff is usually priced at $12-16 each with no deals on multiples. Strange shit.

[spoon]

Gamecube games worth owning are becoming a bitch to find. In pawn shops around here they'll have a wall full of PS2/Xbox games, but only a stack of 5-10 or on a great day 15 GC titles. They are also priced higher than the PS2/Xbox stuff on average. I've seen Xbox games at local pawns @ 4 for $20 while GC stuff is usually priced at $12-16 each with no deals on multiples. Strange shit.

I have the same situation in my area. GC stuff is harder to find/less plentiful. I would guess due to lack of sales/Wii sales/Lack of good Wii 3rd party titles/ Still high retail prices on N published GC titles.

[FrakAttack]

I asked a local pawn shop owner about this a while back and he said it's because there's a higher demand for Nintendo games. Still lots of little kids coming in with their parents looking for non-sports related Gamecube and even GBA titles, while older kids and adults have moved on to the current gen stuff.

[Spartacus]

I've been thinking, now would be the best time to binge of GC stuff. Gamestop just dropped the price of the used systems to $29.99, and every store I've been to is in final liquidations of the games.

What do you think, should we be liberating these poor games before they hit the dumpsters, or should we wait just a little bit longer?

Frankly, I'm amazed at how little it costs to pick up a used GameCube! They're built well and a used one's reliability shouldn't be of any real concern, so now is as good a time as any to get started picking up games for it. I've been buying GameCube games on and off for years and I've also noticed that my local pawnshops seldom have any available. Maybe it's because parents are loath to sell their kids stuff or maybe it's simply because Nintendo has such an incredible brand loyalty that few people are willing to trade them in or sell them off. The backward capacity of the Wii is no doubt another factor. Whatever the reason, finding the Cube games I wanted has always been a bit more challenging.
I'm not sure that grabbing a bunch of cheap multi-platform games on the GameCube is anything that you'd really care to do unless you'd just like to have them for numbers purposes. What I would recommend are anything with Mario, Zelda, Metroid or Star Fox in the title as a great place to start. Super Smash Bros: Melee involves most every Nintendo character I can think of.

Resident Evil is covered nine ways to Sunday on the Cube and if you're a fan of them, I would try to get all of them.

Animal Crossing, Cubivore, Pikmin and Pikmin 2 are Nintendo 1st party titles that shouldn't be ignored.
Other GameCube exclusives not to miss would include Battalion Wars, Zoocube, Geist, Metal Gear Solid: Twin Snakes, Eternal Darkness, Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance and Star Wars: Rogue Leader II and III.

Some GameCube exclusive RPG's include Baten Kaitos, Baten Kaitos Origins, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles and Tales of Symphonia.
You might also consider picking up the remake of Skies of Arcadia - Skies of Arcadia: Legends

The Disney Sports games were developed by Konami rather than Nintendo, but they are exclusive to Nintendo and often aren't easy to find and are worth picking up if only for that reason....
Disney Sports Soccer, Disney Sports Basketball, Disney Sports Football and Disney Sports Skateboarding.

Ikaruga and Chaos Field are import Dreamcast scrolling shooters that were localized on the GameCube and are definitely worth picking up.

And while on the subject of imports and because the Free Loader makes them very easy to play, I can recommend Kururin Squash and Charinko Hero.

And finally, some multi-platform games that some consider the GameCube version to be the superior version are Burnout, Killer 7, Prince of Persia: Warrior Within, Viewtiful Joe and Viewtiful Joe 2.

I don't hate anything about Nintendo...just their idiotic fan-boys. Hate is too strong of a word anyway, it's more of a strong dislike or constant annoyance.

The Nintendo fanboyism on this board is noticeable, but rather well mannered compared to the vitriolic hate speak I run across on the rest of the net. I love great games too much to ever consider not having a Nintendo console in my home, even though honestly, I get much more stoked about titles coming out on the other consoles. But I'd never attempt to deny the quality of thier software or the simple undeniable fun you can have playing Nintendo games. Kururin Squash has been charming me all week!

[Steve W]

I can never seem to find anything interesting in stores. I've got a whole lot of GameCube titles already, and there aren't too many that really interest me. Most stores have nothing but sports games and kid show tie-in games, and virtually nothing else anymore. Ah well, not buying GC games gives me more money to buy original Xbox games while they're on clearance.

[venturousviking]

And finally, some multi-platform games that some consider the GameCube version to be the superior version are Burnout, Killer 7, Prince of Persia: Warrior Within, Viewtiful Joe and Viewtiful Joe 2.

I would like to add Beyond Good and Evil to that list.

I never had a Gamecube as I always thought the PS2 was the system to have. After getting my hands on a Wii I discovered the Gamecube games so now I make it a point to pick up a used game somewhere when someone on this site mentions a game I never heard of as in the above post. I am seeing the selection of games starting to get smaller though so I would say yesterday is the time to start getting games for the Gamecube.

[ScourDX]

EB around my area still have a lot of GCN games to choose from, but most of them still selling at $40 range. Game I have hard time finding would be Cubivore.