Welcome to another edition of Paula’s Game Ramblings. This time I’m going to ramble on about GameCube games that I would like Nintendo to re-release. They are games I have fond memories of playing on my Gamecube way back when.
I was an early adopter of the GameCube; I bought it the day it was released in the UK, I was working in GAME at the time, so I didn’t have to go far to purchase it. Though knowing it was sitting in the stock room a week before purchasing it was hard as I was impatient to get my hands on it. Nevertheless, I spent a lot of time playing on my purple GameCube with some amazing games at the time. The following games are just a few out of many games that I would love to see re-released on a Nintendo system.
Beyond Good & Evil
Beyond Good & Evil was released for Gamecube in 2004. It is an action game that mixes stealth with puzzling and combat. The game storyline is set on the vast, peaceful planet of Hyllis, which has fallen under siege by a relentless alien race.
After a desperate struggle to defend her island, a Hyllian named Jade collapses in exhaustion. Disturbing visions torment jade. Much of the game is based on stealth and puzzles, but there are sequences of racing, shooting, combat, and platform action. I was never great at racing, but I loved the stealth and puzzle aspect of the gameplay.
You play as Jade, a young photojournalist who fights with her staff and has various abilities. As the game’s story progresses, Jade is employed to take photos with her camera to uncover the government’s dark secrets.
Jade fights with her staff and uses various abilities to execute long-ranged attacks and solve puzzles. Many of the puzzles require switching between the characters and using their special abilities. It is also necessary to coordinate the actions of two characters to achieve cooperation that leads to a puzzle’s solution. This was the part in Beyond Good & Evil I enjoyed the most, puzzling out which character to use and when.
Tales of Symphonia
Classed as an action RPG Tales of Symphonia was a very lengthy RPG. The storyline follows a young boy named Lloyd, who goes on a quest with the “Chosen” (Colette). They are attempting to regenerate the world and save it. So on the surface, a pretty normal storyline, but the twists and turns that it takes are a wild rollercoaster ride.
In many RPGs of that time, the standard battle system was turn-based. Rather than everyone moving simultaneously, characters would take turns attacking one at a time.
However, the game had a real-time combat system, meaning all characters can attack, cast spells, or move simultaneously towards or away from the enemies. Tales also looked great on the Gamecube in all its cel-shaded glory.
Skies of Arcadia Legends
Arcadia Legends was originally released on the Dreamcast. A few years after that it was released again on the GameCube in 2003, with legends added to the title. I played Skies of Arcadia on the Dreamcast and then again on the Gamecube as I liked it so much.
The game takes place in Arcadia’s fictional skies. Where six civilizations coexist on floating continents orbited by six moons of different colours. But it’s not a peaceful world as the Valuan Empire, headed by Empress Teodora, wishes to take over the entire world with their might.
You take on the role of Vyse, he is determined to beat the Valuans to the moon crystals and stop their evil world domination plans once and for all. The story is epic, with lots of sailing around the sky in your ship, taking on the Valuan Empire high in the clouds. However, the best part of the game was the battles in the sky between rival fractions; I loved it and adored flying in the sky in the airship.
Have you any all-time favourite games from the GameCube era that you would like to see re-released? Feel free to leave a comment!