Everyone remembers Melee, Metroid Prime, and Mario Sunshine. But the GameCube had a lot of weird, ambitious, and criminally overlooked games that either slipped through the cracks or were just too strange for their own good. Here are 10 underrated GameCube titles that deserve to be dragged back into the spotlight—kicking and screaming if necessary.
1. PN03
What if Bayonetta had zero budget and forgot to bring her personality? You get PN03, a stylish third-person shooter where you dodge bullets like you’re on a dance floor, but shoot like you’ve got arthritis. Nobody bought it, but it’s the weirdest, coolest thing Capcom threw at the wall—and some of it sticks.
2. Gotcha Force
Capcom made a Saturday morning cartoon fever dream with robot toys that battle in chaotic, seizure-inducing arenas. It sold like garbage, got no marketing, and is now so rare it might as well come with a deed to the moon. But damn, it’s fun if you can find it.
3. Cubivore: Survival of the Fittest
Blocky meat-beasts eat each other and mutate into stronger meat-beasts in a game that looks like it was made in MS Paint. It’s violent, grotesque, and kind of brilliant. If David Cronenberg made a kids’ game, this would be it.
4. Chibi-Robo!
You’re a tiny robot cleaning up after a deeply dysfunctional family and also making friends with living kitchen appliances. Somehow, it’s not a fever dream. Equal parts wholesome and existential crisis in a box. Pure Nintendo weirdness at its best.
5. Battalion Wars
What if Advance Wars decided it wanted to be a third-person shooter? This is that, with cartoonish violence and the chaos of trying to command troops while also dodging rockets. It’s like herding cats with bazookas—frustrating, but glorious.
6. Def Jam: Fight for NY
Yes, there’s a hip-hop fighting game where you can throw people through car windows and suplex them in subway stations. No, it’s not a joke. It’s also way better than it has any right to be. The GameCube version is the sleeper hit nobody remembers.
7. Skies of Arcadia Legends
Sky pirates, airships, and anime optimism. It’s the JRPG equivalent of drinking a Red Bull while watching Saturday morning cartoons. Originally a Dreamcast game, but the GameCube version is smoother and has less random encounter rage.
8. Doshin the Giant
You’re a yellow god-baby who grows by being nice—or evil. It’s basically Black & White if it were chill, artsy, and kind of boring—but in an oddly therapeutic way. Nobody really knows why this exists. Maybe Nintendo lost a bet.
9. Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean
A card-based RPG where everyone talks like they’re in a bad stage play and the voice acting sounds like it was recorded in a janitor’s closet. Still, it has insane visuals, a deep combat system, and a plot twist that’ll slap you across the face.
10. I-Ninja
A psychotic cartoon ninja with the energy of a five-year-old on Mountain Dew. Wall-running, sword-slashing, and wisecracking your way through genuinely good platforming levels. It’s stupid fun, and that’s a compliment.
These games didn’t move units, win awards, or get re-releases. But they’re full of weird ideas, rough edges, and chaotic charm—the kind of stuff that makes the GameCube’s library so much more than just Mario and friends. Dust off your WaveBird. You’ve got some forgotten masterpieces to play.
