Would you like to play a game?
The real reason people buy consoles, however, isn't so they can tell their friends how many textured polygons it can render in real time. Well, maybe people like that do exist, but they should probably be locked up for their own protection. The rest of the sane world buys games consoles to play games, and the initial launch titles for the Gamecube are a mixed bag. There's a large swag of titles that have been ported across from other systems -- such as Crazy Taxi, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3, Burnout and SpiderMan: The Movie. They're all decent titles, but hardly enough to convince an existing PS2 or XBox owner to make a purchase. Nintendo's own releases have been sparse; there's the kiddie friendly Luigi's Mansion and waterski game WaveRace: Blue Storm. Other currently exclusive titles include Sega's Super Monkey Ball and LucasArt's Star Wars: Rogue Leader: Rogue Squadron 2, which has perhaps the longest and most colon-riddled game title in console history.
Visually speaking the Gamecube can certainly hold up its head amongst the current pack, at least based on currently released software. Visual effects are rendered with aplomb and with very little noticeable lag, jagging or the annoying fog that plagued Nintendo's previous machine. Looking at titles that span all three major consoles, the Gamecube sits in place neatly with the XBox and just a touch ahead of the PS2, although that's something that is likely to be very fluid as designers tackle the capabilities of all three machines in the future.
Console manufacturers will always try to hook punters with the promise of upcoming software. This is a double edged sword; it's certainly tempting to pick up a machine based on a drool-worthy game, but only if that game actually does hit retail shelves. Nintendo are promising games based on Mario, Zelda, Metroid, Super Smash brothers and others in the near future. On the third party front gamers can look forward to a high-definition remake of Capcom's Resident Evil and THQ's WWE Wrestlemania X18 for the wrestling fanatics out there.
The Gamecube sits in an interesting position in the current market. It's the only system that is solely a games machine, and Nintendo have aggresively priced it as such. We've got to say that of the three current contenders to the console crown, the Gamecube certainly wins all the style awards; the PS2 only looks good if you have a lot of stereo equipment around it, and the XBox is still just too damn big. Looks are only part of the equation, however; it's the games that sell the machine, and this may be Nintendo's ace in the hole, at least against the XBox. Nintendo has a library of accepted mascot characters that gamers have shown a great deal of loyalty to; only Sega -- who now develop across all three platforms -- has similar brand recognition. Sony has certain brands locked down exclusively -- Final Fantasy and Grand Theft Auto, for example -- while Microsoft still has to reveal any truly surprising exclusives, beyond titles they themselves publish such as Crimson Skies and Mechwarrior.
The Gamecube does what it does -- play games -- very well. It's probably still the best choice for parents;Nintendo knows it has a hook in the rugrat market. It's also a decent choice for gamers who don't need the DVD playback of the other two contenders or who are just plain hooked on Nintendo's character library.
Nintendo Gamecube
Company: Nintendo
Price: AU$329
Distributor: Selected resellers
Phone: (03) 9730 9822
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