The follow-up to Colosseum, Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness had you catching Shadow 'mon and 'purifying' them back in 2005.
Using the GBA-GC link cable, it was possible to connect any of the Game Boy Advance mainline entries to XD for battling and trading, and although it didn't change things significantly from its predecessor, it still provided a decent 3D Pokémon experience before the mainline games went into the third dimension.
And it's now playable on Switch 2 (sadly lacking the ability to import your GBA monsters).
Mario's decades-long run of hit after hit after hit is incredible when you think about it. The expectations each new mainline entry creates are astronomically high and we're continually gobsmacked that, more often than not, those expectations are surpassed with the next one.
Available on Switch if you have a copy of Super Mario 3D All-Stars, Super Mario Sunshine lacks the immaculate polish we've come to expect from the Mario series thanks to its rushed development. However, there's a unique charm and brilliance to its mechanics and setting which make it an underdog Mario game, and who doesn't love one of those?
As a direct sequel to Super Mario 64, it is not the genre-defining classic everyone hoped for. However, decades later we can look back and appreciate the many things Sunshine does superbly. The Sunshine Defence Force may be overcompensating — it's certainly got its flaws — but at the very least, it's still very good in our eyes.
The joyful, bouncing Isle Delfino theme alone makes it worth revisiting, so if you've skipped this entry in Mario's back catalogue, don't let its reputation put you off.
The Dreamcast original SoulCalibur was a momentous fighting game for home consoles that brought arcade-quality visuals into the home that had even the staunchest fanboys on other consoles gawping jealously at Sega's ill-fated system.
Fortunately for them, a multiplatform sequel would arrive in 2003 and GameCube got a bonus that made it the definite pick of the bunch. Yes, the impressive visuals and weapon-based brawling was all present and correct, but Nintendo gamers were treated to Link from The Legend of Zelda joining the roster with the Master Sword in hand.
That single detail was enough to draw in players who might never have touched it otherwise, and very glad they were, too. Take Link out and it's still an excellent fighting game — one of the very best ever made, in fact — but he really was the cherry on this rather delicious cake.
The first home console Fire Emblem to be released in the West — and only the third to be localised — GameCube's Path of Radiance introduced us to Ike, leader of the Greil Mercenaries and rocker of a blue barnet.
By modern standards, it's lacking somewhat when it comes to presentation, but this was the first in the series with fully 3D graphics and features (in our opinion) the strongest story of any entry. Ike would go on to join the fight in Super Smash Bros. Brawl and gain notoriety there before returning in the Wii sequel to this game, Radiant Dawn.
Unfortunately, this luminary pair of home-console Emblems aren't too easy to find physically these days, with both fetching eye-watering prices on the secondhand market. However, the ability to play Path of Radiance anew on Switch 2 without having to crack out the 'Cube and put a massive dent in your bank balance is a blessing. We like Ike.
While debate forever rages as to whether the N64 entry or its Sega-developed GameCube sequel is better, we can all agree that both games are rather special in their own right.
F-Zero GX's story mode helps paint a picture of the 'F-universe' and those cutscenes featuring Captain Falcon and the gang sure add some pizzazz. The series also certainly never looked better than on GameCube.
The breakneck speed and brutal difficulty might put some people off, but racing doesn't get much purer than this, and seeing as this was the last full-blown retail entry from the franchise to come to a home console, this is still arguably the hottest take on F-Zero going. Track it down.
Had it been released now, Luigi's Mansion would arguably be lauded for the charming and affectionate genre parody it is, and its short length would be an asset in an era when we have more games than time to play them.
As a launch game for GameCube, though, it wasn't what gamers were expecting in 2002 after the genre-defining Super Mario 64 launched Nintendo's previous console.
It took a while to be appreciated after the initial bafflement that it wasn't a Mario platformer, but after a 3DS sequel (which got an HD remaster) and the excellent Luigi's Mansion 3 on Switch, the original has since received the love it deserved and still plays beautifully - whether on GC, 3DS, or Switch 2 via NSO.
Given the 'Cel-da' controversy that blighted the game at its initial reveal, it's fitting that The Wind Waker has come to be so loved and admired over time.
Where other games of the era struggle under the weight of modern high-definition scrutiny, Toon Link's maiden voyage looks almost as fresh as the day we first set out from Outset Isle to discover what had happened to the Hyrule we once knew.
It's not without flaws (and the HD remake on Wii U addressed many of them) but thinking back, we don't dwell on the repetitive wind conducting, the infamous Triforce shard hunt, or Tingle's sea chart extortion. No, it's the rainbow colours of the tempestuous ocean, the breezy panpipes of Dragon Roost, and the salty self-reflection our voyages brought about that stick in the memory.
Beneath the surface, it's very much a continuation of the 3D Zelda template laid down in Ocarina of Time, but there's undeniable magic in The Wind Waker, and despite its imperfections, it's still one of our very favourites of the series.
So there you go: all GameCube games on Switch 2. A fine little selection, wouldn't you agree?
Finally, we answer some common questions Nintendo Life readers have about the GameCube games on Switch 2.
This is a dynamic, real-time ranking compiled via the User Ratings awarded by Nintendo Life readers.
You can add (or even change) your User Ratings for every game you've played at any time, even after publication. Try searching for your favourite Switch 2 GameCube games in the box below and rate them to influence the order.
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