The is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on September 14, 2001, in North America on November 18, 2001, and in Europe on May 3, 2002. It was Nintendo's fourth major home console, succeeding the Nintendo 64, and competed with Sony's PlayStation 2 and Microsoft's Xbox in the sixth generation of game consoles.
Nintendo began developing the GameCube in 1998 after entering a partnership with ArtX to design a graphics processing unit. It was the first Nintendo console to use optical discs instead of ROM cartridges, supplemented by writable memory cards for saved games. Unlike its competitors, the GameCube was solely focused on games; games were distributed on a MiniDVD-based format, and most models cannot play DVDs or CDs. The GameCube controller uses a handlebar design with a staggered analog stick layout. GameCube accessories include a link cable that enables connectivity with the Game Boy Advance (GBA) and e-Reader, the Game Boy Player add-on for running Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and GBA games, and the WaveBird Wireless Controller. Select games supported online gaming via a broadband or modem adapter.
The GameCube received praise for its controller and exclusive games, but criticism for its toy-like design and lack of multimedia features. Though profitable, it sold far less than the PlayStation 2 and slightly less than the Xbox, only outselling Sega's Dreamcast. Nintendo sold consoles worldwide, much fewer than anticipated. This has been attributed to a weak launch game lineup and Nintendo's focus on younger players, a minority of the gaming audience at the time, rather than teenagers and adults. Compared to its competitors, the GameCube's third-party support was limited; some developers skipped releasing multiplatform games on the GameCube, and others reduced support due to poor sales.
Nintendo released a successor, the Wii, on November 19, 2006; most Wiis are backward compatible with GameCube games and accessories. It discontinued the GameCube in February 2007. In retrospect, video game journalists have ranked the GameCube among the best game consoles. The GameCube's library includes acclaimed games such as Super Smash Bros. Melee (2001), Super Mario Sunshine (2002), Eternal Darkness (2002), Metroid Prime (2002), The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (2002), and Resident Evil 4 (2005). Several popular Nintendo franchises, including Animal Crossing, Luigi's Mansion, and Pikmin, began on the GameCube. The GameCube controller has been supported on every subsequent Nintendo home console.
History
Development In 1997, the graphics hardware design company ArtX was founded, with twenty engineers who had previously worked at SGI. ArtX was led by Wei Yen, who had been SGI's head of Nintendo Operations and of Project Reality, which from 1993 to 1996 had scaled down SGI's supercomputer design to create the Nintendo 64 console.
In May 1998, ArtX entered into a partnership with Nintendo to undertake the complete design of the system logic and graphics processor, codenamed "Flipper", for Nintendo's sixth-generation video game console. The console went through a series of codenames, including N2000, Star Cube, and Nintendo Advance. On May 12, 1999, Nintendo announced the console during a press conference, giving it the codename "Dolphin" and positioning it as the successor to the Nintendo 64. They also announced partnerships with IBM to create Dolphin's PowerPC-based CPU, codenamed "Gekko," and with Panasonic (Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.) for the development of its DVD drive and other Dolphin-based devices. Following this announcement, Nintendo began providing development kits to game developers, including Rare and Retro Studios.
In April 2000, ArtX was acquired by ATI, but the Flipper graphics processor design had already been mostly completed by ArtX and was not overtly influenced by ATI. ArtX co-founder Greg Buchner recalled that their portion of the console's hardware design timeline had arced from inception in 1998 to completion in 2000. Of the ArtX acquisition, an ATI spokesperson said, "ATI now becomes a major supplier to the game console market via Nintendo. The Dolphin platform is reputed to be king of the hill in terms of graphics and video performance with 128-bit architecture."
The console was announced as the GameCube at a press conference in Japan on August 25, 2000, abbreviated as both "NGC" and "GC" in Japan and "GCN" in Europe and North America. Nintendo unveiled its software lineup at E3 2001, focusing on fifteen launch games, including Luigi's Mansion and Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader. Several games originally scheduled to launch with the console were delayed. The GameCube was the first Nintendo home console since the Famicom to not have a Mario game as a launch title.
Long before the launch, Nintendo developed and patented an early prototype of motion controls for the GameCube, with which the developer Factor 5 had experimented for its launch games. Greg Thomas, Sega of America's VP of Development said "What does worry me is Dolphin's sensory controllers [which are rumored to include microphones and headphone jacks] because there's an example of someone thinking about something different." These motion control concepts would not be deployed to consumers for several years, until the Wii Remote.
Prior to the GameCube's release, Nintendo focused resources on the launch of the Game Boy Advance (GBA), a handheld game console and successor to the original Game Boy and Game Boy Color. Several games planned for the Nintendo 64 were postponed to become early releases on the GameCube. Concurrently, Nintendo was developing GameCube software provisioning future connectivity with the GBA. Certain games, such as The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures and Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles, can use the GBA as a secondary screen and controller when connected to the GameCube via a link cable.
Nintendo began its marketing campaign with the catchphrase "The Nintendo Difference" at its E3 2001 reveal. The goal was to distinguish itself from the competition as an entertainment company. Later advertisements had the slogan "Born to Play", and game ads feature a rotating cube animation that morphs into a GameCube logo and end with a voice whispering "GameCube". On May 21, 2001, the launch price of was announced, lower than that of the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. Nintendo spent $76 million on marketing.
In September 2020, leaked documents included Nintendo's plans for a GameCube model that would be both portable with a built-in display and dockable to a TV, similar to its later console, the Nintendo Switch. Other leaks suggest plans for a GameCube successor codenamed Tako, with HD graphics and slots for SD and memory cards, apparently resulting from a partnership with ATI and scheduled for release in 2005. Tako was abandoned for Revolution (later revealed and released as the Wii in 2006), a non-HD console with motion controls. Nintendo would later work on Project Cafe, an HD console that became the Wii U, released in 2012.
Release The GameCube was launched in Japan on September 14, 2001. Approximately 500,000 units were shipped in time to retailers. The console was scheduled to launch two months later in North America on November 5, 2001, but this was delayed in an effort to increase the number of available units. The console eventually launched in North America on November 18, with over 700,000 units shipped. Other regions followed the following year, beginning with Europe in the second quarter of 2002.
On April 22, 2002, the third-party Nintendo console developer Factor 5 announced its 3D audio software development kit, MusyX. In collaboration with Dolby Laboratories, MusyX provided motion-based surround sound encoded as Dolby Pro Logic II.
Market share Throughout the mid-2000s, GameCube hardware sales remained far behind the PlayStation 2 and slightly behind the Xbox, though there were brief periods when it would outsell both. The family-friendly appeal and lack of support from certain third-party developers skewed toward a younger market, a minority of the gaming population at the time. Many third-party games popular with teenagers or adults, such as the blockbuster Grand Theft Auto series and several key first-person shooters, did not release on the GameCube, instead releasing on the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. However, many journalists and analysts noted that Nintendo's focus on younger audiences and its family-friendly image were both an advantage and a disadvantage at a time when video games were often aimed at more mature audiences. Nintendo was successful with games aimed at a more mature audience.
In June 2003, the GameCube had a 13% market share, tying with the Xbox in sales, but still far below the 60% of the PlayStation 2. However, despite slow sales and tough competition, Nintendo's position had improved in 2004. The American market share for the GameCube had increased from 19% to 37% in one year due to price cuts and high-quality games. One article stated that by early 2004, the GameCube had a 39% market share in America. By Christmas of 2003, Nintendo of America's president, George Harrison, reported that price cuts down to just under $100 had quadrupled sales in the American market. The GameCube's profitability never reached that of the PlayStation 2 or GBA. However, it was eventually more profitable than the Xbox.
In Europe, the GameCube's first two years had similarly slow sales, but by 2004, it had a hardware market share of 32%. Due to price drops, which helped sales in the American market, and well reviewed games such as Pokémon Colosseum and Resident Evil 4, the GameCube improved to outsell the Xbox in Europe. The top three European countries that contributed to the success of the GameCube were the UK, France, and Germany. The GameCube also sold well in Spain and Italy. Though falling behind the PlayStation 2, the GameCube was overall successful and profitable in Europe.
Discontinuation Nintendo launched the Wii, the successor to the GameCube, on November 19, 2006, in North America and in December 2006 in other regions. In February 2007, Nintendo announced that it had ended first-party support for the GameCube and that it had been discontinued, as it was shifting its manufacturing and development efforts towards the Wii and its new handheld console, the Nintendo DS. GameCube controllers, game discs, and certain accessories continued to be supported via the Wii's backward compatibility, although these features were removed in later iterations of the Wii console. The final game officially released on the GameCube was Madden NFL 08, on August 14, 2007. Several games originally developed for the GameCube were reworked for a Wii release, such as Super Paper Mario, or released on both consoles, such as the Wii launch game The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.
Hardware
Howard Cheng, technical director of Nintendo technology development, said the company's goal was to select a "simple RISC architecture" to help speed up the development of games by making it easier on software developers. IGN reported that the system was "designed from the get-go to attract third-party developers by offering more power at a cheaper price. Nintendo's design document for the console specifies that cost is of utmost importance, followed by space." Hardware partner ArtX's Vice President Greg Buchner stated that their guiding thought on the console's hardware design was to target the developers rather than the players, and to "look into a crystal ball" and discern "what's going to allow the Miyamoto-sans of the world to develop the best games".