Clubbin With the Cube

              Okay, so it’s been a week, and yet I’m still excited about my first experience….with the Nintendo Game Cube (GCN)!!  Yes, I went clubbin’ with the ‘Cube when it made a stop in the fair Windy City itself (Chicago, if ya didn’t know).

            The atmosphere there was pure excitement.  Everyone who managed to get in had grins on their faces and quickly crowded the Cubes.  Myself, I got my fair share with three launch titles that will be available November 18th, when the Cube officially debuts:  Wave Race, Luigi’s Mansion, and Super Smash Bros.:  Melee.  All of these games are awesome!  Believe me, if you though the PlayStation 2 looks good, wait until you try the Cube--you will be blown away.  But first, allow me to describe the system itself.

            It’s freaking tiny!  Man, this thing is small, but as we all know, size doesn’t matter (lol).  6” by 6” by 6”, it’s big enough to carry comfortably in your hands.  The discs themselves are small too--about half the size of a regular CD or DVD--but they sure pack a wallop.  The in-game graphics are smooth--unlike the blockiness of N64 games (Aidyn Chronicles, anyone?).  When you’re playing Melee, Link looks as though he could leap off-screen and duel you right there in our world, and while I was playing wave Race, the water was so realistic, at times I found myself flinching and making sure I wasn’t splashed with water.  Another nice quality is something you may have read about on cube.ign.com:  when opened, the GCN doesn't freeze or go berserk as some PSX games do when you accidentally open the disc cover.  Instead, the system asks you (politely, even!) to close the disc cover, then picks up the game right where you left off.  This will be especially nice when you accidentally hit the 'open' button on the console.

            The controllers are very comfortable, even though they do look awkward.  If you own a PS/PS2, or have ever held a Dual Shock controller, then you have the basic feel of the GCN controller.  In my humble opinion, it is much more comfortable than the gargantuan N64 controllers, though it does take a little getting used to.  If anything, my only beef with it is that the A and B buttons are different sizes; for fighting/button mashing games, having A and B the same size would’ve helped.  The good ol' D-pad is still on it, though I never needed to use it, and the new C-stick is actually less awkward than you would think  Overall though, the system and controller are great.

            Like I mentioned earlier, the atmosphere during the gathering was pure excitement.  There were no sad faces--even when I beat people at Melee, it was all in fun.  It was definitely a club setting; multicolored lights, music, and plenty of ‘Cubes.  There were even a few free TV sets broadcasting sports games and shows for the people who wanted to take a break from gaming.  I found myself spending a lot of time with the GCN, and Melee especially (my championship lives on!).  I did play Luigi’s Mansion for a while--it’s about time Luigi had a starring role, and his voices and mannerisms are hilarious!--then tried out Wave Race, on which I am gonna need a TON of practice.

            Super Smash Bros.:  Melee is sure to be a Nintendo fan's favorite, even more so than its predecessor.  The game is all cool runnings:  the graphics, the gameplay, even complete out-and-out free for alls run smoothly, with minimal loading and lag.  There were a few times when the game moved a bit slowly, especially when it was a four person melee and everyone is moving about, but otherwise the game is excellent.  The levels are beautiful--though I think I prefer the Great Bay setting, which is accurate down to the menacing moon lurking in the background--and the music is awesome!  It's been a while since I've heard Hyrule's overworld theme or the original Super Mario Bros. music done so beautifully.

            Luigi finally gets some spotlight in his game, Luigi's Mansion, and the game is like a cartoon version of Resident Evil, only without the zombies, gore, and Redfields.  Instead of guns, Luigi is armed with a vacuum cleaner, a flashlight, and a Game Boy Horror (a clear GBC), and he's hunting down ghosts which have seemingly kidnapped his older bro, Mario.  The ghosts are tricky to catch, since you have to catch them off-guard, and they're not exactly willing to go gently into Luigi's Hoover.  Speaking of the green-clad plumber, his facial expressions and mannerisms are hilariously done, as I said before.  When you're in a quiet room, listen closely and you'll hear Luigi humming or whistling some familiar Mario Bros. tune to get rid of his jitters--which isn't easy, considering the poor little lad is terrified of the specters. 

            I honestly don't know why I tried out Wave Race, because it is a known fact that I suck royally at racing games, but for some odd reason, I decided to give Wave Race a chance.  I nearly dizzied myself from all the tunnels, turns, and leaps your character performs on the jetskiis, for my dude was flying everywhere!  The racegrounds are so lifelike, it feels like you're in a real ESPN X-Games show, and the water?  Oh man, I swear, there were a few times when I and my fellow racers thought we'd really been splashed, only to find that it was just the jet spray from our skiis covering the camera. That's how realistic the water jets and splashes are!

            Now that I’ve had some real hands-on time with the GameCube, it only fuels my anticipation for its official debut.  At least now I can fully reassure you, my fellow gamers, that this system is definitely worth its weight in gold.  Nintendo has brought to us a whole new generation of gaming, and this system is undeniably worth the wait.