Retrogaming wouldn’t be possible without Nintendo games that made their mark on the history of video game industry. There were lots of video game consoles that made Nintendo popular and earned it the reputation of the 3rd most famous consumer electronics brand in the world. But there was one console that occupies a special place in the hearts of long standing fans of Nintendo creations. It is the Nintendo GameCube console. Now there is no need to spend a fortune on physical consoles. With the advent of emulators, special programs that enable modern computers to behave like their retro counterparts, in particular vintage consoles. You can download a GameCube emulator onto your PC or Android device, then, get a couple of your favorite GameCube ROMs (games designed for emulators) and you’re good to go.
What Was Special About the GameCube?
The GameCube is part of the 6th generation of consoles and was released in 2001 in Japan and the United States. It’s a combination of old and new. It’s the first Nintendo console to feature an optical drive as standard. On the other hand, it’s the last to feature standard wire controllers. It’s also the first console to have games come in plastic cases instead of cardboard boxes. It looks nice, it’s compact, and has the best accessory in the world – the Game Boy player, which gives you access to huge library of games published for the Game Boy and Gameboy Advance. The GameCube also feature a lot of new games many retro gamers absolutely love. As for the controller, it’s still much loved by many people today.
Best GameCube Emulators for PC
Presently, there are not many stable emulators that can help you play GameCube games on your computer. The only solution that has survived the test of time and won popularity among the avid fans of the GameCube is Dolphin. Way back in 2003, it supported only a handful of games. Lags and freezes also were commonplace back them. Presently, it’s possible to argue that Dolphin is pretty reliable and stable. What started as a modest GameCube emulator had became a premium emulator by 2011. There are a lot of reasons to use this emulator. It could be anything from convenience to improving on the graphics and performance. Moreover, Dolphin boasts a wide variety of advanced features and settings, which can help you get the most out of your gaming experience.
With that being said, it’s important to note that Dolphin isn’t the only emulator designed to run GameCube games on modern platforms. There are other tools like Dolwin and GCEMU currently available on the emulation software market. But, truth be told, both Dolwin and GCEMU simply cannot stack up against their Dolphin counterpart. Thus, despite its ability to run GameCube games at a decent speed and its noteworthy enhancement features, GCEMU is considered to be a half-baked product which is still under development. As for Dolwin, it’s stable and boasts relatively high performance on desktop PCs. That being said, it’s quite demanding in terms of hardware requirements and, most importantly, unable to run commercial GameCube games, meaning you won’t be able to play, say, the Super Mario Sunshine ROM or Pokémon Colosseum on it.
Kindly take this information into consideration when choosing your emulator.
Platforms that Support GameCube ROMs
Dolphin is an open-source cross-platform project, which means it can be installed on the computers running Windows, MacOS, and Linux. What’s more, the most recent version of this emulator supports Android OS, which allows you to play favorite GameCube classics on the go on your mobile device.
As you see, with Dolphin you can play Game Cube ROMs (also known as GameCube ISOs) virtually on any operating system, whereas Dolwin and GCEMU support only 64-bit Windows OS.
Best GameCube ROMs for Your Emulator
Now that you have an emulator, you may want to proceed to download GameCube games to play on it. The GameCube boasts a huge library of games, and you can get any from a dedicated website. Nowadays, you can quickly locate and download any GameCube ROM or GameCube ISO for free from such websites as Killerroms, Emuparadise, Romhub and other time-tested abandonware resources distributing quality old-school games and emulation software.
Among the best GameCube ROMs most retro gamers are looking for are Super Smash Bros. Melee, Metroid Prime, and Resident Evil 4. You also may want to check out such timeless classics as The Legend of Zelda: The Twilight Princess, Luigi’s Mansion, and Super Mario Sunshine.