Cancel your schedule; it’s time to take a look at the best Zelda games on GameCube!
Ok, so there are only four games, but technically there are 7 titles available to play on Nintendo’s purple powerhouse thanks to a much-sought-after collectors disc.
For me, the GameCube was, and still is, one of my favourite Nintendo consoles, largely down to the fact that it had so many cool multiplayer games.
And, Link even falls into that category too; just check out our best multiplayer GameCube games if you don’t believe me!
Playing the game in the top spot with my Mum giving advice about ‘not searching properly’, reliving classic Link adventures with the title at Number 3; there might only have been four releases for the GameCube, but they definitely made their mark on this writer.
But which game took the top spot? Let’s cut the chit-chat and find out!
4. The Legend Of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures (2004)
The Legend Of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures is up first in this list of the best Zelda games on Gamecube. It’s also one of the best Gamecube Multiplayer games of all time too, but don’t expect your mates to always be on your side!
In terms of gameplay, I would say that it looks and feels a lot like what would come out of a cocktail shaker if you threw the Wind Waker, Four Swords, and A Link To The Past in there.
In fact, the music sounds so much like A Link To The Past that you might be forgiven for thinking that it was the same game.
And, it did come bundled with the GBA version of the game, so I guess it’s not hard to see why.
Couch co-op is pretty much a thing of the past these days, apart from titles like Unravelled and It Takes Two. That makes this a bit of a novelty on the GameCube and a cool new feature for Zelda fans to jump on board with.
Play with one to four people, battling for rupees but working together to overcome problems and take down tough enemies.
But why are there four Links?
Well, the Four Sword was released and, in the process, turned Link into four versions of himself. And, to make matters worse, Vaati is back on the scene.
Can’t this guy give Link a break; he’s suffered enough!
3. The Legend Of Zelda: Collectors Edition (2003)
The Legend Of Zelda: Collectors Edition is a bit of an enigma. It’s one of those collectors items that people acquired have acquired through different means in different regions and can now fetch a pretty penny on second-hand sites.
Why is this disc so good though?
Well, it includes 4 amazing Zelda games for you to play on the GameCube – The Legend of Zelda, Zelda II: Adventure of Link, Ocarina of Time, and Majora’s Mask.
Ok, 3 amazing Zelda games and Adventure of Link; you guys know how I feel about that impossibly hard game!
Initially, this disc was available via the Club Nintendo rewards system in Japan. You could get it via registering a GameCube and a selection of games in North America, and it came with the GameCube Mario Kart: Double Dash!! bundle in Europe, or by spending 4,500 stars with Club Nintendo as opposed to the 500 needed in Japan.
I sent off for mine after posting proof of me owning Mario Kart: Double Dash!! and ended up selling it years later for far too little money if the eBay prices are anything to go by.
Still, we live and learn.
No matter where you live, this game wasn’t available to buy outright. But, if you wanted to play Majora’s mask on the GameCube and not get claw hand through playing on the N64, then this was the only way to do it!
2. The Legend Of Zelda: Twilight Princess (2006)
The Legend Of Zelda: Twilight Princess takes the 2nd spot in this list of the best Zelda games on GameCube.
Whenever I talk about Zelda on the GameCube, I don’t instantly associate it with Twilight Princess. It did come out for the console and I have played it on there in the past, but for me it will always be the game I played on the Wii and the Wii-U.
That’s why it’s taking 2nd place today.
There are so many similarities to Ocarina of Time with this game too. That’s not a criticism; you all know how much I love Ocarina to this day, but somehow it just didn’t feel as new and original as the title in the top spot.
Despite the Wind Waker mixing up the formula with cel-shaded graphics, a proper Adult Link adventure was what the fans were clearly craving. This was the best selling Zelda game until Breath of the Wild dropped in 2017, outselling Ocarina by 900,000 copies!
I think, even though the idea of island hopping in the Wind Waker was amazing, people just love that nostalgia of Hyrule Castle Town Square and that general Ocarina of Time feel.
Plus the characters were very cool too, and you can learn a little more about Ganondorf’s role in this game in our best Ganondorf facts article!
1. The Legend Of Zelda: The Wind Waker (2002)
The Legend Of Zelda: The Wind Waker takes the top spot in this list of the best Zelda games on GameCube!
I know I’ve just spent a long time talking about how great Twilight Princess is, but The Wind Waker was made solely for the GameCube until the HD version dropped on the Wii U.
And as it was a GC exclusive and a pretty radical change to Ocarina of Time, we’re giving it the golden rupee today.
My mum and I actually scoured my local town to try and find a copy of this game and every shop bar one had sold out. I took a second-hand copy home with me and it never left my GameCube.
Plus it came with the Master Quest Ocarina of Time disc too which was a nice added bonus!
Wind Waker sees Link starting out as a young lad with no skills and just a pair of cool pyjamas, and follows his journey to save his sister from The Forsaken Fortress.
Enter some pirates, Beedle’s shop ship, and Ganondorf and his massive pet bird, stealing any girls that look like Princess Zelda in a bid to get her part of the Triforce.
That guy really doesn’t know when to quit!
I always see something new every time I play this game, and sailing the great open sea in Link’s boat while searching for buried treasure never gets old.
Plus, the toon-style cel-shaded graphics really make this game timeless. It’s impossible not to immerse yourself in side-quests, and while it follows the old-style linear progression of Zelda games, the open-feel that exploring the map by boat gives you makes it a truly unique title that, once you’ve played, you’ll never forget.
Seb Santabarbara has bought every Nintendo console that has ever been released in his 31 years on Planet Earth. His favourite game franchise is Zelda, and he’s patiently waiting for Banjo-Kazooie to come back to the fold. When he’s not playing games, he’s travelling the world in his self-converted camper van.
