10 Best GameCube Games of All Time Ranked by Sales

With a unique purple color and a cube shape, the GameCube was one of Nintendo’s best-looking consoles; even the alien-looking controller is fantastic. But apart from the visual aspect of the GameCube, the other element that makes it stand out is its video game catalog.

From Super Mario Sunshine to Animal Crossing, the GameCube had home run after home run; here are the best GameCube games of all time ranked by sales. 

Best Nintendo GameCube Games in Order of Sales

• Animal Crossing
• Pokemon Colosseum
• Mario Party 4
• Sonic Adventures 2
• Metroid Prime
• Luigi’s Mansion
• The Legend of Zelda: The Windwaker
• Super Mario Sunshine
• Mario Kart Double Dash
• Super Smash Bros. Melee

10. Animal Crossing - 2.2 Million Copies Sold

The latest installment of Animal Crossing has been making waves in recent months, selling 32 million units. But it isn’t the first Animal Crossing to make an impact. The GameCube Animal Crossing game also sold very well at 2.2 million copies.

Although when you compare the sales of the two games they look massively different, they both managed to cement themselves into the list of best-selling games for their respective consoles. 

Like other Animal Crossing games, the GameCube installment is a life simulation game. Players can make their new life in a village along with all of the animals that live there.

Some of the things that they can do include fishing, decorating and improving their houses, and trading items with fellow villagers. 

9.  Pokemon Colosseum - 2.4 Million Copies Sold

First released in Japan in 2003, Pokemon Colosseum is an RPG set in the Pokemon world. The game’s story takes place in the Orre Region and the player must take on the evil organization, Cypher.

Like every Pokemon game, there are plenty of Pokemon to catch including Quagsire, Delibird, Slugma, and Ho-Oh. Pokemon always sells well and Pokemon Colosseum was no exception; the game managed to sell 2.4 million copies.

The game would get a sequel, Pokemon XD: Gate of Darkness, which was released on the GameCube in 2005. This new story takes place in Orre and sees another protagonist fight against Cypher. 

8. Mario Party 4 - 2.4 Million Copies Sold

Mario Party can be a fun game depending on your friend group and your playstyles, or it could be an aggravating, hair-pulling time; there’s usually no in-between.

But it seems that many people enjoyed this party game, considering that it sold 2.4 million copies; making it one of the best GameCube games of all time in terms of sales. 

It also wasn’t the only Mario Party game released on the GameCube, with Mario Party 5, 6, and 7 being released for the console as well. 

Mario Party 4 is similar to other games of the franchise, in which players compete against each other on a board game. The goal is to get enough coins to buy stars, and the player with the most stars at the end wins. 

Along the way, there are plenty of minigames to enjoy, which will award you with coins depending on how well you did. Some of the minigames in Mario Party 4 include Take a Breather, Money Belts, and Cliffhangers.

7. Sonic Adventure 2: Battle - 2.5 Million Copies Sold 

Sonic the Hedgehog has been a staple for decades, with TV shows, games, and even movies. So, it’s not a surprise that he also had a hit game on the GameCube. Sonic Adventure 2, however, wasn’t just a Sonic game, it also introduced Shadow the Hedgehog as a prominent character as well. 

Along with these two hedgehogs, the other playable characters are Tails, Doctor Eggman, Knuckles, and Rogue. 

This GameCube game did exceedingly well, selling 2.5 million copies. Shadow’s debut was a success, and he’s become a popular character in the Sonic universe.

It’s been 20 years since Sonic Adventure 2’s release, and we’re still hoping a true sequel will eventually come along, but we’re keeping our expectations realistic. 

6. Metroid Prime - 2.8 Million Copies Sold 

Metroid Prime stars Samus Aran as she battles space pirates and fights Meta Ridley on the planet Tallon IV. The game was released on the GameCube in 2002 and would launch a Metroid Prime franchise.

It was also the first game in the Metroid series to have a first-person perspective, a change to the franchise’s normal side-scrolling view. 

Metroid Prime is one of the best Nintendo GameCube games of all time, not just because of how good it is, but because of how well it did. It sold 2.8 million copies.

The Prime franchise is still going to this day, with Metroid Prime 4 being worked on right now, although there is no official release date yet. 

If you can’t wait for the game to come out, you can sink your teeth into Metroid Dread, a side-scrolling game that is due to release in October of this year. 

5. Luigi’s Mansion - 3.3 Million Copies Sold

Luigi is known for being a bit of a scaredy-cat, so making him the star of a game where he has to capture ghosts in a haunted mansion seems ironically cruel. But this game is a ton of fun, so we’re okay with it.

With Mario always receiving the spotlight, it’s nice to get a change of pace and to play as Luigi as he uses his flashlight and special vacuum to combat the ghosts. 

Luigi proved to have star power based on the sales of Luigi’s Mansion; the game sold 3.3 million copies. It would also spawn two sequels, and the most recent one, Luigi’s Mansion 3, was released in 2019.

All of this proves that Luigi has what it takes to be the star of the show, and we expect a lot more Luigi games in the future. 

4. The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker - 4.4 Million Copies Sold

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker was released in Japan in 2002, and sees Link take on his long-standing enemy, Ganon. The game requires Link to go sailing from island to island, using the Wind Waker baton to control the wind.

Apart from the amazing gameplay, Wind Waker is known for having a more animated art style as opposed to its predecessors. 

Although the game’s art style was a departure from the series’ normal style, Wind Waker still managed to have great sales: 4.4 million copies sold. And this game’s version of Link also managed to join the Super Smash Bros. roster, with his name being Toon Link. 

It’s been many years since we’ve played a Zelda game with this exact art style, but we hope a sequel will eventually come. 

3. Super Mario Sunshine - 6.2 Million Copies Sold

The 3-D Super Mario games always have something to set them apart. Super Mario 64 was the first 3-D Mario game, Super Mario Galaxy takes place in outer space, and Super Mario Odyssey features Mario using a living, breathing, cap. 

Super Mario Sunshine is no different with a lot of Mario’s moves and arsenal coming from F.L.U.D.D., a device that serves as a jetpack and a water hose for Mario. He’ll need it to clean up Isle Delfino and to clear his name after he was accused of vandalizing the island.

Super Mario Sunshine did what every Super Mario game does, it sold like hotcakes, with 6.2 million copies being sold. The game was recently released in a pack for the Nintendo Switch, with Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Galaxy also being included in this pack. 

The game gave us a lot of great things, but giving the world Bowser Jr. is probably the best thing it could’ve given us. That alone already makes it one of the best GameCube games of all time. 

2. Mario Kart: Double Dash - 6.9 Million Copies Sold 

Every Mario Kart game is fun, but double the competitors mean double the fun. Unlike other Mario Kart games, there are two characters in each vehicle; the one that drives and the one that uses the items.

Although there are official pairs you can select from, such as Mario and Luigi and Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong, you can mix and match your team.

Everyone loves Mario Kart, and the sales prove that. Mario Kart Double Dash sold an impressive 6.9 million copies, making it the best-selling racing game on the GameCube.

Although the two-person per vehicle part of the game wasn’t a game-changing element, it would be nice to see that again in another Mario Kart game. It would make sense with the number of characters the newer games have. 

1. Super Smash Bros. Melee - 7.4 Million Units Sold

It’s a big deal when another Super Smash Bros. installment comes out, and it was the same when Super Smash Bros. Melee was released. In the sequel to the first game, Melee took what the original did and expanded on it.

More characters, stages, and items were all included. New characters that were introduced include Princess Peach, Zelda, Mewtwo, and Ganondorf. 

Super Smash Bros. Melee is at the top of the list of best GameCube games of all time, with the fighting game selling 7.4 million copies. The game is so fun that it still has a community to this day, with its competitive scene still chugging along.

Melee isn’t only an iconic GameCube game, but in general, it’s a great fighting game regardless of console. 

There are plenty of great GameCube games that weren’t included on this list such as Paper Mario, F-Zero GX, and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, and that doesn’t mean they’re bad. But when it comes to the best-selling GameCube games, these are the undisputed kings.

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