In case you’re somehow not aware, Nintendo GameCube games have gotten really expensive over the years. Some of the most popular games on the throwback Nintendo console have rapidly risen in price lately, with titles like Super Smash Bros. Melee, Mario Kart: Double Dash, and Luigi’s Mansion all retailing for anywhere between $50 and $75 on average at resale. Believe it or not, this represents the low end of prices for GameCube games, with those on the high end going from $500 to well over $2000. If you think this is ridiculous, you wouldn’t be wrong.
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So why are GameCube games this costly? Well, much of it comes down to availability. With something like the aforementioned Super Smash Bros. Melee, there is no way to experience the game outside of owning a physical copy and playing it on a GameCube (or Wii) console. Many games from the GameCube era haven’t been remastered or brought forward by Nintendo in other ways, which means that the only way to still experience them is by finding an original copy. This has resulted in the GameCube market getting a bit out of control, to say the least.
As luck would have it, though, Nintendo is finally pushing a new means of making GameCube games available, and it could impact some of the most expensive games on the platform finally falling in price.
Nintendo Switch Online Could Be the Saving Grace for GameCube Collectors
Alongside the unveiling of the Nintendo Switch 2, it was revealed that GameCube games would finally be added to Nintendo Switch Online. Although the Switch 2 has been available for more than two months now, this slate of GameCube classics available on the hardware is currently pretty slim. It only includes the likes of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, SoulCalibur II, F-Zero GX, and Super Mario Strikers.
To this point, these GameCube games in question haven’t seen their original, physical counterparts discounted much at resale. However, there’s reason to believe that this won’t hold true for long. Typically, when a game gets remastered, remade, or ported to new hardware, it results in the original version seeing a pretty hefty cut in its value.
Perhaps the perfect example of this is Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. From 2020 through 2023, the GameCube Paper Mario sold for $100 to $120 consistently. When the new Switch remake of The Thousand-Year Door came out in 2024, though, this resulted in the GameCube version falling in cost quickly. Today, it retails for under $50 on average.
Although these games on Nintendo Switch Online aren’t remakes and remasters, by Nintendo making them available in this manner, there’s a high likelihood that it could substantially impact the resale market. While this is exciting in its own right, it’s even more enticing given that some outrageously expensive GameCube games have already been confirmed for Switch Online.
Very Expensive GameCube Games Are Bound for NSO
While Nintendo hasn’t given a full glimpse of what will be coming to Switch Online on the GameCube side of things in the years ahead, it has outlined a smaller group of titles that should hit before the end of 2025. This lineup includes Luigi’s Mansion, Pokemon Colosseum, Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness, Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance, and Chibi-Robo. These games aren’t just some of the most beloved titles from Nintendo to ever release on GameCube, they’re also (outside of Luigi’s Mansion) among the most costly first-party games to buy right now.
Here are the current resale averages for these games to better understand just how asinine their costs are:
- Luigi’s Mansion – $55
- Pokemon Colosseum – $140
- Pokemon XD Gale of Darkness – $195
- Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance – $180
- Chibi-Robo – $200
Essentially, if you’re a GameCube collector, there’s a good reason to believe that once these games hit Nintendo Switch Online, they should start to slowly dip in price. Titles like Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance and Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness will surely still end up costing a pretty penny simply because of how few physical copies there are, but the days of seeing each sell for $200 or more should (hopefully) start to be a thing of the past.
Perhaps our best indicator of how the resale market might react to these new Nintendo Switch Online releases will come with Chibi-Robo. As of this month, Chibi-Robo has rolled out on Switch Online and is playable via Switch 2 right now. It hasn’t been available for a long enough period of time on the Nintendo subscription to impact its resale cost just yet. Still, if you’re looking to grab a physical edition for yourself, you might want to hold off for a bit to get yourself a better deal in the future.
How do you feel about Nintendo making GameCube games from the past like this more widely available through Switch Online? And do you believe that GameCube prices could fall as they start to arrive on NSO? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
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