Classic GameCube Game Is Free on Xbox One and Series X

June 13, 2026, 6:15am

A classic Nintendo GameCube game is free on Xbox One, Xbox Series S, and Xbox Series X. The game in question is actually a former arcade game released in 2001, but only in Japan. It was then ported to the Sega Dreamcast, but again, only in Japan. Then, in 2003, it came to the Nintendo GameCube, and this time it came west, where it was effectively a GameCube exclusive for five years, until it came to Xbox 360 in 2008. And it’s this Xbox 360 version that is free for all Xbox One, Xbox Series S, and Xbox Series X users, no Game Pass needed.

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For those not familiar with video game history and thus did not connect the dots, the free Xbox game in question is Ikaruga from Japanese developer Treasure. Now, if you head to the North American version of the Xbox Store, you will see the classic from yesteryear listed for $9.99, its normal price. On the Argentine version of the digital storefront, though, it is free. If you don’t live in Argentina, the good news is you can simply make an account for this region and claim the game that way at no extra cost, just a couple of extra steps.

A Classic Bullet Hell Game

For those who have never heard of this game, it is a bullet hell game and a spiritual successor to Radiant Silvergun, also from Treasure, one of the great shooters of this era and one of the best Sega Dreamcast games of all time. Upon release, Ikaruga earned an 85 on Metacritic, and seemingly sold appreciably as well. That said, it never got a follow-up or even its own spiritual successor, though Treasure itself has not released any new games since 2014, only re-releases, as the studio has downsized tremendously over the years. It is said to be finally working on a new game, though.

“Ikaruga is a vertical shoot ’em up that features unique polarity-switching gameplay,” reads an official description of the game on the Xbox Store. Switch the ship’s polarity and ‘get hit and absorb’ enemy bullets! Achieve the High Score with the chain bonus!”

Those who decide to pick up the bullet hell classic for free should expect a game that can be beaten in one to two hours, but that offers closer to 20 hours with side content, and up to 200 hours for completionists.

All of that said, and as always, feel free to leave a comment or two letting us know what you think, or join the video game conversations happening over on the ComicBook Forum.