Best price for Nintendo GameCube + Zelda (or rent)? Please help!
 

I am a loyal Sony Playstation and PS2 owner and never really considered buying the GameCube or the XBox. However, my fiance absolutely LOVES the Legend of Zelda and would love to get the new Zelda game that is coming out. I see that many places allow you to get that promo Zelda disk with 2 older versions of Zelda games for free if you pre-order the new Zelda. However, at $150 for the system and $50 for the pre-ordered Zelda, that's $200 for what is essentially 2 games. I can't imagine that we'd buy many GameCube games aside from the Zelda ones. I could be wrong.

In any event, because she loves Zelda so much, I'd like to buy her this system. Is there any place where I can get this thing with the Zelda game for less than $200. Your help will be appreciated.

Also, what are my options as far as rentals are concerned? Is there a place where I can rent a GameCube for about a month? How much would that cost? Considering she wouldn't have a tremendous amount of time to play the game each day, it would probably take at least a month to finish. Renting the system from Blockbuster wouldn't be a good idea because it will cost almost as much as buying the thing.

I guess that's about it. Any ideas or other input would be much appreciated.

By the way, I just got finished playing Ratchet & Clank on the PS2. Are there games like that for the GameCube that are comparable (or perhaps even better)? If there are, maybe it is worth the investment to get the GameCube.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Well, right now you can find SEVERAL deals on the Gamecube. This week at Circuit City, if you buy a Gamecube you get 2 games free with it (Bloody Roar + one of 4 other really good games).

Target and Best Buy have recently had similar types of deals.

As far as GC games comparable to Ratchet and Clank, I'd have to say Super Mario Sunshine is pretty good. I liked Ratchet and Clank a little more, but it's still pretty good.

I loved ratchet and clank, and mario owns ratchet and clank. go buy a Mario bundle ($159) which comes with mario sunshine and a memory card. you'll get another free game...i humbly recommend Metroid Prime. Preorder Zelda and get Ocarina of Time (I would argue the best game EVER) for free. You'll be out the door with two of the best games of last year (SMS and Metroid), the best game of 98 (Zelda 64), and what is sure to be the best game of this year (Zelda)...all for about $210 + tax.

Don't mistake me for a fanboy, I'm actually a PS2 guy, but there's nothing on PS2 that can touch Mario or Zelda for my money...or Metroid for that matter.

You can probably buy a refurbished GC from $75-$100, not sure exactly at EB, but you wouldn't get the free promo game. Then prepurchase the Zelda game and get the 2 game bonus disc for free, gotta look around as most places have sold out of the bonus discs.

I'd go with the Mario Sunshine Bundle as suggested. Try buying it at BB and you might be able to get 1 of the 4 promo games also, just bring it up to the register and see if it rings up for free when you pay for them. CC, TRU, and some Targets won't let you get the free promo game with the SMS Bundle.

In the end, your fiancee will have 2 Zelda games to hold her over until Wind Waker comes out.

Unfortunately, it will be very difficult to find a store that will sell the Mario bundle with the free game offer. BB did in the 1st week, but has since fixed the system so it doesn't work anymore. CC has pretty much disallowed this from the start. Target might work, if you can find a cluess CSR.

I suggest looking at stores like EB. At least I heard a conversation at a local one where the manager told a customer that he would sell him the SMS bundle and give him a free game. It might be worth it to call ahead and ask.

PAL

I got the Mario bundle with a free game at Best Buy last week. Using the $5 coupon available in the store, I also picked up Rogue Leader for $15. $175 total.

Chess the deal you speak of is pretty dead, anyone who got in on it was because the store screwed up or before CC caught on...

Free or Nothing :)
 

I don't know of any place that rents, but check out the trade in values and refurbished prices for the Cube at stores like EB.

When the Platinum cube came out, I traded in my jet for $120 and bought a refurbished platinum one for $135.

What I'm thinking is you can buy the Refurbished Cube, as the above poster mentions, I'm pretty sure they are below $100 now. Use it for as long as you like, and then trade in the system for $60-$70 down the road.

If I was you, I'd just buy it and keep it, but this scenario lets you lay out about $150 maximum (Cube, Zelda plus Bonus, and memory card), and then recoup at least $100 down the line. If you Ebay the bonus disc, you will make a profit.

Just got back from Best buy in mission valley. i orderd Mario package from bestbuy.com and when i picked it up the lady was like Dont get you get a free game when you buy a gamecube? I was like I dunno...so she hooked me up with Metroid Prime. i also bought Animal Crossing ($50 yikes! for my sisters to play, the gc is a bday present for my sister but hey i'll take Metroid Prime for free)

Damn! Why is it that I never run across clueless CSRs like that? :mad:

At the Best Buy I went to, the free game was in the system with the Mario bundle. After everything was scanned in, the system took Metroid Prime's price off the total automatically.

I looked everywhere, but couldn't find the Zelda pre-order deal. I ended up ordering from ebgames.com. My OoT disc will be here tomorrow.

it seems to be more regional/local than dead. i did it at BB not CC for what it's worth.

still think it's worth a shot.