Eternal Darkness
RE4
Prince of Persia
Beyond Good and Evil
XIII (always gets overlooked)

and they should all be readily available for less than $20 each

eternal darkness is at many pawn shops here in indy for $5 and at blockbuster for $7.50-10 if you don't mind used....

Picked up a copy of Killer 7 for $10 (new) at Gamestop. Still no luck finding a used/new copy of Eternal Darkness (other than the $50 one at Wal-Mart).

I'll check into my local Blockbuster, but can anyone point me to someplace that might have new or complete used copies at a reasonable price?

Most of my recommendations probably reiterate what others have already mentioned:

Gamecube Exclusives:
Metroid Prime 1 & 2 - I picked up a Gamecube originally to play the first one. I like Echoes also because it provides enough new elements to keep things interesting. This series translates the spirit of the 2D games extremely well.
Resident Evil 4 - Excellent game that truly redefines the series.
Eternal Darkness - Great story and interesting creep-out/scare tactics. Rather innovative for a survival-horror game. Beat it 3 times for the best ending (each playthrough is slightly different).
Resident Evil 1 & 0 - The original survival-horror game (though remade) and 0 adds some interesting new features and storyline elements.
Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker - Solid gameplay, surprisingly good story, fairly easy, and as others mentioned the sailing is slow at first.
Baten Kaitos & Origins - Nice RPG's utilizing a card-based battle system. Origins supposedly simplifies some of the more tedious aspects.
Battalion Wars - Haven't played through the whole game but so far so good. Great strategy-action mix.
Paper Mario - Haven't played it yet, but most everyone seems to agree it is the best RPG on the system.
Star Wars Rogue Leader and Rebel Strike - If you like Star Wars. Rebel Strike also has a co-op only version of the entire Rogue Leader game included.
Tales of Symphonia - A slightly more action-oriented RPG.
Super Mario Sunshine - Can't go wrong with Mario.

Non-Exclusives:
Prince of Persia Series - Wonderful platforming adventure.
Killer 7 - Trippy, mature, and should be cheap!

I agree.

And I'll send a vote in for Luigi's Mansion, Wind Waker, and BG&E.

No love for 1080 Snowboarding? I think it's pretty fun.

Super Monkey Ball 1

Metal Gear Solid: Twin Snakes was a game I played through 5 times. The only other Gamecube game I played through as much was RE 4. I do still go back and play Metroid Prime and Zelda: WW. It's fun just to pick a direction and go...

Would anyone recommend "Zelda: Four Swords Adventures" as a single-player game? I loved "A Link to the Past", but the multi-player elements of "Four Swords" have kept me away.

There was a specific thread asking exactly what you are. If memory serves the consensus was no.

Thank-you!!

actually, I recommend Four Swords as a rental. Definitely not worth buying even at PC price, but it's fun to go through once if you are a big ALTTP fan

Two great (and pure!) single player games, both early releases:
Luigi's Mansion
Pikmin (the original)

I've seen a lot of people recommending "Luigi's Mansion", but when it was originally released it only garnered average reviews, namely 7's. Is it really that good of a game (above 7) or is this perhaps more of a sentimental recommendation, i.e. the first game people had occasion to play on their Gamecube?

I got it used for about $10 and played through the single-player mode and I loved it. While I wish had a few friends to play it with, I'm going to keep it around and play it with my kids this next summer.

My main concerns with this game are (1) you have to control all four charaters, (2) use them as a team, and (3) inventory is not cumulative, i.e. you have to start each level from scratch. The latter especially makes it seem as though this is not a true Zelda game (missng the RPG element). In my mind it seems like this is more of a puzzle game thrown into a Zelda context, but in the end no more a Zelda game than perhaps "Mario Tennis" is a Mario game.

I think it has to do with being a launch title. Was it worth $50? No way. It was way too easy and very short. Probably the reason for low scores. BUT it was fun and different than the norm. Plus everyone was clamoring for Mario, not some lame title with his brother. :)

But for under $20, it is an easy recommendation.

If that's your thinking then stay away from it. There are much better games out there.

I found the lack of a true RPG (some - like me - will argue that its an Adventure Game, not an RPG) to be refreshing versus other Zelda games. The story isn't really condusive to the RPG element and to me is treated more like a Mario title with a standard patternign to the levels (i.e. 1-1, 1-2, 1-3, Boss, 2-1, 2-2, 2-3, Boss, etc.).

Your inventory is cumulative (most items), but in the single player mode, if you swap out an item, everyone does, but there are enough instances of each item around that it doesn't really hinder game play.

The boss battles are great and the "team" aspect of defeating the bosses and solving some puzzles are difficult.

If you want something that is RPG-like, I'd recommend either Starfox Adventures or Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door.

Like anything, different strokes for different folks. I've discovered I like more games rated in the 7s than many critically-acclaimed titles (the 10 out of 10, four star variety). I still love Marvel Nemesis, for Pete's sake!

As for Luigi's Mansion, it was the only game in recent years that I started replaying right after I went through the single player. I admit that I may be the only person on earth guilty of that, but there you go. In my experience, it is the best Ghostbuster-esque game ever created (which may not be saying much).

Bump. I recently purchased a new Gamecube, and I've gotten games such as Resident Evil 4, Zelda: Twlight Princess, Prince of Persia Trilogy, etc. Does anyone know where a copy of Killer 7 can be found? I've searched about 7-9 different EB Games stores in the Louisville, KY area and no one has it for the GC (although I've seen about 5-6 copies for the PS2).

Also, any other recommendations?

Eternal Darkness

DGibFen - I'm also in Louisville. While I haven't searched for that game, I remember seeing it numerous times around town, but all the EB/GS's have significantly shrunk their GC selection. There's always half.com/ebay.

Tales of Symphonia is a decent RPG for the cube.