Why is it that we videogame fans focus to the future more than the present? You only need to look at the forum threads doing the rounds on the net for evidence. I guess it's our nature. But should we be doing the same with Gamecube and it's successor?

Ss it about time we ditched Gamecube and started focusing on Nintendo's next console?

Link: Well, I guess it depends on what you mean. If you mean should we stop spending money on GC accessories and software then I would say no. Even if Nintendo's next console ships on time it will still be a year or two before it comes out (depending on where you live) and until then GameCube owners have tons to look forward to. As far as I'm concerned the true potential of the GameCube has yet to have been tapped (we'll see what Factor 5 has done with it soon enough), but we will have to wait until Nintendo or a second party developer goes full out and makes another killer game. Expect Retro Studios and, if we're lucky, Silicon Knights to ship amazing games before Nintendo releases its next console. Unfortunately, these titles will most likely be doomed to CBFD-like sales.

Which brings me to my next point: if you meant should we give up hoping that the GC will break any records or surpass Sony or, if reports are accurate, get back into second place, then I say yes, we'll have to wait for Nintendo's next hardware offer. As I just said, though some major and ground-breaking titles will be out before the GameCube's end they will have sluggish sales. As far as I'm concerned the GameCube's influence on Nintendo's success has pretty well ended. Though it wasn't as big of a change as I would have liked, the GameCube has shown that Nintendo can get third-party support. Let's hope that this change continues and Nintendo gets us some one or two month exclusivity deals and that they learn to balance 1st- 2nd- and 3rd-party games.

Oh, by the way, here's some things to look forward to before GameCube's life is over: F-Zero GX, Rogue Squadron 3: Rebel Strike, Viewtiful Joe, Killer 7, Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snames, Final Fantasy: Crystal Chroncles, Tales of Symphonia, Baiten Kaitos...

Just one thing we have to look forward to.

Kevin: Ditching the Gamecube now is just damn stupid it isn't even 2 years old yet! Nintendo are making huge profits off it and the GBA too, so why rush?

I would expect to see GC2 hardware being shown E3 2004 with GBA2 being shown next E3. It's also very likely to beat our friends at sony to dust !

Pesten: No way! GameCube have lots more to give! Just look ahead at what's going on ,as all others have said, there a a huge amount of killer titles I will love to purchase and play to bits. Leave the Cube before we have played Rogue Squadron 3? Or Final Fantasy? What about Metroid 2? The Cube is not finished yet, and I for one is not ready to look forward to the next gen. I'm happy with what I got now, and will continue to be so for a while.

Blackbird: 3 words: "Are you nuts?"

Keep your stuff alive until the successor is there, up-and-running!

Dominic: If you ditched the Gamecube right now you would be in for a serious depressing moment, why? Well since starting September you have P.N.03, Soul Calibur 2, Viewtiful Joe, F-Zero GX, and some other great games, not to mention next year where the excellent looking RPGs of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles, Baten Keitos and Tales of Symphonia and games like Killer 7 and Resident Evil 4.

If we ditched the Gamecube we really would be killing off the successor since who wants to make games for an early dying console successor (No Treasure are not included)? So lets just enjoy these fantastic upcoming releases and leave the next console till its out.

And another one.

er-no: Heh, thats an interesting idea.

The GameCube is failing in the UK shops because Nintendo aren't tough enough, they aren't bribing the shops for shelve space or letting the customers know about the games. I'm worried that the games going to be released on the machine will be forgotten about by nearly everyone with a Cube in their hands. Nintendo have big decisions to make as to the future of themselves in the hardware part of the console industry. It doesn't matter if they have the best games on the machine, not if nobody knows about them.

Should we look to the next console, forgetting the Cube?

Not just yet...

Conor: Despite only having vague dates, and no confirmation of games or hardware, it's no surprise that the issue of Nintendo's next console is hot on the lips of many a Nintendo gamer. Few remember that in some parts of the world the Gamecube is only just over a year old. It seems that for some reason, the console's lifespan has been stretched out in gamer's minds. I mean, we've already got a Mario game, a Zelda game, a Metroid game, two Resident Evils, and the next installments of the 1080, Mario Golf, Mario Tennis and F-Zero franchises are close on the horizon.

But it would be folly to ignore the great selection of games that we have to look forward to on GC. Viewtiful Joe, Soul Calibur 2, F-Zero, Metal Gear Solid, Metroid Prime 2 and Killer 7 come off the top of my head. Because Gamecube has no chance of coming close to the PS2, and the developer situation ins't too rosy, some people, lacking foresight, have decided that that's it. It's over. Gamecube's dead. May as well sell it off. I hope C-E readers aren't privy to such foolishness.

Don't forget that Nintendo's next console is at least two years away. It will not launch next year in Japan as some have suggested, in my opinion. Yes, it will be good. Yes, I'm totally excited about it. But it won't be here for a while, and Gamecube has more than enough life left in it to delight me until that day.