Nintendo GameCube discs were small for a reason

The GameCube is one of Nintendo’s most popular consoles. How could this not be the case? That iconic splash screen! This is adorable, oh such a little design! The fact that there is a handle! The Wii may have sold a lot more units than its iconic purple predecessor, but without the GameCube, there’s a good chance that Valve’s cute and cuddly (if underpowered) steam machine would look a lot different. Another thing that really differentiated Nintendo’s console from the competition? His little custom discs.

Rather than using DVDs like the PS2 and Xbox, the GameCube used a form of proprietary disc that remains unique in console history. Although the disc type Nintendo chose ultimately hurt console sales, it also brought benefits, such as faster loading times. Let’s take a look at why the GameCube had such small discs, before looking at the pros and cons of the Big N’s decision.

Nintendo opted for proprietary miniDVDs when making the GameCube. Sometimes known as “GameCube optical discs”, they were significantly smaller than standard DVDs. Measuring only 3.15 inches in diameter (DVDs are 4.17 inches), GameCube discs cannot be played by standard DVD players. This meant they were harder to hack, which we’ll cover shortly.

These custom-made miniDVDs had a capacity of just under 1.5GB, which is a tiny amount of data by modern standards (PS5 Blu-rays can hold up to 100GB). This makes feats of development such as the sprawling maritime delights seen in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind AwakensI am even more impressive. Since the discs were read-only and the GameCube had no built-in storage, you had to purchase separate memory cards to save your game progress.

There are several reasons why Nintendo opted for its optical compact discs. The three main ones are: the games were harder to pirate, it meant Nintendo could avoid licensing fees, and it also led to a smaller, cheaper machine to make. Let’s start with this last factor. While retro collectors have found GameCube games to be so expensive in modern times, the console launched in late 2001 for an outright price of $200. This made it very attractive to gamers on a budget compared to the PS2 and Xbox, both of which launched at $300.

Nintendo’s choice to use miniDVDs was also an anti-piracy decision. In the early 2000s, there were virtually no standard PC DVD burners capable of playing the company’s proprietary disc technology. Although modders would eventually crack GameCube emulation with the Dolphin emulator, it was much harder to pirate GameCube titles than PS2 or Xbox games in the 2000s. The fact that Nintendo’s small console couldn’t play DVD movies also meant that the Japanese company didn’t have to pay DVD Forum licensing fees, which would have cost $20 per console. That’s a lot of cabbage saved.

These tailor-made miniDVDs also had benefits for gamers. In keeping with Nintendo’s tradition of committing to fast loading times, the GameCube’s small discs could be loaded faster than PS2 DVDs, as their smaller size meant the console’s laser had less distance to travel when playing them. Their form factor also had a direct impact on the GameCube’s design. Due to their smaller size, this meant Nintendo could go with a smaller optical drive, leading to one of the most compact home consoles ever created.

Just look at the Xbox comparison. Of course, Microsoft’s machine was a bit more powerful than the GameCube. Then again, the OG Xbox weighed in at 8.8 pounds, while Nintendo’s console tipped the scales at just 5.7 pounds. The GameCube was so light that it could easily be carried to a friend’s house (hence the handle).

The short answer? Probably. Of the three sixth-generation machines, the GameCube sold the fewest units. While lifetime sales of 21.74 million are nothing to be ashamed of, its competitors were more popular. As a reminder, Microsoft’s Xbox sold 24 million units, while Sony managed to sell an astonishing 160 million PlayStation 2 consoles. Placed next to its competitors, the GameCube was a pure gaming device; not an all-in-one entertainment center. Years before streaming became commonplace, the fact that you could watch DVDs on both PS2 and Xbox was a big deal (even though Xbox required you to buy a $30 add-on) and one that almost certainly influenced many purchasing decisions.

DVDs represented a paradigm shift in home entertainment. The fact that you no longer had to manually skip forward to get to your favorite scenes in a movie, and could skip ahead directly through chapters, seemed like legitimate witchcraft in 2001. Nintendo’s decision to go with miniDVDs denied its small console the ability to act as a de facto DVD player, and it’s hard not to think that this decision had a negative impact on sales. The fact that third-party support for GameCube was lackluster – it never had a single Grand Theft Auto or main line Fantasy Finale game – that obviously didn’t help, though. Blaming Nintendo’s adoption of miniDVDs solely on the console’s underperforming numbers seems harsh.