Best Fighting Game for Gamecube

With the possible exception of Super Smash Bros. Melee, this game is the best fighting game made for Gamecube (as implied by my title). Anyway, I must admit I had my doubts about this game going into it. I hadn't played the previous versions, and I wondered how much I was going to enjoy a fighting game in which pressing up didn't make your character jump. Well, my doubts have been put to rest. The graphics are extraordinarily well-rendered with the only exception being the lackluster water splashes on certain ring-outs. The controls are similarly well-realized. The moves are fluid, and every button you press feels like it does something. There is one character--Maxi--who seems at first to control poorly, but that is simply because his control scheme is radically different from other characters, and he takes some getting used to.
There are many, many extras to unlock, and it doesn't feel like a chore doing it. From hidden characters to extra weapons to extra costumes--there's plenty to find. There are also many different modes of play, including a "Weaponmaster" mode that offers a kind of story to go along with all of the fighting.
Finally, there is the issue of this version of Soul Caliber II versus the versions on PS2 and Xbox. The main difference between these three is an exclusive character. On PS2, there is Heihachi (who, like Yoshimitsu, is also from the Tekken series). On Xbox, Byronic hero Spawn is the exclusive character. On Gamecube, you get Nintendo's own super-adventurer, Link. My favorite of these three characters is Link, which is why I recommend the Gamecube version above the others. Heihachi is cool and all, but he doesn't feel like he fits the series as well because he doesn't have weapons like every single other character in the entire game. Spawn is also cool, and I'd probably appreciate his appearance more if I were more of a fan, but his arrival in this particular game feels a little tacked on is all I can say. Link, on the other hand, is an awesome fighter who feels like he belongs. Plus, all of his classic weapons are realized from the boomerang to the bow and arrow to the bombs to the megaton hammer.