Sekiro, Battletoads, and Dark Souls. What do all of these games have in common? They’re all a series of games that bring on the entertainment of difficulty. Games like those never really interested me because I am not a member of my local masochist club. Then, I saw the trailer for Cuphead at E3 2016. I barely knew anything about the game, but the aesthetic was just too much to pass up. After 214 deaths, a launched blog site, and a relaunched YT channel (I will explain later), I can finally give a proper review for this great game. Here’s my review for Cuphead.
Whatchu Talking About?:
Cuphead is a run-and-gun platformer developed by Studio MDHR and inspired by 1930’s music and visuals. Most of the game’s focus is to go from boss battle to boss battle and try to pay back the devil’s debt. Along the way, players get new weapons and moves while learning to hone their skills to the final boss.
So, What’s Good?:
The style of the game is incredible. The game works in the same idea of retro-gaming. But instead of the regular 80’s pixelation like shovel knight or meat boy, it hop-scotches another 50 years to the styles of Disney’s Steamboat Willie and Tom & Jerry. The same goes for music, and that’s a good too. Because you will hear the music again and again for all the times you die in this game.
If the style isn’t appealing, the level of frustration will. Every time I died, it was either I wasn’t paying attention to a pattern or the boss transformed into a worse version of itself, and I had to use that 0.2 seconds left of my life to remember it the next time I came back. But once you finally beat that boss, you enter a sense of relief and desire to embrace tranquility. The game will point out how bad players are at it until they can beat it, and in order to see everything the game has to offer, they need to get good. Some players may have never heard of the word ‘frustration,’ but Cuphead makes them willing to learn.
Some might wonder why I put frustration as a good point. The reason being is you will die in this game more than you can imagine. But the draw-in is that dying in this game is brutally fair (I plan to explain more in a future article).
The last point is the game’s progression is brutally fair. The upgrade system works like a double-edged sword; each power-up comes with an advantage and disadvantage. One ability gives the player a high damage spread spot but a short-range. Another ability increases the health pool but decreases the damage output. Overall, it feels very rudimentary on face value, but the creativity flows as a player’s setup grows.
Then, What’s Bad?:
The game has a few glitches present. One glitch made it impossible for me to fight the final boss in the next phase. Another glitch made a minion suddenly became invincible like Mario when he’s blinking. But honestly, I’m just nitpicking. There’s nothing negative to say. Anyone who does either says, “the game is too easy,” which they’re lying. Or stated, “the game is way too hard,” which is an instant facepalm, cause it being hard is literally in the game’s description.
So, here’s the summary for all the slowpokes:
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Unique Style Frustratingly Good Upgrade System is Brutally Fair |
A Couple Bugs (Nitpick) |
Final Thoughts:
Despite very minute glitches, dying to that musical plant in world one, King Dice being the most significant endurance test of my life, Dr. Kahl’s robot having infinity + 2 health (I honestly believe that) and that freaking [explicit] Genie…
What was I talking about again? Oh right, along the game being $20 on Xbox One, PC, Mac, Switch, and now PS4, it’s tough not to recommend Cuphead. Side note: the game also has a DLC set to come out this year, but since the year-over-year delays and COVID, I wouldn’t hold my breath.
Thank you for reading my article. If you like this, please leave a comment below and share this on your social media. If you want to keep reading, check out my last article review here. Lastly, if you’re still curious about the game, check out my YouTube video to see the first part of the game.
Release Date: September 29th, 2017
Platforms: Xbox One, PC, Switch, Tesla (I’m serious), macOS, PS4
Price: USD 19.99
Recommendation: Worth A Buy at Full Price