It’s a game that will make your life a living hell but in a way that’s addicting and forever challenging. Cuphead is a damn good time.
My love for classic cartoons began early. While I am the 90s kid that we all know and blame for the world’s problems, classic television has been influential to my upbringing. Some of my fondest childhood memories were of watching ‘Tom and Jerry’ with dad. Moments like the senseless violence, the crazy pranks, the witty comment from the few speaking characters. Animation is a personal love for me. Enter Cuphead for PlayStation 4.
Cuphead follows the story of…well, Cuphead but also his friend Mugman. Both live with the Elder Kettle on the Inkwell Isles. After a night of tomfoolery and shenanigans, both Cup and Mug find themselves on the south side of a deal with none other than the Devil himself. Their lives are looking dark until they strike a deal. Collect souls and debts for the devil by the end of the day and reclaim your souls and be free. You know, typical devil deals and whatnot.
The game itself is built to be a classic run ‘n gun with a small hint of platforming thrown in there for good measure. You have to shoot, duck, jump, dash, and hopefully outwit and outduel your way through worlds. The worlds themselves vary from run ‘n guns, where the player just has to survive to the end of the level, to contract worlds, where you have to fight for your life (both in level and for the devil). Combat is addicting and kind of brain building. The worlds are pattern-based in which you really need to learn a world to be really good at it. Learning how an enemy walks or when is the best time to jump a gap. So at times it really comes down to muscle memory. The difficulty is, well as my friend Nathan said ‘cartoon Dark Souls’. It’s bloody hard. The first few runs will leave you laughing and kind of okay, but once you do that first level for the 73rd time, you want to break the damn controller, along with that stupid cup on your character’s shoulders. That’s the charm in it though. You’re getting so pissed off at was is basically a cartoon your dad watched in the ’30s. It’s just so damn loveable to play. Going back to the patterning in levels, even when you figure out the patterns of the level it will still enrage and raise blood pressure. There tends to be a common pattern that it will hold, but with slight variants that force you to be on your toes unless you want to rage.
When it comes to weapons, players have just the right amount to move through. I found myself using Chaser, which essentially just locks onto enemies. This was really nice as I didn’t have to focus too hard on where they were. That being said, you can’t just tune out and not pay attention. Every battle, fight, and move you make has to be precise. Everything has a strategy to it, whether it be learning a pattern or figuring out the wait time for taking down a boss and getting a contract. Cuphead makes you think, focus, and really put all your effort into. Only dying twenty-five times, just to get a C+ on a world.
By God, this game is wonderful to look at. It’s like going back in time and watching a Hanna-Barbara cartoon with dad in the early 2000s on Boomerang. Yeah, I’m Gen Z. Get over it. Cuphead feels like you’re in the cartoon playing along and running with all the crazy bad guys. It’s so inviting and appealing to live in its world. It brings you in just to beat the snot out of you. Even the Inkwell Isles maps and locations look like so much fun just by how cute they look. It’s like an old school board game when you visualize them. Character design is a whole nother book in and of itself. Watching as enemies evolve from a plane to a man floating on a cloud with an arrow is so astonishing to see. Even boxing frogs, carrots, and flowers are drawn and animated so perfectly. At times in ‘Botanic Panic’, I found myself tripping at times with the crazy designs and music. It all comes together to make an experience worth playing.
Overall, Cuphead is a wonderful throwback to the days of old. Classic cartoons, old school animation, video games, and lots of jazz music. It’s a game that will make your life a living hell but in a way that’s addicting and forever challenging. Artistically, this is such a wonderful look back to older animation and design. Combat for the game is tight and fun, and while there is a little bit of confusion with aiming at times. Once you learn the nuance though it becomes second nature to you. Cuphead is a damn good time.
