Cuphead

Cuphead is a slice of video game heaven and surprisingly appealing piece of animation gold. Having been in development for the better part of a decade, Cuphead burst onto the video game market just in 2017, and it's resulted in a resurgence in the internet's love for 'The Golden Age of Animation' and the works of the great Max Fleischer. Does the game emulate those cartoons of a bygone era pre-dating World War Two? Yes. It absolutely does just that and then some! Yes the game's frustrating for newcomers to the run and gun genre but the sense of gratification and accomplishment you get from beating any one of the bosses in-game is incredible.

This game takes pages from gaming classics like MegaMan, Super Mario Brothers, Super Mario World and even Contra; it even pays homage to 'toon classics like Popeye, Betty Boop, Disney shorts from the 20s and 30s, has nods to the Looney Tunes shorts, and even Tom & Jerry. Cuphead is a masterclass in 'cultural remixing', fusing video games and animation into the perfect combo package. What is there not to like about something that has THIS many callbacks while being its own thing as well?

Cuphead is a game for the ages and will introduce newcomers to the run-and-gun genre, as well as persuade some people to play MegaMan sometime in the future.

Cuphead is brilliant, it is the pinnacle of indie gaming. Different aspects make this a master piece. Recently with indie games there have been a fair share of absolutely shocking and poor games. I feel like recently trying to find a good cheap indie game is like searching for a diamond ring in a metric tonne of pig crap. Cuphead is this ring and I'm wearing it proudly.

The first aspect that makes this brilliant is the visuals. The old Disney inspired visuals get me excited. They have that nice old Disney feel and definitely are made by the attention to detail (Cupheads little gloves are adorable). The map you walk around to get to each level is very nice, it may be a little simple to begin with but as you progressive, boy does it look good.

The second aspect I love about it is the sound track, can't really describe it, go listen to it yourself on YouTube. It has a nice classic sounds to it. I wouldn't listen to it on my bus journey but it does add to the atmosphere of the game

Worth a buy, do it immediately, wont regret it!

Joe Beaumont

Cuphead mixes the classic feel of the 30's with platforming brilliantly.

On September 29, 2017, a small, indie game developing company Studio MDHR released "Cuphead", a widely loved shmup/platformer that was not only a love letter to fans of classic early cartoons of the 1930's, but also a throwback to the insanely difficult side-scrolling games of the '80s and '90s, such as "Contra" and "Astyanax".

I love "Cuphead", absolutely love it - it's not just my favorite video game of this decade this far, but one of my favorite all-time video games, period. I bought it for Easter this year on the Nintendo Switch and I've played it to death ever since. I'm absolutely in love with it.

The game is undoubtedly a masterpiece of not just video gaming, but also animation - it is an absolute delight, from its stunning hand-drawn visuals and beautiful watercolor backgrounds that feel right out of an early Disney animation, to its catchy and upbeat jazz scores that accompany the levels that become more intense as the levels themselves get increasingly difficult, to its difficulty that encourages you to continue and try harder rather than just give up.

If you like classic side-scrolling platformer/fighting games, buy this game. You won't be disappointed.

I remember when I first saw this game on TV when the Xbox One was first revealed. When this game flashed on screen during an ID@Xbox show reel, I became interested in an instant. That was back in 2013, and skip forward a few years later, I have yet to buy an Xbox One or any of the "exclusives," even when most of them are on PC. That changed when this game FINALLY released, and the best part is, the wait is worth it.

Now, before I get too deep into the gameplay, I have to say that unlike most journalists in the field these days, I'm not gonna do the idiotic "#Cup Souls" thing or even compare this game to Dark Souls in the slightest. While Dark Souls can be challenging, a more accurate comparison is most likely an NES game, which can actually be more difficult. Just like a NES game, more precisely Contra, it's an easy-to-play Run-N-Gun game, thanks to the simple tutorial that only a certain game journalist would find hard, that becomes hard thanks to ever spawning enemies and projectiles everywhere. Luckily, the game is still fair, and it even feels rewarding beating the bosses in the game, which is mostly what the game is. The controls are tight and responsive, though I have changed the dash to the Right Trigger for better access, and never have I felt like they were fighting against me. Back to the bosses, though, they will give you a beat down. We're talking about bosses that will fill the screen with projectiles and enemies, and they will require your whole attention span and quick thumbs to beat them. This game is a great time, solo or co-op, but if you're not a fan of hard games, it won't be for you.

Now, for the one thing it quickly got attention for, the graphics. Seriously, we can gush over a game for having the most "ULTRA-REALISTIC" graphics, but I find this game to have the most impressive graphics I've ever seen. This game sets out to emulate the look of the 1930s cartoons, and it emulates it to a T. The game sprites run at 24 fps, just like the cartoons of old, but still provides a rock solid 60 fps during gameplay, except for some very rare frame dips. The music and sound also adds to the graphics as well with the soundtracks mix of jazz and ragtime (if you don't believe me, just look up "Dice King theme" on YouTube), and you can even hear crackling sounds during the quiet times.

Overall, this a hard, yet awesome game that emulates the aesthetic perfectly. If you have an Xbox One, this game is a must-have, and even if you're getting the game on PC, which you have a choice of getting it from Steam, GOG, or Microsoft Store if you want the "Play Anywhere" version, this game can pretty much run on a toaster.