SDCC 2015: We Go Hands-On With ‘Cuphead’!
Throughout all their successes with first and third party titles for the 360 and One, Microsoft has never been able to fully embrace indie gaming. Sure, they own and heavily support Minecraft, one of gaming’s most popular indie titles of all time, but can that still be classified as an indie game; knowing how big of a development team actually works on it now?
Fear not indie fans, because for the past two years Phil Spencer and company have been trying to make it up to fans with their new indie service simply titled ID @ Xbox. This year at E3, Microsoft showed off many new and interesting ID @ Xbox titles, but one of them stood out more than the others.
Enter Cuphead, a quirky platforming shooter game that’s stylized as if it was a cartoon that came straight out of the 1930’s. Developed by just two brothers, Chad and Jared Moldenhauer, Cuphead is the brother’s first venture into the indie games scene with their studio, Studio MDHR. I had the honor of being able to try the game out at the Xbox Lounge at Comic-Con (When the insanely long line allowed it.) It seems like Microsoft has a lot of faith and confidence in Cuphead, but is there more to the game than just its old timey art style? Thankfully, I can say without a doubt, Cuphead not only has a lot more charm than just its art style, but it’s sincerely one of the most fun indie games I’ve ever played.
Story and Gameplay
The story is very simple, but kind of twisted. Two anthropomorphic characters, Cuphead and Mugman, decided to play a game of dice with the Devil. They end up gambling their lives, and in a cruel twist of fate – lose. The Devil agrees to let them live; on one condition. They must do his bidding from now on. So, now it’s up to our ‘heroes’ to destroy whoever the Devil tells them to in order to gain their freedom back.
From there, you’re given the chance to access a quick tutorial level and then about 3 actual levels. For the sake of keeping the line moving, I decided to play with a second player and only play one level which was the garden. In this level, you must defeat both a giant potato that shoots dirt clods and worms at you and a giant psychic carrot with three eyes that shoots carrot missiles at you. If that sounds crazy to you, that’s because it is. The controls are super simple and very responsive. You have your standard jump and attack buttons, but you also have a dash button and a change weapon button so you can experiment and see what kind of projectile works best on that enemy.
It should be said that Cuphead might not be what some people are expecting it to be. For starters, yes it’s a platforming shooter, but there aren’t really any “levels” per say. This game is more akin to what you would find in a boss rush mode of a game. While that may sound intimidating to some newcomers, don’t let that dampen your experience. Even if you aren’t the best at modes like that, the developers have made it very accessible for newcomers. One way they do this is by making the attack patterns of the first couple of bosses you play very repetitive, so that it’s easier to remember their attacks.
Closing thoughts
At the end of the day, I can’t say enough good things about how amazing Cuphead is. From an amazing art style to its very easy pick up and play controls, Cuphead is looking to be one of my all-time favorite indie titles right next to Shovel Knight and The Binding of Isaac. Cuphead will be released on Xbox One and PC sometime in 2016.
