Studio MDHRs cup celebrates its fifth anniversary today, with the heavy and nostalgic experience still heavily discussed and expanded. cup is known for its reputation as an incredibly challenging run-and-gun platformer and its beautiful hand-drawn environments and creatures in the style of 1930s cartoons. It has been continuously supported by Studio MDHR and fans alike since its release, with constant updates and announcements from the creators and hundreds of thousands of hours of fan playtime.
cup was originally announced at E3 2014 by Studio MDHR founders, brothers Chad and Jared Moldenhauer, to great excitement for its stunning hand-drawn visuals and tough challenges. However, the game’s planned 2015 release date was delayed another 2 years as the studio refined its first title. The game’s DLC, The delicious last courseConsisting of ideas from the base game’s cutting space, it experienced a similar delay with the DLC announced in 2018 and released in June 2022. But both were well worth the wait, the quality of each stunned fans and critics alike.
Cuphead’s unique art style
cup‘s art is one of the first things that comes to mind when fans think about it. The game is a heartfelt ode to cartoons from the 1930s and 1940s. It uses hand-drawn 2D animation, with accurate period music and silent film slides. The game’s thoughtful blend of innocence and malevolence is immediately apparent in the game’s opening scenes, with King Dice and the Devil as antagonists from a Fleischer Studios cartoon.
Speaking of Fleischer Studios, when asked about specific influences on the visual style of cup in a 2015 interview, Chad Moldenhauer specifically quoted the 1931 short film Bimbo’s initiation and the 1930 cartoon Wave you sinners! like two cartoons that set the mood of the game. Other period cartoons from Walt Disney Productions, Warner Brothers, Comicolor and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer are also clear influences on the game. For example, the bosses Ribby and Croaks on Ink Isle 1 are very similar to the Ub Iwerks character Flip the Frog, while Bluto of the popeye cartoons is an obvious influence of Captain Brineybeard’s appearance.
The brothers, with the help of Chad’s wife, Maja Moldenhaur, as the ink artist and producer of the three-person development team, watched and studied these classic cartoons for several hours a day outside of their full-time jobs. They did everything from analyzing aspects of a cartoon by pausing the screen frame by frame to blowing up the frames and images in Photoshop in an effort to better understand the subtle differences between each drawing and how to translate this fluidity into their own. translate game. Studio MDHR was committed to delivering the highest quality product it could muster through these meticulous levels of care and detail for the base game and subsequent DLC.
The new difficulty for platform players
Since its announcement and release, there is another clearly visible aspect of cup is the demanding challenge that the run-and-gun platformer offers its audience. The creativity behind each level is complemented by how unique each battle is, often requiring different strategies for each stage of an individual battle. This same on-the-fly thinking is also applied to each individual platform or boss level; no two levels are the same, requiring players to constantly prepare a new approach for each major stage.
Despite how formidable this may seem, gamers have some flexibility in completing each challenge. Players can equip their character with a variety of attacks, charms, or supers that can be purchased through the in-game store, Porkrind’s Emporium, or unlocked through platforming challenges across cup‘s 3 islands (4 with The delicious last course DLC). This help can only get players so far; every boss fight still requires a high degree of concentration and willpower.
Numerous gamers have experienced a certain level of difficulty, with some handling the pressure better than others. Razing is often a side effect of platform games and cup is no exception, with everyone from casual players to content creators like Asmongold venting their frustrations on their controllers or desks. Many setups and peripherals remain at stake when you first embark on this equally rewarding and frustrating experience, adding to the overall appeal of cup and the DLC is an exceptional challenge.
On the other hand, the game’s reputation has inspired countless fans to challenge themselves through speedruns, shooting to 100% completion, or even using unconventional methods to play through. cup or The delicious last course. Twitch streamer and speedrunner PeekingBoo is one such fan: he used a Dance Dance Revolution path to defeat every boss in the game in less than 90 minutes. Another YouTuber, EazySpeezy, decided to speed up the game while climbing Mount Mansfield in Vermont, each of which was a tough feat in and of itself.
Cuphead’s Legacy and Future
It would be an understatement to say that cup has impressed since its release. The game has had great success across platforms and remains a much-loved franchise, with Funko Pop characters and its own Netflix adaptation. The public has even been treated to a physical release of the game following an announcement from Studio MDHR’s official Twitter account.
Even though the game eventually wrapped up after the release of The delicious last course, cup continues to thrive in the gaming scene, with many fans hoping for a possible sequel to cup. The public hopes that the famous rubber hose design will continue in future games from Studio MDHR in a kind of shared universe as a Cup 2 is unlikely. Given the size of the development team and no confirmation of a sequel to cupthe chances of any of these projects being announced could be quite a few years away.
Despite this, gamers can replay the base game and the DLC many times over. If this task seems unappealing, fans can join cup suits in both Autumn boys or Super Smash Bros. Ultimate until more news is known.
cup is now available on PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
0 Comments