If you’re able to chain your parries together, you won’t have any problem completing all three mausoleums. All you have to do to protect the urns is successfully parry each ghost as it approaches. These are mausoleums, which contain urns that are under attack by an army of pink ghosts. In addition to the various boss and platforming stages you see scattered throughout Cuphead’s three worlds, you also come across stone structures. In the game’s final few hours, we found ourselves relying on this one regularly, and in the airplane sections - which don’t allow you to dash at all - it was particularly useful. When projectiles are coming at you in a small grouping, you will be able to easily avoid them and go back to pummeling enemies.Īn extra hit point ability is also available, which allows you to take four hits at the cost of slightly decreased weapon damage.
Early on, you will be able to purchase the “smoke bomb,” which makes you invulnerable to all damage while dashing. Your extra abilities are just as important as your weapons, if not more so. Its damage isn’t very high as a result, but in the most hectic fights, it’s a necessity.
Rather than aiming at targets, the weapon zeroes in on them automatically, leaving you free to dodge. For a few fights, we also found the “chaser” to be effective. While its range isn’t great and you will need to use your standard weapon in certain instances, the spread weapon was our primary choice for the majority of the game. Functioning much like the spread-shot gun from the Contra games, it inflicts serious damage on bosses and can take out a rogue enemy before they have a chance to get to you. Once you’ve collected them all in the World 1 stage “ Forest Follies,” head to the shop and purchase the “spread” weapon. The platforming stages in Cuphead each contain five gold coins, which are the currency accepted in the game’s item shop. However note that Cuphead bounces quite high into the air after her parries, which can often cause him to hit a projectile higher up on the screen, so be aware of your surroundings. In certain enemy attacks, one shot will be highlighted pink, allowing you to destroy it and charge up your super ability more quickly. This will leave you prepared for the next attack, and you will be able to keep your weapon trained on the enemy the whole time. Instead, see if you can avoid the shots by dashing or even just moving slightly to the right or left. When spinning fireballs and blades start swirling in your direction, your first instinct is going to be to jump out of their path, but this can often get you into more trouble than it’s worth - especially against later bosses launching several attacks at once. If you’re struggling with timing your parries, stay in the tutorial section for a bit and just get the rhythm down - there is a small window in which it works, and committing it to muscle memory will save you a lot of grief in the long run. For quickly avoiding larger enemies, this is invaluable, and it’s required for defeating bosses later in the game. Not only will parrying projectiles (anything pink) help charge up your “super” abilities, but it will also destroy whatever is parried and cause you to launch into the air. What might be even more important than mastering Cuphead’s attacks and dodges, however, is mastering his parry ability. Fire his standard weapon, and see how long it takes to defeat a small enemy. Learn the rhythm of the bosses, but more importantly, note just how far and high Cuphead can jump, and how his dash can be used to avoid obstacles. Instead, take your time on the first few stages. This means that he has more of a light and loopy feel when jumping than you see in the Mario games, and it can take some time to adjust to this when you are fighting an enormous boss or jumping from obstacle to obstacle. Take time to master the controlsĬuphead is inspired heavily by classic Mickey Mouse cartoons, which featured slightly more emotive movements than we see in cartoons or video games today. Our Cuphead guide has the tips and tricks you need to set you on the road to mastering the game.
But what appears to be an insurmountable task can be made much more manageable if you learn the fundamentals of the game and make use of a few strategies. Comprising mostly multi-stage boss fights, the game’s trial-and-error gameplay forces you to learn from your past mistakes if you want to make it further into the game, and it’s one of the hardest games we played this generation. StudioMDHR’s Cupheadis a remarkably well-made 2D shooter, blending the run-and-gun gameplay of classics like Metal Slug and Mega Man with visuals inspired by classic, 1930s animation.