The Finely Balanced Mechanics of Cuphead

       I started shoot’em-up Cuphead back when I first got my Switch but inevitably put it to one side it due to its high difficulty and the fact that I had loads of other games to try out on the system.
      However recently I’ve been giving it another go and slowly making my way through it.

      Of course everyone is likely to be already be aware of the two main things about this game that are often discussed: 1) the absolutely gorgeous art style and animation (the official art book for this game is also stellar by the way), and 2) the fact that the game is hard as nails.

      So instead of harping on about those points, instead I want to discuss a couple of facets to do with the mechanics and game design that help the player along through this challenging experience. After all, Cuphead is indeed a very hard game, but one that is  fine-tuned in a way that makes it likely for a competent gamer to slowly inch their way through if they give it their time and attention.  For example:

Boss rush format

      As you are aware, the majority of the game is simply a ‘Boss-Rush’, ie: each level is literally just you taking down a boss. Although every boss has a few phases to progress through, these encounters are intense and brief, with most taking only a few minutes at most to beat. Restarts upon death are very quick and although repeatedly dying can be frustrating youcan get right back into the action.

      Even the handful of ‘run and gun’ levels (that play out more like traditional side scrolling shoot-em ‘up games) are kept mercifully short, with the frustration of death balanced out by the knowledge that you don’t have to redo a horrendous amount of the level to get back to where you were, especially once you start to learn the enemy patterns throughout.

Pattern Daddies

      Each boss encounter and phases within have distinct attacks that you can learn and eventually know how to best avoid. On first play, things will seem chaotic and unpredictable but the more times you attempt each boss the more you will get to learn their two or three unique attacks for that specific phase and through sheer repetition you will eventually learn how to effectively survive.

      Although you will have to restart from the first phase again upon each death, as each retry is so quick to initiate, replaying from the beginning of the encounter just makes you get better at dealing with the earlier phases and you often end up internalising the patterns. Only being able to take three hits in this game before dying forces you to play carefully and learn the patterns rather than just relying on pure luck or quick reactions to get through.

But also just a smidgen of RNG

      However if everything was predictable and rigid these fights would get boring quickly, right? And that’s where the slight sprinkling of added randomness and luck afforded through RNG comes into play. Although each phase of each boss has set attacks that can come at you, there is also a tiny bit of RNG variation thrown in.

     For example a boss may decide to throw two fireballs instead of three. Or summon one type of henchman to attack you during a given sequence rather than another. This serves to keep the fights fresh and keep you on your toes. So the predictableness of the overall patterns remains the same to some degree but the slight element of randomness also ensures that no fights play out exactly the same. The balance between the two is just right in my opinion.

      Sometimes you will get an unlucky sequence that makes a fight slightly harder, other times good RNG will give you just the push you need to make it through and win.

Just enough customisation

      In a game so centred on boss rush as this is, if you could level up and get stronger attacking power or copious amounts more health you could just rely on levelling to make things easier and muck your way through. Conversely, if there was no change to the mechanics or how your character plays throughout the entire game then you run the risk of encounters becoming repetitive.

      Cuphead manages to find the perfect balance between the two by allowing you to purchase a handful of attacks and perks as you go, but only in the name of utility and variation rather than to massively make things easier. For example you can eventually purchase 5 other different shooting attacks, however each has distinct advantages and disadvantages and you need to actively think about which two (the maximum you can equip at one time) you want to take into each battle in accordance with how useful they will be for that particular situation.

     For example there is a shot that spreads out in front of you in four directions however it’s very short range and lack in attack power limits the situations it may be effective in. The charge shot packs a punch but as the name implies you have to hold down the button for a second or more to charge it up and your aim needs to be on point. Getting hit will also reset the charge.

      In terms of perks, you could go with the dash that makes you invincible for a split second whilst dodging in order to help you out of sticky situation. Or you could go for one extra hit point at the cost of your attack power being slightly lowered.

     The constant risk/reward decision-making required suits both situational uses and to tailor to your own preferred play style. However it is also perfectly feasible to play the whole game just using your default shooter as well if you are a glutton for punishment.

Frequent risk/reward

      Other moments of balanced risk/reward decision-making are also evident throughout other aspects of the game. Do you go for letting off each super move as soon as you get it? Or do you save up all your cards so that you can unleash an ultra attack? Do you go for that parry on a pink bullet in order to gain a super move attack? Or do you play it safe and keep your distance as messing up the timing of the parry will dock you a hit point. These allow for the dynamics within each fight to constantly ebb and flow giving an additional layer to these boss battles.

      If you like a bit of old school 'grind at it to progess' mentality then Cuphead is highly recommended. I’m currently about two thirds of the way through it and will attempt to keep plugging away at the end. But its not to say I havent spent my share of time swearing at the screen. Hopefully I’ll have some hair left by the end of it.

8^th July 2020