Cuphead [Review of the game]

Hardcore, beauty and nostalgia. The components of the diabolical mixture capable of creating a game that holds the screen even in the popular genre: “Run & Gun”. Cuphead gives emotions that are difficult to forget. Ten minutes later, I loved the game, twenty – hated it, thirty – abandoned, forty – returned, fifty – again admired.

I never remained indifferent.

Mechanics sending games to Contra – after all, everyone played in it? – implies two -dimensional levels with a mass of opponents. Constantly attacking, they force them to move forward: a new one will appear in the place of the fallen monster. Which is the tutorial, the first level already throws a number of opponents with different muvssets at us. Some run ahead, others are able to make the trajectories of movements sweat, and to be attacked by the third type of monsters from uncomfortable positions is unpleasant. But shooting is not a goal. The finish is more important. Rejoice to the finish line.

I remembered each of the few levels, but why? They are created with love. Each location embodies not only a dance of a magic picture and animation, but also a certain … concept? Forest run, sea, fair – zones have as changed by external species, so characteristic of their themes by constructions and features of enemies. Yes, at least locations run in a couple of minutes, they may be remembered for a long time.

For a long time, but similar levels with runs are rare: the basis of Cuphead is different.

Battles with bosses. They are magnificent. Directing a bright picture, in fact the game is a chain of battles with multi -phase opponents, their diversity is difficult not to be surprised. Most of the levels consist only of bosses – the difference from most of the usual "Run & Gun" games.

The first phase of the battle, which in subsequent attempts can be both the second and the third.

The stages do not allow each other to get bored, cutting out monotony from the gameplay. Less than three forms – a rarity, a matter of four or more will become common (!) the transforming states of the boss in a couple of minutes. The developers went on. The phases can change by random order and not the fact that the second attempt will repeat the previous one: you can see new abilities. Faced with this, I believed the words that the graphics is a secondary part. Primary of the honed gameplay.

Special levels using the aircraft give even more diversity and an already non -casual Cuphead. New conditions, change of skills. As if wanting to spare feelings of some modern players accustomed to easy tests, the game provides a choice of two difficulties. The light removes the final phases of the battles, the remaining stages of the battles are also facilitated, but you cannot see the finale. But whoever wants to miss even part of the content chicly drawn by manual labor and the improvised shells, trajectories and chaos placed with a skilled hand?

Airplane flights. Other rules, but also exciting, https://bingositesnotongamstop.co.uk/bingo-sites-ngs/ and battles are multi -phase and complex.

Attempts to go bosses forced to experience … something. Each time I started with the hope that this two -minute entry would be the last. I will learn all the phases, flying shells will not face the character, the stages will be passed without problems, and three lives will be enough for a short level. I deliver difficulties, the boss will fall, and I will breathe freely, putting aside the joystick.

Hope is rarely justified.

Created with the raid of that same oldskul, Cuphead forces to replay regularly, encouraging the development of muscle reflection and mental map. Want to go through the game completely? You will remember each stage, shells flights, features of movements – not just the structure of locations, but really all that the harsh games of the Dandy or Segi were held. Everything that makes up the mental map of the zones.

Three lives on level. So little and cruel – oh, but is it not one of the charms of such games, including Cuphead? A small number of lives leads to another interesting phenomenon: falling under damage at the beginning with numerous arrivals, I wanted to immediately restart the level. For what? Even if two minutes lasting, the battle has already been failed, and the inability to compensate for the resulting damage only reinforced this impulse. No first -aid kits, regeneration, therapeutic skills … Only a perk that increases the number of lives to four, but the character’s damage will be weakened.

I moved on than last time. Ten centimeters.

Will become the norm of visiting a dozen times until the movements are honed to the level of reflexes. The phases are given in different ways. Some immediately passed by me without any problems, from others they rattled my teeth; And even if stupid, but hope in the random, sometimes mumming stages, did not seem shameful.

Motivation to replay? After each death, the game shows the path overcome by an unsuccessful call. How many phases have you passed, how much more remained and how successful were in the last stage. This traveled line of the path, that with each attempt, as a rule, moves farther, motivates again and again rush into battle. I was rushing forward … with shook nerves, pain in my fingers. Until this fucking boss was falling.

Feeling to overcome a complex test. It is great.

In the best traditions of Run & Gun, the games here are simple management, the goal is obvious: run and shoot. But what is the challenge, what an addictive. Disney stylistics of the 30s contrasts with the dentition of the gameplay process, and for experienced players the third difficulty and rank for the effectiveness of the passage. Here I will mention a small but almost forgotten fact. In old games, life was given for all passage and there was no way to maintain progress – Cuphead remembers each level passed.

World Map. It is not visible in a static state, but even some objects are animated, moved, breathe … delighted with an amazing drawing.

There is a card for research. Opening with the passage of the bosses, it provides a small selection in the form of the order of the next zones. It is painted with love and explore it – a question of aesthetic pleasure, not functional opportunities, although there are similar ones in the form of shortcases and hidden coins.

Coins are collected in a few “levels-runes” and are designed to buy weapons with talismans. The character has two slots for guns, one at a time for a passive and acquired for passing special mausoleums with a special reception. There is almost nothing to choose from, although there are differences in functionality: there are only six guns in the game, and a couple of them – jumping balls and boomerangs – seemed meaningless when, like a gun shooting with self -wagging cartridges, looked seducing. Pass a couple of levels and even one boss with a certain selection of equipment becomes a plenty of. By inflicting damage to enemies, the character accumulates charges for special attacks that differ for each type of weapon, and five charges allows you to use a powerful technique.

Self -assigning shells make some places with easy walks.

The stylized picture is wonderful. Enchants, beckons, holds. Thousands of words cannot convey the beauty of one screenshot, and a static image – animation. The developers made the right decision, hitting PR in this place; But if Cuphead had only elegant graphics, then it did not become how good a game. I walked quickly, forgot and disappeared from memory, dissolved like a normal dream.

We meet on clothes, see over the mind.

And the mind is a gameplay component and mechanics "Run & Gun", which catches with various situations of multi -phase bosses. Yes, there are some disadvantages: old joysticks work through a stump, missed coins have to be watched manually, it is impossible to successfully use certain weapons in some situations. Only the answer about the insignificance of these errors against the background of the merits is obvious.

Drive and dynamics, beauty and hardcore. Directing the old -school spirit, Cuphead does not just put pressure on nostalgia, but goes beyond its predecessors. It is such a game that is needed here and now – its brightness, its tests – and the developers deserve praise again and again for the difficulty along with the variety of bosses, and I want to wish them sincere good luck in subsequent creations, and let this jazz always sound ..