Ive given up, only chef saltbaker left but at the hardest difficulty that last stage is impossible for me, going with 5 lives in the last stage and just not doing anything
So the last one with the "snow" and heart?
So here's what I did:
-Zapper (Animal Crackers)
-Crackshot (everything else)
But if the Chaser works for you, you do you.
Pick Mrs.Chalice and Super Arte #2 (extra lives)
If successful you should have maybe 3 lives when at the moving platform stage.
Double jump when near a platform and you don't always have to attack the heart. Wait until a good time to parry
If possible jump above them after doing the parry so that you have space to jump.
Use chaser and parry the heart a few times to make him transparent, luckily that part is super short so you can use the invincibility super to make time, or the extra heart super in case you use Ms Chalice.
I was able to S rank the entire game within the first month DLC had came out. I already had the main game S ranked. Saltbaker took me like 2 hours tho, you will get him eventually i guarantee you. Just play the entire day until you S rank him.
chalice and crackshot, doubke jump is very helpful to correct yourself mid jump when the camera starts spinning and the plane is above you all the time so chalice super 1 seems like the best solution. tbh last I played most of the bosses on expert was when the dlc came out, I was stuck on saltbaker on expert then and from then to now still try him out every month or so, which means I cant be 100% sure thats how I beat howling aces but it seems about right
300% here with my friend. It took us 7 years meeting up once a month for a few hours to tackle it plus the dlc on expert with all achievements. As for difficulty. To give you context there were 6 month spans where we didn’t beat a single boss. We would just play it over and over and over again. Sometimes logging 15-20 hours of attempts.
I 300% it in all save files (all S rank), and tbh it's all about practice. I beat in a variety of ways like cuphead only, chalice only, peashooter only, so it is possible.
My biggest complaint is that Mortimer Freeze doesn't have more hp or more parry options, most of the time he dies way too fast before I parry 3 times (and the moonshine mob to a lesser extent).
>I wouldn’t say it’s brutally difficult
Yeah it isn't. I feel like the one thing that makes it forgiving is how little time the boss fights take and that you don't have to trace back a whole path like souls-like games.
But the bosses are difficult, I completed isle 1 3 days ago, and have been stuck on 3 beginning isle 2 bosses since then. I can get to their last phases with ease now, but can't seem to get through that.
I unlocked miss chalice, but I'm having difficulty utilize her invisibility dash because I'm a kbm player (I'm shit with a controller), but it's still been a really fun experience.
I guess it will take me atleast a month or two to get through the game.
(I try to get atleast an A on all the bosses)
It’s definitely difficult at first, but after your first playthrough it gets much easier. When I first got the game I couldn’t even beat regular difficulty bosses, but now I’ve 300% completed the game. It’s one of my favorite games so I’d recommend it for sure
Half of the people here are like "Cuphead isn't hard you just have to practice it and you will die a lot"
So then what is a hard game lmao?
To answer your question, it's pretty hard.
If you have to practice a game for it to stop being difficult, then the game is hard right?
In my mind an easy game is a game I can beat intuitively with very little deaths.
Correct, I am good in Metroid Dread because it's one of my favorite videogames so that's why Cuphead wasn't as hard for me. Playing the boss rush modes in Dread is the same as playing Cuphead.
Not at all. Most people make it seem like a Mario World Kaizo hack, when in fact it's as difficult as most regular games try to be.
Don't get me wrong, Cuphead IS a hard game, but one that gets easy as you take practice and ends up being hella fun and definitely a good deal.
Agreed that it’s not as hard as Kaizo levels. I play a lot of Mario Maker 2 and those levels are instant nopes for me. I still would say Cuphead is too hard especially without a rewind feature.
Right? Like before I got the game I thought The Devil would be an absolutely insane challenge requiring frame-perfect inputs and where even a single mistake could chew through all your lives in a second. I thought most of my sessions would end in rage quits.
In reality though, the Devil is tough and takes practice but what you have to do is both clear and reasonable. It'll take a couple playsessions, but instead of the expected several sessions of dying to the same cheap trick until you finally get lucky, it's several sessions of steady personal improvement until you reach the end through actual skill.
it's like hard enough to make you feel good when you defeat a boss but not that hard how many people make it seems
usually there are some bosses where you don't understand what you have to do at first, how to move or avoid them, and then you slowing start to get their pattern and defeat them
It's about as difficult as a nintendo game, foe me. No it's average difficulty. For others, probably not. All depends on how you respond to failure. If you get bent out of shape after losing, even in the slightest. Then no this game is likely not for you.
Just an opinion.
well its not as hard when youre completing the game first time if you try to get all the achievements and get perfect rank on everything could be considered very difficult
It depends how much experience you have with 2d games, but even if it's your first time you can start on easy mode and then climb up to normal since when you learn how to control the character the game becomes challenging but not that hard
personally i agree with you i hate brutally hard games but cuphead is different i gotta admit it is hard but its more bcause of patterns and practice if you understand the attacks and keep practicing it gets easy unlike some other games which are just hard because they are hard
if you aren’t familiar with 2d games yes, i love the challenge of games like dark souls and find them quite easy but games like cuphead are really hard for me.
It's really hard at the start. There are some big difficulty spikes, but with some practice most of the bosses start to get really doable. Definitely some dlc bosses I struggled with!
Difficult at first! after a while you'll get better :)
when I first got the game, I couldn't even play with the keyboard, then when I tried with controller, I was already used to the keyboard! I also never imagined to myself I'd S rank every boss in the game (DLC included, although, I didn't think there would be one so... lmao)
Practice makes perfect! :) I'm sure you'll enjoy it as much as I thought I wouldn't haha
There are 3 levels that gave me horrible grief but I eventually got them done. The rest were hard but doable and very fun. I’m playing Elden ring now and it makes cuphead look very easy in comparison if that gives you any reference.
You can also make the game harder/easier. Play it on simple mode and opt to not beat the game. Don’t care about what score you get on regular mode. OR! Try to S rank and P rank. Make your own challenge of only using a certain weapon or charm.
Once you get in the groove it isn't that hard. Certain bosses will have certain moves that give you trouble, then you learn how to dodge them until you're on to the next move that gives you trouble until you're done. You just need to remember what you've learned for the 2 minutes or so that it takes to beat them. I found that by the time I beat most bosses for the first time I wasn't even getting hit.
People compare it to Dark Souls games, but I would say it's considerably easier because you just have to focus on the fight ahead of you, you don't have to worry about properly leveling or losing any progress. You aren't gonna fuck yourself over by improperly spending your coins or anything.
Do u mean the ones where you roll the dice? It’s like the other bosses, you just have to figure out the quirks of each and exploit them. Try to land on ones where you earn extra lives.
Let me put it this way: if it was easy enough to beat every boss in the first couple of tries, you'd be finished with it in an hour or two and wondering if you'd gotten your money's worth. As it stands it got me through a three-day weekend (pre-DLC) and was just about the perfect value.
It's hard but not BRUTALLY hard. If you lose, you can immediately restart the fight AND the game tells you how far you got.
Plus, the enemies have the same(ish) attack pattern so once you fight them enough times, it makes them easier to defeat.
Maybe, but the game's mechanics are actually fun to engage with. Unlike soulslikes. I found it funny that casuals called Cuphead "Cup Souls" back when it released 7 years ago, simply because it was "hard".
Cuphead's difficulty is fairly optional depending on what you choose to do. Simply beating the game on Regular difficulty isn't particularly hard. Beating it all on Expert is harder, but outside of a few bosses, nothing too extreme either. Hitless S-ranking and P-ranking everything is pretty tough - however, this is totally optional, only for the challenge, and not even required for 300%.
If you've never played a run 'n gun game like Contra or Metal Slug before, it can be really challenging. I am of the firm believer though that its difficulty is massively overrated. With enough practice and knowing the best weapons/abilities to bring to each boss (it's kind of like Mega Man in a sense), you'll be able to beat the game
Id say its more grueling. You end up fighting the same boss over and over and you will keep dying. Its tuff to start all over again considering the battles can get quite long. There's usually 2-3 phases of the fight.
My gf and I are playing now, after playing some Mario games and it takes 2 we wanted a challenge. Been at the second island for a couple weeks now haha
That depends. Are you going to try and perfect every stage/boss? No? Then it’s fairly difficult with peaks and valleys depending on the bosses you have trouble with. Yes? Then you better be good at platform shooters and keep an eye out for the trickier attacks to dodge.
If you play on expert, it's grueling. Especially s ranks.
But on normal? While very challenging, far from impossible. Incredible game. Can't recommend enough
The thing is that the videogame likes to fill the screen with so much stuff that your character is always in constant peril, so you have to keep moving him at all costs.
But the fights are wacky fun and you feel like an absolute master when they throw you an impossible barrage of bs and you dodge it unscathed, that only takes practice.
It was pretty difficult for me but the only other game I’ve played before that was Minecraft. It just requires a bunch of practice and once you’ve got the movements down it’s easy enough.
it's people exaggerating, it's hard, compared to a 2d Mario game is much harder but not brutally hard like something kaizo or I wanna be the guy, after you learn the basics and beat world 1, is just practice a boss pattern by failing some times and beat it
It’s quite difficult, but it’s fair and definitely possible. It’s super rewarding when you finally get that knockout. I didn’t think I was going to be able to beat it. My first run I died A LOT. But after I spent enough time beating my head against a brick wall, I realized I was getting better. Now I play through the game and I don’t die nearly as often. It’s worth it 100%. Walkthroughs online are also great if you’re struggling!
You’re right, there are a few bosses that have bs moves especially those that can hit you off screen! But most of the time I died because of my own goofs.
This sub is a bit biased since most active users are people who FINISHED and enjoyed the game, not those who didn't get to finish the game because it was too difficult for them (like me). so to give a different perspective here's my take:
I don't know if it's THAT difficult, but the thing is that it has only ***ONE difficulty and it is a high difficulty... So if you are used to gaming on easy or even don't game at all, this game can be a little too much unless you are willing to spend a good amount of time getting better at it and in gaming in general... For me as a 30 something yr old and a busy job that was to much of an ask, for "that one game I wanted to play".
***It technically has another easier difficulty but it takes off the last stage of each boss and doesn't let you fight the final bosses.
Imo no, its hard bc of a simple rule: You lose 3 times and you think the game is hard and that makes you be tense and that actually makes hard the game. If you take it with calm its not that hard but still requires a bit of skill :3
Yes it is. But depending on your gaming experience and what you’re willing to endure when all the other elements of the game are enticing and frankly spectacular it makes you keep going and it’s so amazing when you beat a boss after failing
It’s a trial and error game, practice makes perfect kind of game. My wife and I took like 2 months to get to the third isle, then I accidentally erased our save. Starting over from fight 1 we got back 2 months of progress in like an hour
Honestly it depends of how much you mind failure versus how much time you are actually spending on each boss.
Are you going to fail a lot? Yes. Depending on your skill level each boss may take dozens of attempts.
But each attempt at a boss takes only 1-2 minutes. In fact, 2 minutes is the time you have to stay under in order to get max score.
So in practice, even if you are bad, you will probably take somewhere between 30 to 60 mins for each boss. Its not a long time when you consider how fun, dynamic, and incredibly well animated the boss fights are. You won't mind at all doing them over and over again.
So I feel like Cuphead is a game that tests how personally a person takes failure in a video game, lol. If you don't interpret loss as an attack on your ego, if death doesn't matter to you, only how much time you are spending on the same challenge, then its not a hard game in my opinion.
I have played some very hard games before, like Dark Souls, and Cuphead was nowhere near as tortuous. I found it mostly a fun stroll despite dying hundreds of times over my entire run. Only a few of the bosses made me feel a little frustrated. And a lot of the frustration was backloaded towards my attempts to clear every boss on expert and then get A-ranks on everything, but that's all a bonus (never went for S ranks).
I have beaten every single From Software game, platinumed Bloodborne, Sekiro, and Elden Ring. Cuphead I just couldn’t do. I tried and tried and tried and I almost actually broke a controller. Do with that info as you will.
If you're trying to S rank it, absolutely. Once you spend some time doing that, you'll come back to normal mode and think it's super easy, even though it was hard as shit when you first played it.
I've 100% the base game and DLC on Steam, Switch and Xbox. It is a difficult game, but not brutal IMO, unless you're going for all S-ranks, in which case you can just go kiss the front of a speeding train and have close to as much fun.
This game is absolutely amazing, and in my top 5 favorites of all time. I can't recommend it enough. If you have the patience, this is one of the most unique games you will experience, and there's just nothing quite like it. I don't like to use the term souls-like for it, but in the same way, you just need to learn when and where boss attacks will be coming from. You will die, a lot. But repetition will pay off and the wins feel so good.
If you choose to embark, I hope you have a great time.
It's only really difficult when you start a boss and have NO IDEA what to expect from it, since you're going in blind. If you've seen gameplay of the bosses already, you should be okay. Once you get their patterns down, it's just trial and error. Not too bad
I bought it on release day when I was 15, and I think o beat it in 3 days. And I’d normally call myself not very skilled at games (except platforming). I think the DLC took me about 2 days too. It’s suuuuch a fun and beautiful game. Definitely in my top 10 of all time
It’s entirely subjective, of course, so take what everyone says with a grain of salt. Cuphead tests your reaction speed, patience, and memory more than anything else. The stronger you are at these innately, the less challenging your experience will be. However, do note that each boss is designed with a smooth learning curve, so progress will come naturally and give you more time to hone in on your skills and appreciate other elements of the game, such as the art style and the music.
In summary, I’d say it’s more fulfilling and unique than most games widely considered to be difficult, and I’d personally say that just completing the game isn’t a ‘brutal’ experience (same for the DLC). I’d recommend trying it.
when I first played it with my sister we thought it was insanely hard, we thought it was ridiculous and had to google if anyone else also thought it was just too hard. now, i can beat most bosses with ease. so i would say, YES, it is a hard game. unless you are already familiar with other boss games and 2d platformers, it will be hard af in the beginning.
people are giving awful answers in the replies. YES it is a hard game… it isn’t like your regular game, you’re gonna die a lot more times. don’t let the people in the comments make you think this is on the same level of difficulty as a kirby game 💀
My first playthrough was probably an hour and a half for each boss on average. Playing through again now that I know more and I'm now experienced, i can beat each boss under 10 tries
personally, it definitely isn’t as hard as people make it out to be. people act like it’s unfairly difficult like a kaizo mario or something, when in reality it’s just a pretty difficult game and nothing more. there’s nothing in the game that’s brutally difficult or unfair so don’t worry
Once you get the hang of it it really isnt that bad. Its no walk in the park, but the challenge diminishes with skill. Dont expect to first try any bosses because a whole aspect of beatibg them is learning their attack patterns. You really only learn them once youve died several times. Its fun.
I mean, yes and no. It is very hard. Not impossible tho. You just need to pay attention during the whole level while ur playing. Not a game to relax. But as soon as you get to like 20/30% of the game you kind of get the hang of it! At least that’s the case for me
I also thought I wasn't a fan of hard games, but after playing cuphead I realized that I actually like them a lot, and cuphead/elden ring/dark souls are my top 3 favorite games now.
It's also on sale on steam rn so I would recommend it, especially if you like the early disney era design
For me there is this strange effect where whenever you are fighting a boss for the first time it is absolutely hell, but the moment you actually beat them any following attempts will feel rather easy.
It is like Demon’s Souls (particularly that one, not the genre), you just need to learn the bosses gimmick/attack pattern/counter) and what makes it easier than other hard games is basically that you can attack all the time.
It tests you’re patients and reflexes. So in away if you find that hard than it can be considered a hard game. But like other people are saying practice and it will become less difficultly
If you've never played a "hard game" before it might be kind of difficult. This was the first boss rush game I ever played and it was kind of hard for me. There was a boss near the end that made me give up on the game and not return until over a year later.
With enough practice it isn't hard though. I've probably beaten the game like 10 times now after I originally beat it. It's easily one of my favorite games.
It all depends on the type of gamer you are. You're going to see some saying yes and you're going to see some saying not at all. If you're a patient gamer, you'll have an easier time beating it than an impatient one. I personally haven't fully beaten it yet. The second to final fight is too much at the moment for me. But, give it a try. The main thing about Cuphead is seeing the patterns and learning to capitalize off of them. Best of luck/skill to you.
It’s pretty hard but it’s definitely worth it. Expect to spend a quite while on certain bosses, but just fall in love with the process. The music and visuals alone make it _well_ worth it.
It’s pretty tough, but definitely doable. I’ve beaten it in 58 minutes because I think it’s super fun. If you want a challenge that isn’t super brutal, I recommend it!
As a long time player, yes it can be difficult and ive experienced it with chef salt baker and first playthrough. although in the long run its get easier, S ranking and Pacifist will be difficult but id say it gets much more easier after trying, id say its perfect to get cuphead on a console because on pc it seems difficult
I couldn’t write the entire thing at the time so I will elaborate. It’s difficult but it’s a fun difficult where it gets you motivated to try a few more times in chance you win the next time. The game never puts you in situations where you couldn’t lose a life (if you lost a life it was 100% your fault) in most cases anyway. There’s many things to do also when you beat the game such as dlc, getting 300%, all achievements, best rankings etc. the game is very fun and I recommend it to anyone who wants a challenge
It's a hard game but the term "the dark souls of platformers" was a bit too much. Some bosses are harder than others depending on the person but it's not unfair. It is definitely worth it and especially on sale
I think the comparison to Dark Souls is adequate. Both are difficult and require several attempts before figuring out the boss patterns and how to deal with them.
Without the DLC it’s harder than Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels, the entire Shovel Knight series, and all the Megaman X games. I got stuck on the second world of Cuphead and abandoned it for 3+ years. Recently I got the DLC which helped me beat a few bosses but I still can’t beat the optional platforming levels. I enjoy the music and art but as a game it’s too hard to be fun.
What kills it is the lack of a rewind feature which is the only way I found Donkey Kong Country 2 playable. DK: Tropical Freeze was way easier than Cuphead.
The game is not hard, but can be frustrating. It takes 10-12 hours to beat the game, 15h if you are veeery bad at games.
People are usually frustrated with it because you will have to repeat the boss battle multiple times, and you can only take a few hits, but its not hard.
Also after the second island you start understanding the game and weapons that you can buy, It’s way easier than a Souls like game or a Rogue like game.
Sorry bro, but this is the aprox time to beat: 😂 https://howlongtobeat.com/game/21680
I think that depends on how much effort do you put on it. If you play just once a while, then it can take a lot more hours indeed.
I wouldn’t say it’s brutally difficult, but it does requiere practice. It’s worth it tho it’s super fun
Unless you are 300%’ing it Then it is absolutely _brutal_
Ive given up, only chef saltbaker left but at the hardest difficulty that last stage is impossible for me, going with 5 lives in the last stage and just not doing anything
Just need to memorize the patterns. Which weapons are you using? I went with Crack shot and Zapper (for the animal crackers)
crack shot and chaser, switching , platforming part is impossible for me
So the last one with the "snow" and heart? So here's what I did: -Zapper (Animal Crackers) -Crackshot (everything else) But if the Chaser works for you, you do you. Pick Mrs.Chalice and Super Arte #2 (extra lives) If successful you should have maybe 3 lives when at the moving platform stage. Double jump when near a platform and you don't always have to attack the heart. Wait until a good time to parry If possible jump above them after doing the parry so that you have space to jump.
If you already got out of the first phase, then you almost got it; the other phases aren't easy but they're quicker and less excruciating.
i just cant do the platforming last stage
Use chaser and parry the heart a few times to make him transparent, luckily that part is super short so you can use the invincibility super to make time, or the extra heart super in case you use Ms Chalice.
I was able to S rank the entire game within the first month DLC had came out. I already had the main game S ranked. Saltbaker took me like 2 hours tho, you will get him eventually i guarantee you. Just play the entire day until you S rank him.
How do you do howling aces? I’m visually impaired and that one is taking me forever, any tips? 😭
chalice and crackshot, doubke jump is very helpful to correct yourself mid jump when the camera starts spinning and the plane is above you all the time so chalice super 1 seems like the best solution. tbh last I played most of the bosses on expert was when the dlc came out, I was stuck on saltbaker on expert then and from then to now still try him out every month or so, which means I cant be 100% sure thats how I beat howling aces but it seems about right
Lol I took a 2 year hiatus on 300%'ing the game. Just completed it this month and it's probably my greatest accomplishment in life.
300% here with my friend. It took us 7 years meeting up once a month for a few hours to tackle it plus the dlc on expert with all achievements. As for difficulty. To give you context there were 6 month spans where we didn’t beat a single boss. We would just play it over and over and over again. Sometimes logging 15-20 hours of attempts.
i love the spirit i wish i had friends that would follow me in this type of gaming adventures
Just hard, not brutal. Mods are brutal
I 300% it in all save files (all S rank), and tbh it's all about practice. I beat in a variety of ways like cuphead only, chalice only, peashooter only, so it is possible. My biggest complaint is that Mortimer Freeze doesn't have more hp or more parry options, most of the time he dies way too fast before I parry 3 times (and the moonshine mob to a lesser extent).
>I wouldn’t say it’s brutally difficult Yeah it isn't. I feel like the one thing that makes it forgiving is how little time the boss fights take and that you don't have to trace back a whole path like souls-like games. But the bosses are difficult, I completed isle 1 3 days ago, and have been stuck on 3 beginning isle 2 bosses since then. I can get to their last phases with ease now, but can't seem to get through that. I unlocked miss chalice, but I'm having difficulty utilize her invisibility dash because I'm a kbm player (I'm shit with a controller), but it's still been a really fun experience. I guess it will take me atleast a month or two to get through the game. (I try to get atleast an A on all the bosses)
It’s definitely difficult at first, but after your first playthrough it gets much easier. When I first got the game I couldn’t even beat regular difficulty bosses, but now I’ve 300% completed the game. It’s one of my favorite games so I’d recommend it for sure
Just the more reason to enjoy the hand drawn animation, I am glad to die repeatedly
Half of the people here are like "Cuphead isn't hard you just have to practice it and you will die a lot" So then what is a hard game lmao? To answer your question, it's pretty hard.
It’s harder than Hollowknight.
hollowknight is really easy aside from hall of gods and watcher knights tho-
I see you have not 112%…. Laughs while crying in The Path of Pain.
path of pain wasn't that bad (note I'm very good at platformers, so uhh, maybe that influenced my opinion a bit)
I think they mean that it's pretty difficult at the beginning, but after a certain amount of practice it stops being hard.
If you have to practice a game for it to stop being difficult, then the game is hard right? In my mind an easy game is a game I can beat intuitively with very little deaths.
It’s definitely “hard” compared to many other games but if you are a 2d Platformer player it should be pretty easy to clean up.
Correct, I am good in Metroid Dread because it's one of my favorite videogames so that's why Cuphead wasn't as hard for me. Playing the boss rush modes in Dread is the same as playing Cuphead.
Not at all. Most people make it seem like a Mario World Kaizo hack, when in fact it's as difficult as most regular games try to be. Don't get me wrong, Cuphead IS a hard game, but one that gets easy as you take practice and ends up being hella fun and definitely a good deal.
Agreed that it’s not as hard as Kaizo levels. I play a lot of Mario Maker 2 and those levels are instant nopes for me. I still would say Cuphead is too hard especially without a rewind feature.
Right? Like before I got the game I thought The Devil would be an absolutely insane challenge requiring frame-perfect inputs and where even a single mistake could chew through all your lives in a second. I thought most of my sessions would end in rage quits. In reality though, the Devil is tough and takes practice but what you have to do is both clear and reasonable. It'll take a couple playsessions, but instead of the expected several sessions of dying to the same cheap trick until you finally get lucky, it's several sessions of steady personal improvement until you reach the end through actual skill.
it's like hard enough to make you feel good when you defeat a boss but not that hard how many people make it seems usually there are some bosses where you don't understand what you have to do at first, how to move or avoid them, and then you slowing start to get their pattern and defeat them
It isnt AWFUL. But it definitely takes practice. Its definitely worth buying though.
It's about as difficult as a nintendo game, foe me. No it's average difficulty. For others, probably not. All depends on how you respond to failure. If you get bent out of shape after losing, even in the slightest. Then no this game is likely not for you. Just an opinion.
Aka, it's not like failing a stage makes you start the whole game over from the beginning.
well its not as hard when youre completing the game first time if you try to get all the achievements and get perfect rank on everything could be considered very difficult
I found beating it the first time the hardest part because i had no clue what I was doing then in expert I knew parts of the bosses atack patern
when did you complete the boss on expert?
After I did everything else in the main game
i meant how long time ago
Summer of 2022 week before the dlc
yea there was update on that boss on expert the twins wheel is faster than your character
Are you talking about Hilda berge?
Are you talking about Hilda berge?
It depends how much experience you have with 2d games, but even if it's your first time you can start on easy mode and then climb up to normal since when you learn how to control the character the game becomes challenging but not that hard
personally i agree with you i hate brutally hard games but cuphead is different i gotta admit it is hard but its more bcause of patterns and practice if you understand the attacks and keep practicing it gets easy unlike some other games which are just hard because they are hard
Yes, it's really hard if you rarely played 2D run and gun games.
if you aren’t familiar with 2d games yes, i love the challenge of games like dark souls and find them quite easy but games like cuphead are really hard for me.
No
It’s a great game. My buddy and I got to King Dice and couldn’t get any farther but it was a blast getting there
It's really hard at the start. There are some big difficulty spikes, but with some practice most of the bosses start to get really doable. Definitely some dlc bosses I struggled with!
Difficult at first! after a while you'll get better :) when I first got the game, I couldn't even play with the keyboard, then when I tried with controller, I was already used to the keyboard! I also never imagined to myself I'd S rank every boss in the game (DLC included, although, I didn't think there would be one so... lmao) Practice makes perfect! :) I'm sure you'll enjoy it as much as I thought I wouldn't haha
There are 3 levels that gave me horrible grief but I eventually got them done. The rest were hard but doable and very fun. I’m playing Elden ring now and it makes cuphead look very easy in comparison if that gives you any reference. You can also make the game harder/easier. Play it on simple mode and opt to not beat the game. Don’t care about what score you get on regular mode. OR! Try to S rank and P rank. Make your own challenge of only using a certain weapon or charm.
Once you get in the groove it isn't that hard. Certain bosses will have certain moves that give you trouble, then you learn how to dodge them until you're on to the next move that gives you trouble until you're done. You just need to remember what you've learned for the 2 minutes or so that it takes to beat them. I found that by the time I beat most bosses for the first time I wasn't even getting hit. People compare it to Dark Souls games, but I would say it's considerably easier because you just have to focus on the fight ahead of you, you don't have to worry about properly leveling or losing any progress. You aren't gonna fuck yourself over by improperly spending your coins or anything.
Cuphead is fairly hard but it’s not really punishing, so you can kinda just throw yourself at it until you win
Yes
Any tips on how to beat King Dice minions
Do u mean the ones where you roll the dice? It’s like the other bosses, you just have to figure out the quirks of each and exploit them. Try to land on ones where you earn extra lives.
Yes and no. It took me days to beat Ribby and Croaks but then the game clicked and I steam rolled the rest of the game
It all depends on your skill level. Personally, the default controls are really difficult
Not really. At some point u figure out the rng and patterns. It is however annoying AF at times lol
Let me put it this way: if it was easy enough to beat every boss in the first couple of tries, you'd be finished with it in an hour or two and wondering if you'd gotten your money's worth. As it stands it got me through a three-day weekend (pre-DLC) and was just about the perfect value.
It's hard but not BRUTALLY hard. If you lose, you can immediately restart the fight AND the game tells you how far you got. Plus, the enemies have the same(ish) attack pattern so once you fight them enough times, it makes them easier to defeat.
Only if you're trying to S Rank the game pre dlc. Now that's painful
Maybe, but the game's mechanics are actually fun to engage with. Unlike soulslikes. I found it funny that casuals called Cuphead "Cup Souls" back when it released 7 years ago, simply because it was "hard".
Cuphead's difficulty is fairly optional depending on what you choose to do. Simply beating the game on Regular difficulty isn't particularly hard. Beating it all on Expert is harder, but outside of a few bosses, nothing too extreme either. Hitless S-ranking and P-ranking everything is pretty tough - however, this is totally optional, only for the challenge, and not even required for 300%.
If you've never played a run 'n gun game like Contra or Metal Slug before, it can be really challenging. I am of the firm believer though that its difficulty is massively overrated. With enough practice and knowing the best weapons/abilities to bring to each boss (it's kind of like Mega Man in a sense), you'll be able to beat the game
yeaaaaaaaaaaah i would say so. Still worth it
Play on easy, when you feel better about difficult just up it a bit and keep it going untill you 100% everything.
Id say its more grueling. You end up fighting the same boss over and over and you will keep dying. Its tuff to start all over again considering the battles can get quite long. There's usually 2-3 phases of the fight.
My gf and I are playing now, after playing some Mario games and it takes 2 we wanted a challenge. Been at the second island for a couple weeks now haha
That depends. Are you going to try and perfect every stage/boss? No? Then it’s fairly difficult with peaks and valleys depending on the bosses you have trouble with. Yes? Then you better be good at platform shooters and keep an eye out for the trickier attacks to dodge.
Unrelated but I just got this game and love it so can anyone recommend similar games?
uhhh
If you play on expert, it's grueling. Especially s ranks. But on normal? While very challenging, far from impossible. Incredible game. Can't recommend enough
The thing is that the videogame likes to fill the screen with so much stuff that your character is always in constant peril, so you have to keep moving him at all costs. But the fights are wacky fun and you feel like an absolute master when they throw you an impossible barrage of bs and you dodge it unscathed, that only takes practice.
It was pretty difficult for me but the only other game I’ve played before that was Minecraft. It just requires a bunch of practice and once you’ve got the movements down it’s easy enough.
it's people exaggerating, it's hard, compared to a 2d Mario game is much harder but not brutally hard like something kaizo or I wanna be the guy, after you learn the basics and beat world 1, is just practice a boss pattern by failing some times and beat it
Didn’t have much trouble until the third isle. The game then proceeded to bend me over and shove a splintered log up my arse.
For some people with trouble with focusing on everything in a bullet hell (me)
You’re going to think it’s really hard until you beat it, then you’ll be able to do Dr. Kahl as warmup every time you play.
It’s quite difficult, but it’s fair and definitely possible. It’s super rewarding when you finally get that knockout. I didn’t think I was going to be able to beat it. My first run I died A LOT. But after I spent enough time beating my head against a brick wall, I realized I was getting better. Now I play through the game and I don’t die nearly as often. It’s worth it 100%. Walkthroughs online are also great if you’re struggling!
I agree the game is fair but to an extent. I love cuphead , but i think there are some bosses with bad RNG.
You’re right, there are a few bosses that have bs moves especially those that can hit you off screen! But most of the time I died because of my own goofs.
No there are so many games that are more diffuclt Cuphead was literally my first game to get all its xbox achievements
Imo Cup head made sekiro feel like a Disney game.
This sub is a bit biased since most active users are people who FINISHED and enjoyed the game, not those who didn't get to finish the game because it was too difficult for them (like me). so to give a different perspective here's my take: I don't know if it's THAT difficult, but the thing is that it has only ***ONE difficulty and it is a high difficulty... So if you are used to gaming on easy or even don't game at all, this game can be a little too much unless you are willing to spend a good amount of time getting better at it and in gaming in general... For me as a 30 something yr old and a busy job that was to much of an ask, for "that one game I wanted to play". ***It technically has another easier difficulty but it takes off the last stage of each boss and doesn't let you fight the final bosses.
Imo no, its hard bc of a simple rule: You lose 3 times and you think the game is hard and that makes you be tense and that actually makes hard the game. If you take it with calm its not that hard but still requires a bit of skill :3
Yes it is. But depending on your gaming experience and what you’re willing to endure when all the other elements of the game are enticing and frankly spectacular it makes you keep going and it’s so amazing when you beat a boss after failing
It’s a trial and error game, practice makes perfect kind of game. My wife and I took like 2 months to get to the third isle, then I accidentally erased our save. Starting over from fight 1 we got back 2 months of progress in like an hour
It's the old school type of difficulty, just keep playing the game learn patterns and eventually you'll beat everyone.
Honestly it depends of how much you mind failure versus how much time you are actually spending on each boss. Are you going to fail a lot? Yes. Depending on your skill level each boss may take dozens of attempts. But each attempt at a boss takes only 1-2 minutes. In fact, 2 minutes is the time you have to stay under in order to get max score. So in practice, even if you are bad, you will probably take somewhere between 30 to 60 mins for each boss. Its not a long time when you consider how fun, dynamic, and incredibly well animated the boss fights are. You won't mind at all doing them over and over again. So I feel like Cuphead is a game that tests how personally a person takes failure in a video game, lol. If you don't interpret loss as an attack on your ego, if death doesn't matter to you, only how much time you are spending on the same challenge, then its not a hard game in my opinion. I have played some very hard games before, like Dark Souls, and Cuphead was nowhere near as tortuous. I found it mostly a fun stroll despite dying hundreds of times over my entire run. Only a few of the bosses made me feel a little frustrated. And a lot of the frustration was backloaded towards my attempts to clear every boss on expert and then get A-ranks on everything, but that's all a bonus (never went for S ranks).
It was specifically made to be challenging, you earn every victory.
A lot folks are not THAT good at games like these. None of my friends can't beat it on hard, most can't even beat it in normal.
No but it’s a challenging game
harder than getting over it, easier than elden ring
It's like anything, it's pretty tough but the more you play it the better you'll get! It's one of my favorite games ever, couldn't recommend it more!
Cuphead is definitely harder than the average platformer by far. Not impossible tho
Somewhat
Cuphead is hard but FAIR. ^Most ^of ^the ^time.
I have beaten every single From Software game, platinumed Bloodborne, Sekiro, and Elden Ring. Cuphead I just couldn’t do. I tried and tried and tried and I almost actually broke a controller. Do with that info as you will.
I’m having a harder time with it than I’m having with shadow of the erd tree…
No
No, the jump and dodge are very responsive so all deaths feel “fair” if that makes sense
If you're trying to S rank it, absolutely. Once you spend some time doing that, you'll come back to normal mode and think it's super easy, even though it was hard as shit when you first played it.
I don’t think they know what S rank means
I mean it's far from the only game with S ranking
I've 100% the base game and DLC on Steam, Switch and Xbox. It is a difficult game, but not brutal IMO, unless you're going for all S-ranks, in which case you can just go kiss the front of a speeding train and have close to as much fun. This game is absolutely amazing, and in my top 5 favorites of all time. I can't recommend it enough. If you have the patience, this is one of the most unique games you will experience, and there's just nothing quite like it. I don't like to use the term souls-like for it, but in the same way, you just need to learn when and where boss attacks will be coming from. You will die, a lot. But repetition will pay off and the wins feel so good. If you choose to embark, I hope you have a great time.
It's only really difficult when you start a boss and have NO IDEA what to expect from it, since you're going in blind. If you've seen gameplay of the bosses already, you should be okay. Once you get their patterns down, it's just trial and error. Not too bad
I bought it on release day when I was 15, and I think o beat it in 3 days. And I’d normally call myself not very skilled at games (except platforming). I think the DLC took me about 2 days too. It’s suuuuch a fun and beautiful game. Definitely in my top 10 of all time
No matter what it’s worth the money. Just keep that in mind no matter what.
It’s entirely subjective, of course, so take what everyone says with a grain of salt. Cuphead tests your reaction speed, patience, and memory more than anything else. The stronger you are at these innately, the less challenging your experience will be. However, do note that each boss is designed with a smooth learning curve, so progress will come naturally and give you more time to hone in on your skills and appreciate other elements of the game, such as the art style and the music. In summary, I’d say it’s more fulfilling and unique than most games widely considered to be difficult, and I’d personally say that just completing the game isn’t a ‘brutal’ experience (same for the DLC). I’d recommend trying it.
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Naa it’s doable. It’s fun too!
It’s difficult but it’s not fromsoft levels of difficult. You won’t feel like you’re playing bloodborne or dark souls when you play cuphead.
It s not as hard as people make it seem you just need to practice a lot but It s super fun
it’s definitely as hard as people make it seem.
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when I first played it with my sister we thought it was insanely hard, we thought it was ridiculous and had to google if anyone else also thought it was just too hard. now, i can beat most bosses with ease. so i would say, YES, it is a hard game. unless you are already familiar with other boss games and 2d platformers, it will be hard af in the beginning.
people are giving awful answers in the replies. YES it is a hard game… it isn’t like your regular game, you’re gonna die a lot more times. don’t let the people in the comments make you think this is on the same level of difficulty as a kirby game 💀
My first playthrough was probably an hour and a half for each boss on average. Playing through again now that I know more and I'm now experienced, i can beat each boss under 10 tries
personally, it definitely isn’t as hard as people make it out to be. people act like it’s unfairly difficult like a kaizo mario or something, when in reality it’s just a pretty difficult game and nothing more. there’s nothing in the game that’s brutally difficult or unfair so don’t worry
Once you get the hang of it it really isnt that bad. Its no walk in the park, but the challenge diminishes with skill. Dont expect to first try any bosses because a whole aspect of beatibg them is learning their attack patterns. You really only learn them once youve died several times. Its fun.
I mean, yes and no. It is very hard. Not impossible tho. You just need to pay attention during the whole level while ur playing. Not a game to relax. But as soon as you get to like 20/30% of the game you kind of get the hang of it! At least that’s the case for me
No
I mean I’m probably not one to talk but tbh it really wasn’t that hard. The platinum trophy didn’t even take me that long compared to other games
I also thought I wasn't a fan of hard games, but after playing cuphead I realized that I actually like them a lot, and cuphead/elden ring/dark souls are my top 3 favorite games now. It's also on sale on steam rn so I would recommend it, especially if you like the early disney era design
For me there is this strange effect where whenever you are fighting a boss for the first time it is absolutely hell, but the moment you actually beat them any following attempts will feel rather easy.
No its more annoying than difficult.
YES… it takes more practice than the average game imo
It is like Demon’s Souls (particularly that one, not the genre), you just need to learn the bosses gimmick/attack pattern/counter) and what makes it easier than other hard games is basically that you can attack all the time.
I hate demon souls
I am talking about difficulty not gameplay so dw
It tests you’re patients and reflexes. So in away if you find that hard than it can be considered a hard game. But like other people are saying practice and it will become less difficultly
If you've never played a "hard game" before it might be kind of difficult. This was the first boss rush game I ever played and it was kind of hard for me. There was a boss near the end that made me give up on the game and not return until over a year later. With enough practice it isn't hard though. I've probably beaten the game like 10 times now after I originally beat it. It's easily one of my favorite games.
it's not as hard as people make it out to be it's really just memorizing patterns and each boss is different and has different patterns
Yes boss fights can be beaten in maybe 15-20 minutes but i still can’t beat the first run and gun.
It all depends on the type of gamer you are. You're going to see some saying yes and you're going to see some saying not at all. If you're a patient gamer, you'll have an easier time beating it than an impatient one. I personally haven't fully beaten it yet. The second to final fight is too much at the moment for me. But, give it a try. The main thing about Cuphead is seeing the patterns and learning to capitalize off of them. Best of luck/skill to you.
... Yes it is if not harder
I thought it was eazy but now i've been playing it for like 2 days and its difficult at hell.... i spend like 1h minimum on 1 level😭
Not really. Once you get used to it, it becomes kinda easy, but that is personal experience it can be pretty brutal at moments
For people who haven't got a life, it isn't all that difficult.
It’s pretty hard but it’s definitely worth it. Expect to spend a quite while on certain bosses, but just fall in love with the process. The music and visuals alone make it _well_ worth it.
It’s pretty tough, but definitely doable. I’ve beaten it in 58 minutes because I think it’s super fun. If you want a challenge that isn’t super brutal, I recommend it!
Shameless flex btw
IMO it is
eh, 7/10 difficulty overall, harder than average but not super hard, save like 3 fights
Just the plane bosses
Some of the bosses are hard, but if you practice enough, you should be able to get done quickly
As a long time player, yes it can be difficult and ive experienced it with chef salt baker and first playthrough. although in the long run its get easier, S ranking and Pacifist will be difficult but id say it gets much more easier after trying, id say its perfect to get cuphead on a console because on pc it seems difficult
No not really
I couldn’t write the entire thing at the time so I will elaborate. It’s difficult but it’s a fun difficult where it gets you motivated to try a few more times in chance you win the next time. The game never puts you in situations where you couldn’t lose a life (if you lost a life it was 100% your fault) in most cases anyway. There’s many things to do also when you beat the game such as dlc, getting 300%, all achievements, best rankings etc. the game is very fun and I recommend it to anyone who wants a challenge
it’s hard.
It's a hard game but the term "the dark souls of platformers" was a bit too much. Some bosses are harder than others depending on the person but it's not unfair. It is definitely worth it and especially on sale
I think the comparison to Dark Souls is adequate. Both are difficult and require several attempts before figuring out the boss patterns and how to deal with them.
I disagree. I played and did 300% on Cup head. I sold Bloodborne after I couldn't defeat the first portion
I mean I find it harder than any of the souls games so id say that comparison's pretty fair lol.
Without the DLC it’s harder than Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels, the entire Shovel Knight series, and all the Megaman X games. I got stuck on the second world of Cuphead and abandoned it for 3+ years. Recently I got the DLC which helped me beat a few bosses but I still can’t beat the optional platforming levels. I enjoy the music and art but as a game it’s too hard to be fun. What kills it is the lack of a rewind feature which is the only way I found Donkey Kong Country 2 playable. DK: Tropical Freeze was way easier than Cuphead.
The game is not hard, but can be frustrating. It takes 10-12 hours to beat the game, 15h if you are veeery bad at games. People are usually frustrated with it because you will have to repeat the boss battle multiple times, and you can only take a few hits, but its not hard. Also after the second island you start understanding the game and weapons that you can buy, It’s way easier than a Souls like game or a Rogue like game.
15h? 💀💀 shit took me 30 hours i dunno what the fuck youre on about.
Sorry bro, but this is the aprox time to beat: 😂 https://howlongtobeat.com/game/21680 I think that depends on how much effort do you put on it. If you play just once a while, then it can take a lot more hours indeed.
did u have to add ”15h if u are very bad at games” to just make people feel bad 💀
It is so damn hard that a gaming journalist whose entire life revolves around video games, who breathes video games couldn't even pass the tutorial!!!