Cuphead Review: 6 Ups & 4 Downs

3. Run N' Gun Levels Can Feel Like An Afterthought

The main reason behind why we didn't get Cuphead a good couple of years ago, the devs elected to add some more standard side-scrolling platform levels to please the masses that requested them. That said, they've not done it in a way that ticks the 'mass appeal' box - rather, these Run n' Gun segments are certainly visually appealing, but outside of where you'll get coins to unlock upgrades, mechanically they feel like what they were in reality - an afterthought.

Like the boss battles, you can rattle through them in around two minutes or less, but unlike the more recognisable set-piece aspects of Cuphead, each platforming run doesn't have the requisite care and attention put into learning a 'perfect path' from beginning to end.

Instead, they fall back on peppering the screen with awkward enemy placement or showerings of projectiles to ensure you die in a particular spot. There's a more damning sense of frustration when off-screen enemies can still tag you with ranged shots, and of the handful available, many Run n' Gun levels have sections designed to force deaths until you get lucky and squeeze through.

Also telling is that completing these levels isn't required to open the next World - the final indication that even on a pure progression level, you can opt out and focus on the good stuff.