Best Games Like Cuphead

Anyone who picks up Cuphead expecting a feel-good Saturday-morning cartoon is quickly reminded they’ve come to the wrong game. Arguably one of the most challenging 2D action platformers ever released, Cuphead feels like a love letter to classic run-n-gun games like Contra III, Mega Man X, and Gunstar Heroes.

Aside from its ability to take players on a rollercoaster of pain, frustration, and occasional euphoria, what truly sets Cuphead apart is its distinctive 1930s cartoon-inspired visuals. Every animation in the game was hand-drawn frame by frame, an arduous process that developer Studio MDHR claims was the most demanding aspect of designing Cuphead.

Here, we will be highlighting the finest games available on PC/current-gen consoles that incorporate similar gameplay mechanics as Cuphead and feature captivating visuals.

Make sure to check back as we will be updating this list in the future with fresh entries and if you would like to receive more gaming suggestions, consider reading through our other curated lists:

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Yacht Club Games took the indie scene by storm when they released Shovel Knight back in 2014, with the game going on to become one of the most acclaimed 2D platformers of the period.

Aside from having a delightful 8-bit retro aesthetic, the game features some of the finest platforming mechanics in recent years, centered around the titular hero using his shovel blade to bounce on obstacles and enemies’ heads.

Much like Cuphead, a vital part of Shovel Knight‘s appeal stems from its captivating gameplay, which sees you combining different gadgets and tools to defeat bosses and traverse environments.

This has been developed over the years through fresh expansions such as Plague of Shadows and Specter of Torment, which introduce novel characters with their unique abilities.

If you’re looking to recreate Cuphead’s headache-inducing difficulty, Hollow Knight is a great alternative. Released by indie developer Team Cherry in 2017, the 2D Metroidvania managed to catch many by surprise for both its stunning visuals and high degree of challenge. 

The game takes place in the sinister Hallownest and you play as a knight with a sword. You need to solve the kingdom’s enigmas.

Whereas Cuphead attempts to entice players into a false sense of security with its vivid and animated visuals, Hollow Knight fully embraces its eerie atmosphere, portraying deadly insects and somber environments.

While it may not be a 2D platformer, Enter the Gungeon delivers the same amount of chaos and action as Cuphead does through its twin-stick shooter gameplay.

Categorized as a bullet-hell rogue-lite, the game sees players diving deeper and deeper into “The Gungeon,” a vast procedurally-generated labyrinth brimming with bullet-shaped enemies and powerful weaponry.

The game’s difficulty continues to skyrocket as you unlock new parts of The Gungeon, with each section culminating in a challenging boss fight.

Similar to Cuphead‘s arsenal of game-altering weapons and abilities, ETG features four distinct character classes with exclusive skills such as lock-picking, quicker reload speed, and a dodge with extended invincibility.

Blazing Chrome is a lot nearer visually to the vintage run-n-gun classics that Cuphead draws a bulk of its inspiration from.

Additionally, the 2D side-scroller also happens to support local co-op for up to two-players, allowing you and a friend to team up once more. However, instead of Cuphead and Mugman, you’ll be playing as a courageous rebel soldier and her mohawk-wearing robot companion.

The game takes place in a Terminator-esque future where AI machines have taken over the world, and a small group continues to survive in hiding. You’re sent on a suicide mission to infiltrate and destroy an AI-controlled power plant using an arsenal of advanced weaponry.

If you like difficult platformers such as Cuphead and Super Meat Boy, then Neon the Ninja might be the ideal game to satisfy that craving.

The game features vivid, punk rock-inspired 2D visuals, gratifying skill-based gameplay, and fluid controls reminiscent of classics like Ninja Gaiden and Mega Man.

You play as a ninja with the ability to hide in plain sight by blending into vibrant environments to stealthily assassinate foes once they’re in range.

Like Cuphead, the game works primarily as a boss challenge, with each level placing you against formidable opponents. Each boss battle has multiple stages and grants you special abilities that enhance your gameplay and continue from level to level.

Furi is another boss rush style game that’s sure to offer the kind of difficulty Cuphead fans will appreciate. While it ditches 2D in favor of a more engrossing 3D presentation, you’ll find its neon-bright visuals and compelling gameplay deliver an equally satisfying experience.

You play as a hero looking to regain their liberty and escape from an intricate prison guarded by overpowered villains.

Combat sees you learning enemy attack patterns and identifying openings to strike using your sword and gun. Similar to Cuphead’s parry maneuver, Furi provides you with a dodge ability that is crucial for surviving the barrage of unblockable attacks bosses will throw at you over and over again.

Released way back in 2012 for Xbox Live Arcade, Dust: An Elysian Tail is a sleek Metroidvania that ended up slipping under the radar for many players. Similar to Cuphead, the game features a distinctive art style in which environments, characters, and cutscenes are all highly-detailed and crafted with a noticeable amount of care. 

Set in a fantasy world populated by anthropomorphic creatures, the game sees you playing as a swordsman suffering from amnesia who stumbles upon a sentient weapon called the Blade of Ahrah along with its guardian, a flying vulpine creature named Fidget.

Eventually, you find yourself on a mission to protect the natural world from malevolent forces using an array of brawler-style combat abilities.

Titan Souls is a top-down action game with tough-as-nails boss fights that give Cuphead a run for its money.

Set in a magical world where colossal titans lie dormant in scattered ancient ruins, the game sees you taking on the role of a small hero tasked with awaking and defeating each creature to piece their world back together.

The difficulty stems from enemies possessing the ability to 1HKO you with ease in addition to your character’s limited use of a basic bow and arrow. This forces you to take your time and memorize each titan’s distinctive attack patterns as you frantically dodge a series of infernal attacks.

Bleed 2 is a spectacular shoot ’em up that incorporates features, and mechanics fans of Cuphead will immediately recognize. This includes vibrant 2D visuals, support for two-player local co-op, rapid-paced combat with bullet-reflecting parries, and tons of challenging boss fights consisting of multiple phases.

Additionally, Bleed 2 has received a considerable amount of post-launch support from developer Ian Campbell. Since its 2017 release, new modes and features such as daily challenges and randomly-generated levels have been added, significantly increasing the game’s replayability.  

Last up we have The Bug Butcher, an intense shoot ’em up with a distinctive twist: instead of shooting horizontally like you would in Cuphead, the game sees you aiming shots vertically at enemies who constantly jump and attach themselves to the ceiling.

It’s a design choice inspired by the classic arcade game Super Pang! and goes a considerable way towards setting TBB apart from other games in the genre.

What you end up with is an entertaining, arcade-based shooter that emphasizes using power-ups and outrageous weapons to dispose of a massive alien bug infestation plaguing a research facility.

TBB‘s use of humor and cartoonish visuals are also worth mentioning as they do an excellent job of establishing the game’s lighthearted tone.