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The game stars the [[Red Oni, Blue Oni|spunky Cuphead and his more cautious brother Mugman]], two boys with drinking glasses for heads and a knack for getting themselves into trouble. After getting lost and ending up on the wrong side of the tracks, they stumble upon a casino owned by [[Satan|The Devil]] himself quite literally called The Devil's Casino. [[I Don't Like the Sound of That Place|As bad of an idea as it is]], they enter, gamble, and win game after game until they get the attention of the Devil. Intrigued by their skill, he offers to give them all his treasure if they can beat him in one last game... with the caveat being that they owe him their souls if they lose.
Terrified, Mugman begs Cuphead to take their winnings and go, but his greedy brother can't resist the potential payday and gambles once more, sealing their fate when he loses. When the Devil demands payment, Cuphead and Mugman plead for mercy and ask for an alternative that the Devil graciously provides: they have 24 hours to hunt down a bunch of debtors who owe him their Soul Contracts. If they gather all of them in time, he'll leave them alone. But if they fail, he'll have their heads, [[Off
In wake of the game's success, a DLC campaign known as the "Delicious Last Course" was announced in 2018 alongside a new playable character in the form of Ms. Chalice. But it missed its 2019 release date, and slipped neatly into [[Development Hell]] before being slated for release on June 30, 2022. There is also a Netflix series called ''[[The Cuphead Show]]'', with a sneak peek available [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYmIRkitnnQ here].
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** The Devil's a more subdued example, but him being able to transform his head into dangerous monsters or grow kaiju-sized are good indicators of just how unholy he is.
* [[Humongous Mecha]]: Dr. Kahl's Robot, a towering mechanical monstrosity that is so big that you only ever see its top half during his boss fight. {{spoiler|This is also the true identity of the cat that seemingly kills Werner Werman during his boss fight}}.
* [[Idiot Hero]]: Mugman might be a little smarter than his brother (at least ''he'' realizes gambling in a casino that is literally run by the Devil is a bad idea) but taking the DLC into consideration, they aren't all-too bright. The duo even admit this in [[The Cuphead Show|the cartoon]].
* [[Interface Screw]]: Objects in the foreground of certain stages can really screw you over, since they can obstruct Cuphead and Mugman's location, as well as enemy attacks. Not only does this further Hilda Berg's [["Wake-Up Call" Boss]] credentials, but it also makes {{spoiler|Phear Lap}} a frustrating example of [[That One Boss]].
* [[Interface Spoiler]]: {{spoiler|The lack of a KO screen always means the boss survived, so don't be fooled when it looks like bosses such as Goopy Le Grande and Werner Werman bite the big one}}.
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* [[All for Nothing]]: After all the trouble the boys go into so that Ms. Chalice can try the Wondertart and return to life, {{spoiler|they realize that for her to do that, she'd need to sacrifice a living soul. Chalice refuses, saying that she is not someone that would sacrifice another person or being for her benefit. With that said, the epilogue did show that she found another way}}.
* [[Arrogant Kung Fu Guy]]: The Knight's body language paints him as such, with his frequent taunts painting him as a cocky swordsman who doesn't take his opponents seriously.
* [[Belated Happy Ending]]: The epilogue with end credits shows that {{spoiler|Chalice managed to find another way to come back to life, and she hangs out with the brothers, a reformed Saltbaker, and the DLC island residents}}.
* [[Beware the Silly Ones]]: Esther Winchester is a goofy-looking literal cowgirl who fights with a vacuum cleaner and gets turned into sausage, but she's easily one of the most dangerous bosses in the DLC. When the silliness in her fight ramps up, the same goes for her difficulty, culminating in a brutal final phase where {{spoiler|she's turned into a living tin of sausages that can and ''will'' kick your ass over and over again}}.
* [[Contrasting Sequel Character]]: The real villain, {{spoiler|Chef Saltbaker}}, serves as this to the Devil. While the Devil has legitimate reasons for wanting the soul contracts from the debtors that had evaded him, {{spoiler|Saltbaker basically sent children to beat up his neighbors}}. They also {{spoiler|reveal they played the Cups and Ms. Chalice for patsies, while the Devil was upfront about the price that the brothers had to pay}}. Also, while the Devil can be beaten, {{spoiler|Saltbaker can be arrested for his crimes}}. ▼
* [[Bonus Boss]]: The King's Leap is home to a bunch of these, all of which are chess-themed and can only be hurt with parries. There's no real reason to beat them other than to get more money so you can buy the new weapons and abilities. The Broken Relic questline also pits you against {{spoiler|The Nightmare}}, who you need to defeat as one of the steps taken to purify it.
* [[A Day In The Limelight]]: The DLC gives more focus to Chalice, an NPC from the main game. She gets more characterization as a legendary hero, that once gave up her life to save the Inkwell Isles. ▼
* [[Bully Bulldog]]: The Bulldog of the Howling Aces isn't evil, but he's at the very least a rowdy bruiser who's [[Animal Jingoism|willing to hurt a cat]] as one of his attacks.
▲* [[Contrasting Sequel Character]]: The real villain, {{spoiler|Chef Saltbaker}}, serves as this to the Devil. While the Devil has legitimate reasons for wanting the soul contracts from the debtors that had evaded him, {{spoiler|Saltbaker basically sent children to beat up his neighbors and steal their stuff}}.
* [[Cult]]: Mortimer Freeze leads a cult of snowmen in... some form of worship. Whatever it is they're worshipping is left up to the player's imagination.
▲* [[A Day In The Limelight]]: The DLC gives more focus to Ms. Chalice, an NPC from the main game. She gets more characterization as a legendary hero, that once gave up her life to save the Inkwell Isles.
* [[The Determinator]]: While many Cuphead bosses embody this to some extent, Esther Winchester takes it to truly insane levels. Accidentally getting sucked into her own vacuum and turned into a bunch of sausage links doesn't dissuade her from fighting the cups, and even when {{spoiler|she's stuffed into a can, she refuses to give up.}}
* [[Dual Boss]]: {{spoiler|The Nightmare's set up to fight like one, since it pits you against the Angel and the Demon at the same time with both entities behaving independently of one another. However, you only ever actually fight the Demon while the Angel is completely harmless, with the former's attacks hurting you while the latter's merely phase through you harmlessly. Their locations change every time you turn around, so the real challenge of this boss fight is keeping note of which half of the Nightmare is firing which attacks and changing the direction you're looking at so you can nullify the Demon's attacks.}}
* [[Easily Forgiven]]: {{spoiler|While Chef Saltbaker does end up in jail, it seems a rather light sentence given the scope of his crimes, especially since the three heroes are still children when he's released and everyone seems to see him as a friendly baker afterwards. Kind of hard to believe the Desert Limes would be able to forgive the brutal murder of their kin simply because he did community service work for them.}}
* [[Equivalent Exchange]]:
** Chalice can temporary come back to life if one of the brothers eats an Astral Cookie. They become a ghost, while she takes their place in the living realm.
** The Wondertart requires one last ingredient: {{spoiler|a living soul. Saltbaker says that he plans to sacrifice one of the Cups or Chalice to make it. When Chalice finds this out, she refuses to help Saltbaker finish the baking. That, and he plans to use it to take over the astral plane}}.
* {{spoiler|[[Evil Chef]]:
* [[Evil Is Deathly Cold]]: Mortimer Freeze, an ice wizard who runs a shady cult and doesn't care if he accidentally smacks his minions with his giant whale.
* [[Feathered Fiend]]: The geese Glumstone summons and the buzzards that harass you during Esther's boss fight are truly nasty little pests.
* [[Good Counterpart]]: The King of Games is this to King Dice. Both are living game pieces with cool moustaches that {{spoiler|oversee similarly-themed boss gauntlets}}, but King Dice is a devious sleaze who runs a hotbed of sin and vice, while the King of Games is a noble ruler whose contest of champions is a grand and glorious affair. Their relationships with their campaign's respective [[Big Bad]] even contrast each other, with King Dice being the Devil's partner in crime while the King of Games {{spoiler|is a key player in rehabilitating Chef Saltbaker}}.
* [[Hero Antagonist]]: Zig-zagged. Unlike in the main game, the bosses are just minding their own business and attack in self-defense when the Cups and Ms. Chalice come after them. With that being said, only the Howling Aces and Glumstone the Giant are ''truly'' innocent of any wrongdoing: Esther Winchester is an outlaw and a snake-oil saleswoman, Mortimer Freeze is a cult leader, and the Moonshine Mob are... well, [[The Mafia|the Mob.]] With that being said, the ant cops fought in the Mob's boss fight ''are'' heroic, you're simply caught in the crossfire between them and the criminals they're trying to arrest.
* [[Hidden Agenda Villain]]: {{spoiler|Downplayed; Saltbaker's stated goal is to take over the Astral Plane, but exactly what he intended to do had he succeeded is never stated.}}
* [[Hostile Show Takeover]]: {{spoiler|The Snail of the Moonshine Mob takes over the announcer role during the gang's boss fight, and when you defeat the Anteater, he gleefully yells "Knockout!" and has his fly goons show off a fake victory screen before trying to jape you with a surprise attack. When you promptly kick his ass, the real announcer clears his throat before resuming his duties.}}
* [[Hot Mom]]: The Saluki of the Howling Aces, possibly. While it's ambiguous if she's the mother of the Yankee Yippers or not, she ''is'' an attractive maternal figure all the same.
* [[Humans Are The Real Monsters]]: {{spoiler|Technically, Chef Saltbaker isn't human (almost nothing in the game is) but he is definitely mortal and not the literal Prince of Darkness. While [[The Reveal]] is easy to see coming, the [[Final Battle]] shows he is ''far'' more evil than the Devil was. The [[Anthropomorphic Food]] that appear in the battle that he uses as weapons can obviously feel both fear and pain; the fate of the desert limes is especially brutal, he pretty much ''executes'' the poor fruits and chops them into mulch. Worse, the bosses in the DLC haven't done anything to earn his ire like the debtors, Saltbaker is sending the heroes after his neighbors because they're in the way of his bid to dominate the Astral Plane.}}
* [[I Lied]]: Turns out {{spoiler|Saltbaker was never going to bring Chalice back to life. He used her to lure the boys to the Delicious Last Course, knowing they'd be strong enough to take out their neighbors. To seal the deal, he tells the trio that he'll use their heads as serving platters after sacrificing one of their souls}}.
* [[Lady of War]]: The Saluki in charge of the Howling Aces is a classy, beautiful pooch who conducts herself with an air of dignity, [[The Comically Serious|even when she's frantically mashing buttons on her Chinook's control panel.]]
* [[Protagonist-Centered Morality]]: Deconstructed by the end of the story. Chef Saltbaker asked the brothers and Chalice to collect the ingredients from his neighbors, who hadn't done anything to warrant that level of home invasion. {{spoiler|It comes out that the antagonists were [[Good All Along]], barring the Bootlegger Bugs. The Astral Pie also requires a living soul to be baked into it. When the brothers and Chalice stop Saltbaker from making the Astral Pie and accidentally destroy his bakery, they agree that one living soul is not worth bringing Chalice back to life. Chalice says that she'll find another way to gain back her limbs.}}▼
* [[The Last of These Is Not Like the Others]]: The otherwise bug-only Moonshine Mob has an anteater as one of its members, who is not only a mammal, but a giant among the much smaller bugs.
* [[Reality Ensues]]: Chef Saltbaker sends the kids on an errand to collect the ingredients for the Astral Pie, that could bring Chalice back to life permanently, without needing the brothers. {{spoiler|The epilogue shows that he gets arrested for coercing and kidnapping children, attempted murder, destruction of his neighbors' property, and attempted domination of the astral plane. Why were the brothers let off the hook? Because they had helped save the Inkwell Isles from the Devil, and the Judge was a [[Reasonable Authority Figure]] that figured out Saltbaker duped them. Saltbaker gets a plea deal where he rebuilds all the damage he indirectly wrought upon the DLC, and spends months doing community service}}. ▼
* [[Logical Weakness]]: The Moonshine Mob seem to be exploiting this in the third phase of their boss fight. Are the cops hassling you a bunch of ants? Then hire an anteater and sic him on them!
* [[The Mafia]]: The Moonshine Mob, a criminal gang of bootlegger bugs evocative of Al Capone-era mobsters.
* [[Nice Hat]]: The Anteater of the Moonshine Mob wears a snazzy bowler hat. When he joins the fun, he even tips it before challenging the cups!
* [[Precious Puppy]]: The puppies fought in the Howling Aces' second phase [[All There in the Manual|(officially known as the Yankee Yippers)]] are cute little fellas.
▲* [[Protagonist-Centered Morality]]: Deconstructed by the end of the story. Chef Saltbaker asked the brothers and Chalice to collect the ingredients from his neighbors, who hadn't done anything to warrant that level of home invasion. {{spoiler|It
▲* [[Reality Ensues]]: Chef Saltbaker sends the kids on an errand to collect the ingredients for the Astral Pie, that could bring Chalice back to life permanently, without needing the brothers. {{spoiler|The epilogue shows that he gets arrested for coercing and kidnapping children, attempted murder, destruction of his neighbors' property, and attempted domination of the astral plane. Why were the brothers let off the hook? Because they had helped save the Inkwell Isles from the Devil, and the Judge was a [[Reasonable Authority Figure]] that figured out Saltbaker duped them. Saltbaker gets a plea deal where he rebuilds all the damage he indirectly wrought upon the DLC, and spends months doing community service}}.
* [[Sinister Minister]]: The Bishop isn't evil, but he isn't above flashing a creepy smirk at you if you lose to him.
* [[Slasher Smile]]: The Howling Aces' Chinook constantly has its fangs bared in a surprisingly menacing grin. Then there's {{spoiler|Chef Saltbaker once he drops the nice guy schtick.}}
* [[Snake Oil Salesman]]: Esther Winchester, if her snake oil bullets are of any indication.
* [[Speaking Simlish]]: The spider from the Moonshine Mob will periodically bark orders at his fly minions over the phone in incomprehensible, deep-voiced gibberish.
* [[Taken for Granite]]: At the start of his boss fight, Glumstone the Giant bursts free from a layer of rock he was encased in. This seems to have happened to the rest of his Giant brethren, since several of the mountains in the background have faces similar to his.
* [[Warmup Boss]]: At the start of the DLC, the first two bosses you're able to fight are the Moonshine Mob or Glumstone the Giant. [[That One Boss|Glumstone's about as far from this trope as you can get]], but the Mob are a fairly easy boss on par with the likes of Cagney Carnation or Captain Brineybeard whose heavily telegraphed attacks and simple patterns shouldn't be too hard to deal with. {{spoiler|While the fake victory screen and the Snail's surprise attack can catch you off guard, they only work once.}}
** The Pawns of the King's Leap are likewise an easy introduction to the place's special parry-only battles. Relentless [[Wolfpack Boss]] tactics aside, their battle is very straightforward compared to the rest of the chess gang's more complex fights.
* [[What Measure Is A Non Human]]: Shown in the final boss battle. {{spoiler|All the ingredients you gathered for Saltbaker are sentient. He chops them up, some of whom are screaming or crying, before sending them as bullets your way}}.
* [[Womb Level]]: Comical example, in the third phase of the battle against Glumstone the Giant, he swallows the duo, leading to them continuing the fight in his stomach.
* [[Would Hurt a Child]]: {{spoiler|One of the ingredients Saltbaker kills during his boss fight is a dopey, boyish-looking sugar cube. He also hurts the childish living basket carrying the Gnome Berries, but he at least escapes with his life (albeit in tears).}}
{{reflist}}
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