After 5 years from the original game, Cuphead brings in some new animations, new bosses, and a new playable character. In Delicious Last Course, Ms. Chalice, who you have saved multiple times in the original base game, is now playable with her own move set. The long time between the announcement with multiple delays has enriched the animations, while adding in new weapons in the process.
Upon the new additions, this new expansion gives plenty of content for a small price. Plenty of bosses and a gauntlet to boot, this unique indie game that captured the world’s attention in 2017 is back with a new breath of air. Find out what’s new and what’s good in our review for Cuphead: The Delicious Last Course!
Cuphead: The Delicious Last Course
Publisher: Studio MDHR
Developer: Studio MDHR
Platform: Microsoft Windows (Reviewed), Xbox consoles, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch
Release Date: June 30th, 2022
Players: 1-2
Price: $7.99
After the events of the base game, Ms. Chalice appears to tell Cuphead and Mugman about a new cookie that allows her to leave the astral plane. It is able to make Ms. Chalice physical again but she has to swap with Cuphead or Mugman in return. However, the effects are temporary but can be remade by Chef Saltbaker with selected ingredients.
The ingredients needed come from bosses from all around the new isle. Ms. Chalice, in the process of finding them, can be playable to battle the new foes with all new powers as well. The story is short but self contained and makes for a great return to the world of Cuphead and the many characters that inhabit it. It’s thoroughly enjoyable from beginning to end.
Gameplay is the normal platformer, boss rush style that you remember but with a twist. Ms. Chalice brings a new skill set that may take some adjusting to completely learn.
Replacing the parry with your jump double press, Chalice instead does a dash parry that is good for movement and gaining specials. This replaces your double press jump button for parry with a double jump making her jump shorter than Cuphead.
Outside of the regular powerups with your weapons, the DLC adds in more weapons to your arsenal that are very similar to the existing ones. I didn’t notice anything wrong with the new weapons you could choose, and they can be used on any of the playable characters and, from what I can tell, make some fights easier.
While it’s easier for someone to jump in that hasn’t kept up with it, they’ve made getting into the shoes of Ms. Chalice with 4 HP as opposed to the standard 3 HP. It does a good job on letting your learn and hone your skills before tackling the challenges ahead, but still presents the same issues with harder RNG than the base game.
Part of the 5 year time it took to make The Delicious Last Course, the graphics have changed, but only for the better. Everything is still hand drawn and has a level of polish that is very close to Disney’s classic Fantasia.
Animations have never looked better and include more shading and lighting in the final boss fight. Details have been ironed out and it’s arguably the biggest strength to this project and it doesn’t let up.
Audio with the old radio style presentation is more of the same, and there’s been no noticeable changes that one would hear. There’s only more music to fit the aesthetic included, and the same muffled voicing that is inaudible. It takes a “if ain’t broke, don’t fix it” approach that I can stand behind. These still garner high marks from all aspects and wins.
Everything that this expansion presents makes revisiting the base Cuphead game even better and that is always the desired outcome. Other’s have attempted to do the same thing after the original game’s success and they, at this point, haven’t released anything. The dedication that Studio MDHR has put into Cuphead and even this expansion is untouchable.
While not perfect from the minor addition of more RNG variables that I experienced and the very minor hiccups during gameplay, Cuphead: The Delicious Last Course is an incredible experience and recommended for anyone that already owns the base game. It adds a lot of gameplay that to me is equivalent in time played to the original.
We did our Cuphead DLC The Delicious Last Course review on PC with a code acquired by Niche Gamer. The new DLC has been available since June 2022. The original Cuphead is available for Windows PC (via Steam, GOG, and the Microsoft Store), Mac, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One. You can find additional information about Niche Gamer’s review/ethics policy here.
