Creating Cuphead's Most Ambitious Boss Fight | Audio Logs

From "thicc Mugman" to Rampage Easter eggs, there's a lot more to All Bets Are Off! from Cuphead than you'd think. Jared Moldenhauer from Studio MDHR breaks down how it was designed.
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[@fab.912]

Today I learned that Chad Moldenhauer almost choked a kid with his scarf as a child but saved him by cutting it off

[@michaelcasiano9497]

this actually makes the comparison with the moldenhaur bros and cup bros even more resemblent chad = cuphead, jared = mugman.

[@louiebueno9567]

Atleast he cut off the child not the bowtie

[@princessthyemis]

whaaa?!

[@blitz4506]

lol

[@magma1264]

He said his brother, not Chad specifically. And IIRC Chad and Jared had multiple siblings

[@yungjoemighty879]

all games should be made with this much love

[@kevinmatta9262]

All things should

[@Udontkno7]

Tea

[@Anyrhing77]

honestly probably was very stressful, making good games is not easy

[@stevencraeynest7729]

most are

[@hypershard8935]

ArtFactory it’s worth it, however.

[@okieyoshimd9817]

I appreciate the nods and nuance found in Cuphead. It's more than a love letter though, it's like a warm hand-made scarf.

[@cannonfodder4000]

But like the scarf Jared mentioned in the video, it tends to choke you from time to time!

[@okieyoshimd9817]

@@cannonfodder4000 I can agree 100%

[@williamschmitt8858]

Very poor choice of words

[@shane8719]

@@williamschmitt8858 It was a joke

[@williamschmitt8858]

HeyItzShane my comment was a reference to a joker meme

[@TheManoDestra]

Dear GameSpot: Make more of these Audio Logs videos. They are unique, fun, and offer insights that others just gloss over. Keep this.

[@lucyjamesgames]

Thank you so much for watching! We have seven episodes in this first season :)

[@TheManoDestra]

@@lucyjamesgames Looking forward to it. :)

[@hanaeve__]

Cuphead is the result of a team putting too much effort into a game. *And it’s lovely.*

[@inkshermit9055]

Those eyes say passion and sleep deprived, this fuels my fire for the love of animation

[@chasepack732]

He didn’t make the art for the game tho

[@inkshermit9055]

@@chasepack732 So? The game was fucking amazing does it mean everyone should say "fuck this" no that'd be stupid.

[@itzmiggyl2423]

@@chasepack732 he didnt make art for the game BUT he and his brother started the game that the majority of the world's population would love. So what is the problem anyway just because he didnt make the art for the game? At least he started it all.

[@KyleHarrisonRedacted]

I feel so vindicated. I've been running around to everyone who'd listen to me "that's gunstar heroes! The dice boss is gunstar heroes! The 8ball is a boss from gunstar heroes!!!!!!! Aaaagghh" I'm so glad to hear it straight from the source

[@LorenHelgeson]

I like how the dev just flat-out confirmed it, because every time I see any footage of this boss fight, "Dice Dance Days" immediately comes to mind.

[@stryderlao]

The whole stage was taken str8 from The Strange Fortress stage in Gunstar. Even both of the main Bosses uses dices lol

[@smash461986]

Such an underrated game. The music was cool. 2 tracker shots were OP and the only way I can best the game.

[@newspaper_stand]

No one: Not a single soul: Y’all: T H I C C M U G M A N

[@bigwillyjim]

Noone: Unoriginal commenters: NoOnE:

[@ClintEPereira]

But Jared said it in the video first...

[@Czesnek]

Old meme is getting old

[@JumalaPlays]

No one: Literally no one: Likes you

[@leoui1085]

You just contradicted yourself you brainless moose.

[@MJN_SEIFER]

The thing I love the most about Cuphead is that it's basically one big nostalgia trip for the creators, but they are inviting us to join them. I love how most of it is based on/inspired by cartoons and videogames that meant something to them.

[@triplepinata27]

That’s one of the many amazing things about the game. It’s primarily an homage to 30-60s cartoons but is also a love letter to all the other things that they enjoyed and even if you don’t get the reference it’s still great whether it’s something in the background or something the character does or something within the actual gameplay

[@smallpupper]

gonna be honest that first sketch of king dice was cool af

[@sapphirewingsxx2451]

He looks so young xD

[@sapphirewingsxx2451]

But a cool sketch

[@No_king1143]

Timestamp pls

[@Noble-qh6vf]

Agreed but honestly I think the one they went with is freaking awesome too

[@kneesandtoespodcast3359]

@@No_king1143 0:50

[@fl0wey57]

8:34 *Final meme* sounds pretty cool when you think about it

[@Niom_Music]

I didn't even realise he said that lol

[@NyanNegotiable]

Sounds scary no more memes is scary

[@grappfam9361]

👏👏next meme

[@HandmadeGoose97]

As someone who wants to be a game designer this was very insightful on the prosess of how they operate in designing these bosses. Very well done!

[@gerbendekker3273]

Watch yourself some Extra Credits. Very helpful

[@alejandroborque3126]

Clicks on video about king dice Casually starts out with *T H I C C M U G M A N*

[@chriscam4165]

This game was really enjoyable to watch after beating it. I noticed a lot of great design when I wasn't so hyper focused on dodging incoming projectiles.

[@BrokTheLoneWolf]

Right??

[@Rubberman202]

"Maybe I'm... partially sorry about that?"" Heh, nice.

[@xenobestx8423]

Well Cuphead and his pal Mugman and their ugly brother Buphead...

[@Andriale]

Bupham

[@fujifilm5127]

shout out to simpleflips

[@xinnammon]

Xeno Best X it is Puphead

[@hotgarbagejohn7113]

Buphead is a character in a book called “The Watsons Go To Birmingham” lol

[@smallpupper]

i'm the ugly sister crappyhairhead

[@ubipsowak9981]

9:43 That really show how it’s a dream of childhood !!! That Thanks was so innocent and babyish !!! And I think that really show how game devs are passionnante about there jobs and there community !!! Thanks for this game the Moldenhauer 🤩

[@princessthyemis]

so sweet!!!!!

[@PikaLink91]

Interesting to see just how much work goes into a game like this before it becomes a finished product.

[@JesusMartinez-zu3xl]

I remember after reaching fin with king dice and doing exactly you said "I put my controller down with relief" then saw a bunch of cards coming at me with one life and died... I was so freaking mad asf! but King Dice's boss battle music was freaking amazing though!

[@TheAdvertisement]

This 8-ball is my favorite because of just how derpy it looks.

[@Naimskus]

Believe it or not when i first saw the dragon in cuphead i immediately thought about the dragon boss in mega man 2

[@kaytea42]

Naimskus Grim Matchstick?

[@StevenFarmerComedy]

Megaman 2

[@Naimskus]

MineKen713 is that his name?

[@kaytea42]

Naimskus yes

[@Snavels]

That was the inspiration (part of it)

[@-Unidentified_Comment-]

Ok now we need a T H I C C Mugman meme

[@UltraZombie115]

Brandon Soya god no

[@-Unidentified_Comment-]

UltraZombie115 Yeah now that I think about it

[@muni_luniuwu6391]

N o , s o m e o n e b e t t e r m a k e t h a t a M E M E-

[@HcazZach]

@@-Unidentified_Comment- ‎

[@TwoTailedSponge]

Loved looking at the conceptual images shown in this video. I'm a huge sucker for old school cartoon creating.

[@molIymawk]

so much love went into this. i’m HORRIBLE at this game, have to play every boss on easy mode, dreading the time when i have to get all the contracts, but it’s one of my favourite games. the bosses and even the little one-off enemies in the Run & Gun stages have so much charm. can’t wait to see what MDHR does next :)

[@alicepersson9568]

all my favourite game genres, puzzle, platformer, and cuphead-like shooters, are also ones I'm terrible in.... why, brain?!

[@RedJet-bq6fq]

Can’t wait for the DLC and the art book!

[@user-hc3mn6iy8j]

Theres an art book coming out??

[@Mr_Fancypants]

@@user-hc3mn6iy8j sign me the fuck up! I want 20!

[@user-hc3mn6iy8j]

@@Mr_Fancypants ILL BUY THE ENTIRE STOCK

[@user-hc3mn6iy8j]

But is there an art book coming out???

[@shellashitsa5369]

@@user-hc3mn6iy8j The Art of Cuphead is an upcoming official art book of Cuphead by StudioMDHR and published by Dark Horse Books. It will be released in October 22, 2019.

[@itszguy]

These Concept Ideas for Dice Palace that tied in with GunStar Heros were Incredible!!

[@mostdanjarous1]

I instantly fell in love with the animation style. The difficulty is another story. 😂 I like a good challenge, but it hurts my soul to get to the very end of a fight then die. We need more lives and a halfway marker!

[@-Unidentified_Comment-]

Also these are all of the Casino bosses names in order -The tipsy troop -Chips Bettigan -Mr. Weezy -Pip and Dot -Hopis Pocus -Phear Lap -Pirouletta -Mangosteen -Mr. Chimes and of course -King Dice Oh and Pachi Pachi I guess

[@MrPhantaze]

hopus Pocus, Pirouletta. Pachi Pachi is unused character until further notice because DLC

[@-Unidentified_Comment-]

MrPhantaze I know that’s why I added him in at the very end just because the last time I did this I got a bunch of comments saying I should still add Pachi Pachi

[@ZetTroxX]

yooo that big ass smile at the end. you guys deserve every single praise you got for this outstanding game!!

[@harpywarpyowo]

An update in one...point two...... *_🅱️_*

[@pinknet9811]

I read this while he said it

[@TheUltima_Werewolf]

🅱

[@NoriMori1992]

TIL you can italicize 🅱️…

[@hugoruda9049]

Oh man, the dice king really tests your skill. One of the hardest and most fun games I've ever played. Finally beating the whole game was so satisfying

[@ShinAntonio]

I'm a big Gunstar Heroes fan, but these references flew right by me. Kudos to MDHR, I'd love to see any other references they squeezed in.

[@zebur4170]

The coolest most humble guys. What an honor to just have them existing in our timeline. Keep going fellas.

[@SpookyFairyVR]

They have so much degree of creativity in choosing 30s cartoons and this is why alongside their amazing ideas, the game is so blasting with liveliness. There is nothing like it.

[@lucawarnecke8263]

Man. That smile at the end. That goddamn smile at the end.

[@MToast930]

Loving this audio log series! I could watch these for hours, hope to see more :D

[@laurendyer2838]

The irony is that when I tried to watch this video the advert that came before it was an advert for 10BestCasinos, I’ve just won the Internet 😂😂

[@Indiand123]

Fun fact: the only boss who wasn't mentioned in this video is Phear Lap.

[@lettuceman483]

What about the scrapped bosses like light or that pachinko boss

[@Indiand123]

@@lettuceman483 let me rephrase that, the only USED boss not mentioned is Phear Lap.

[@Glace038]

King Dice is and will always be my papi

[@AlmostAlice]

I love Cuphead, it inspired me to try animation for myself. This video was so interesting to see the processes!

[@MrMattaiusify]

This was easily one of the most creative boss fights I've ever played

[@hysteresis4222]

Beautifully made game, it's great to see there are stil passionate studios out there who commit to quality and gameplay.

[@RagnarockedYT]

I actually love the Moldenhauer bros so much, always stop what I'm doing to watch a video with them in 😂

[@JoeJTSJoe]

Haven't played the game, I know it'll kick my ass. But I'm extremely happy it exists, and this video hyped me up for it. Almost bought it on Switch after seeing this.. but I just know rage quitting will be in my future (I can't even beat Shovel Knight). Excited for their future projects!

[@dasaggropop1244]

the character design and animations on this is prime.

[@jessicayiu8860]

8:08. Ah a nice new little reference. We all knew where this is going...

[@chickensseeall]

"That's probably not usable and he won't like it" ... They leave it in anyway

[@FishiusArt]

Thick mug man, I will remember this moment for a millennium.

[@pd207]

Jesus their chef boss makes this look like comparing raw vs cooked eggs

[@jurgenshantz4273]

Man the first time I fought king dice I literally couldn’t react. I moved away from the dice after “finishing” with one health and I was immediately squished like a damn bug

[@AlexPerez-ig8yd]

This is one of my favorite games to this day. Beautifully executed

[@Brenden-jo5ou]

8:35 was the exact description for me I put so many attempts getting to that point, a couple start overs and when I get there I learn it's the hardest part of them all, that game is a rite of passage I'm glad I crossed

[@franciscobarriossaenzdetej3170]

Bought it for nintendo switch (I already had a ps4) and I have to say that without doubt, it's a masterpiece. The difficulty is what gives that incredible feeling when a boss is defeated. The art is so nostalgic, my parents fell in love with the character design (they hate video games but love old cartoons), and the soundtrack, the main menu theme gives me that old adventure cartoon vibe. To me cuphead deserves a perfect note 10/10, this is what an actual good videogames is, full of passion, love and effort, and if we take in consideration everything they had to do to make this dream come true, we could say that they dealt with the devil and won.

[@Curtis.....]

Good Lord that background on that claw game fight, never even noticed

[@tekgeekster]

And I just streamed this game. (Grim matchstick literally drove me insane) and I loved every minute of it. Thank you guys for making this love letter to both classic gaming and animation! Both of which I grew up with!

[@alextownley9388]

I cannot wait to see what this man makes next!!

[@HYDROCARBON_XD]

Bro i was thinking hollow knight animations where fluid but then I see this and this is the best animations I saw

[@FilmmakeroftheFuture]

I’ve never seen game storyboards before. Thank you!

[@ulfricstormcloak4230]

One of the best games in recent memory.

[@cosmicspacething3474]

Honestly I hope people remember these types of games for the huge amount of effort, and not for the fandom that ruined it all.

[@cosmicspacething3474]

@mozamioo _ Second only to FNAF

[@Akrenix]

*T H I C K M U G M A N*

[@chikkkr1522]

You took a comment and made it worse

[@Akrenix]

You made a KZbin channel and it was always bad

[@chikkkr1522]

@@Akrenix OOF

[@SebastianTinajero]

One of my favorite games, love from beginning to end

[@Stewerrvideos]

Best series you on this channel!

[@JaziB]

Gunstar Heroes is one of my favourite games of all time and it just fills me with joy to see all the homages to it in Cuphead.

[@thej-man.6881]

I wouldn't classify it a thick Mugman as much as I would a Lanky Mugman.

[@distrologic2925]

Looking forward to update patch 1.2b. Keep up the good work!

[@contentbot2.9]

A glitch happens like the Thick Mugman when my brothers played mini boss 7. We have called the glitch Tall Cup and Freaking Tall Cup

[@billclay2701]

more please. this game is truly legend already. do my crush next, Cala Maria

[@cottoneyedjohnYT]

We need moar games like this cant wait to see their next project!!!

[@gogetthatbread7853]

more*

[@kaytea42]

Go get that bread *MOARWWWWWW*

[@bobhihih]

A major selling point was the hand drawn graphics. Had this not been used, it would have been like any other generic 2d shooter at the time. Edit: I'd like to clarify, that I love the effort done with the hand drawn graphics.

[@plugshirt1762]

The graphics is major selling point but honestly it’s pretty insignificant compared to everything else the game does. The gameplay is really polished with all the bosses being unique and well made.

[@bobhihih]

@@plugshirt1762 yes, but if they were not hand drawn and generic computer generated animation, it would have not been at all as popular

[@plugshirt1762]

@@bobhihih yeah it wouldn’t have been as popular but if they didn’t make the actually gameplay good the visuals would have been overlooked

[@TheBicycleRepairman2]

Really interesting! Great explanation of a great game. And a great video series.

[@danellboy5757]

4:50 "SMOKIN'!" Sounds a lot like Jim Carrey in The Mask 😂😂

[@Cyrribrae]

What is he drawing on? Is that a surface studio? Lol. Great video!

[@danellboy5757]

5:30 whoa, i was so focused on dodging the projectiles I didn't even notice "belly mouth" 😂😂

[@Umbrella2]

This game is tough as old boots but it’s beautiful and a really fun challenge! I want to complete it 100% before the DLC comes out. I’m in the King Dice roulette bit and I’ve died a lot but I’ve got quite a bit of practice under my belt now so think I will do it soon. I would buy a physical copy of this game in a heartbeat.

[@louwbeats3882]

These guys are soo awesome!!

[@andybaldman]

All THINGS should be made with this much love.

[@HansOilaf]

i just want to knwo how the frogs turn into a coin/slot machine lol

[@timadel663]

it is a well designed game

[@Benzeedoo]

No shit Sherlock

[@strawberryfrogforever]

They made an absolute masterpiece work of art. Long live Cuphead

[@joshuawang1307]

Phearlap: Am I a joke to you?

[@RadiantSharaShaymin]

The monkey fight references Rampage?! No way, I've spent *hours* playing that with my family on ps2!! Lizard mode for life :D

[@alvin7930]

Still best game in my entire life

[@thewarriors3048]

As an ex-PC gamer, I use to play indie games every now and again, but my main focus was elsewhere. I currently play on PlayStation 4 and just last week got truly introsuced to how many quality indie titles there are. As a programmer myself, I of course knew there were lots of good ones... but just how many is amazing. Is Cuphead something I should play asap? I'm currently playing: Hades, Dead Cells, Risk of Rain 2, Enter the Gungeon and Rogue Legacy. Any other gems worth playing would be awesome.

[@icommenttoplay1301]

Yes! I would have some fun with this! It’s a blast a gem of a game!

[@Walamonga1313]

Cuphead is way better than those

[@3rdaxis649]

Yes, watching people play your games is SO rewarding:):):)

[@Malouco]

So much creativity and effort! I AM NOT WORTHY 🙏

[@richardclark6858]

Superb!

[@scoopishere7881]

I like how they themed an entire boss around vices.

[@supermoosemilk]

king dice is one of the more in depth boss because of his mechanic. I just wish it was harder and what I mean by that is I wish king dice and the mini bosses had more moves. still a really nice boss and game.

[@leaf8280]

He keeps making random eye contact and I'm now uncomfortable

[@colinthecakeconnoisseur]

I just realized MDHR stands for Moldenhauer

[@BrennanGamer]

The way the cigar swaps sides is so genius

[@JohnDoe-hk5ec]

This maniac. This absolute madman. What a legend

[@NapalmJustice]

Joe, if you're reading this, you did some great work, man!

[@burnt520]

Damn, I wouldn't mind grabbing a design works book for this game at some point in the future

[@YourLocal_Cl0wn]

3:02 : this is.. uh.. i dont even know what you want to call this.. me: S H O O K E T H

[@joshuagreen5010]

I heard the words thick mugman and the regret immediately sunk in

[@igodreamer7096]

Gunstar Heroes, huh!? Its a great game! =D

[@DarkLeviathan8]

Holy shit, I’m so happy to hear that this was indeed a reference to gunstar heroes. That game was DOPE

[@thegreendorito9515]

“Well, Cuphead and his pal Thiccman, They like to roll the dice”