5 Deep-Cut Cuphead Easter Eggs You Might’ve Missed

If you think something in Studio MDHR’s Cuphead is an allusion to something else, it probably is. The game — an impressive, meticulously made, Guinness World Record-holding feat of hand-drawn animation — pays equal homage to both ‘30s cartoons and ‘90s video games and is replete with loving tributes and cheeky references to them. The Moldenhauer brothers (the minds behind Cuphead and the co-founders of Studio MDHR) grew up watching cartoons and playing games together, and in many ways, Cuphead can be seen as a love letter to their childhood, to the formative experiences they had with the media that helped shape their creative practice.

In fact, they’re such diligent students of animation and gaming that many of the references contained in Cuphead are obscure and, frankly, easy to miss. Below, we’ve collected some of our favorite Easter eggs, ones that we feel exemplify the earnest affection Studio MDHR has for the toons and titles of old.

Fleischer Studios

It’s impossible to talk about Cuphead’s influences without mentioning Fleischer Studios. The company was responsible for animating time-honored characters like Betty Boop and Popeye the Sailor and was, like Studio MDHR, founded by two brothers: Max and Dave Fleischer. While one could argue that inspiration for Cuphead’s entire animation style could be partly attributed to Fleischer Studios, you’ll find more direct references to their work in levels like “Floral Fury,” in which boss character, Cagney Carnation, does an open-palmed dance strikingly reminiscent of a dance found partway through the Fleischer short “Swing You Sinners!” (which also happens to be referenced in the name of the achievement “Swing You Sinner,” earned after defeating the Devil).

Street Fighter

As one of the first boss levels encountered on Inkwell Isle One, the challenging “Clip Joint Calamity” and its boss characters, Ribby and Croaks, make an immediate impression on players only beginning to understand the game — and its punishing difficulty. However, Ribby and Croaks might also stand out to anyone who’s spent enough time with a Street Fighter arcade cabinet. First of all, Ribby and Croaks’ opening taunt animations mirror those of fighters Ryu and Ken from the series. Their attire complements this reference; their belts and pants resemble the white and red gis worn by Ryu and Ken, respectively. Even the background, populated by cheering onlookers, was meant to emulate the backgrounds found in early Street Fighter games, which all contain eager spectators who know a brawl is surely brewing.

Final Fantasy VI

Peppered with haunts and horrors of all sorts, the level “Railroad Wraith” sees Cuphead and Mugman follow a train full of ghouls on a moving railcar of their own. The level’s Phantom Express was heavily inspired by the Phantom Train in Final Fantasy VI, a train tasked with shuttling its riders to the afterlife. Full of ghostly NPCs — some hostile, some friendly — the moving dungeon was one of FFVI’s most memorable moments. The windows of the Phantom Express, on the other hand, are similarly populated by poltergeist passengers, all of whom have a one-way ticket to The Other Side. Fun fact: The level’s first boss character, the empty-socketed Blind Specter who shoots eyeballs out of his hands, is a direct reference to the Pale Man from the film Pan’s Labyrinth, a monster whose eyes are embedded into his palms.

Grim Natwick

Many players will remember the three-headed dragon boss, Grim Matchstick, as the reason they almost threw a fist through their monitor after dying for the umpteenth time to one of the bouncing flame sprites that marches out of its maw. Its name is a direct reference to Grim Natwick, an animator best known for drawing Betty Boop while working at — you guessed it — Fleischer Studios. Natwick also worked for a number of other animation studios, including one operated by Ub Iwerk, an animator responsible for many of the early Disney Silly Symphony cartoons, many of which served as reference material for Studio MDHR during the development process. Bonus Easter egg: Iwerk’s name adorns a sign for a hotel seen in the background of the run’n’gun level “Perilous Piers.”

Dragon Quest

Goopy Le Grande, the boss featured in the level “Ruse of an Ooze” looks adorable — at least until he starts trying to crush you with his malevolent bouncing or wallop you with his oversized boxing glove. Fans of the Dragon Quest series might recognize his squishy blue body in an instant; it matches the shape of the series’ famous slimes, which have, over the years, become something of a mascot for the series. Additionally, his final “tombstone” form resembles the personified tombstones found in the aforementioned Fleischer Studios short, “Swing You Sinners!”