Cuphead: The Delicious Last Course Score: DLC Quality
When Cuphead first burst onto the scene in 2017, it was a phenomenon. A love letter to 1930s rubber hose animation, a brutal homage to classic run-and-gun games, and a testament to artistic vision, it captured the hearts of players with its stunning visuals and punishing, rewarding gameplay. For years, fans clamored for more, and Studio MDHR answered with The Delicious Last Course, a substantial DLC expansion that serves as a masterclass in how to expand a beloved game. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel; instead, it polishes it to a dazzling, flawless sheen, delivering more of what made the original great while introducing just enough new elements to feel fresh and essential. This expansion is, in every sense, a Michelin-starred meal.
The core premise is simple yet charming. To help the legendary Chef Saltbaker bake the "Wondertart" and lift the curse from their friend Chalice, Cuphead and Mugman must venture to a new archipelago, Inkwell Isle IV, and procure the necessary ingredients from a new roster of formidable bosses. This setup is a perfect vehicle for the DLC, providing a narrative excuse for what we all truly came for: more exquisitely designed, soul-crushingly difficult boss fights.
The first and most immediate triumph of The Delicious Last Course is its seamless integration. Inkwell Isle IV is not a disconnected postscript but a natural extension of the main game’s world. The new island is vibrant and dense, packed with the same meticulous detail and personality that defined the original three isles. From the moment players set foot on the cobblestone paths of the Docks or the rolling green hills of the Highland Flings, the magic is instantly recaptured. The new NPCs, like the salty fisherman Saltbaker himself or the anxious climbing gear salesman, are brimming with character, their dialogue as witty and period-appropriate as ever. The expansion understands its own identity completely; it is more Cuphead, and that is precisely what was ordered.
Where the DLC truly earns its accolades, however, is in its gameplay additions, headlined by the magnificent Ms. Chalice. Initially a non-playable ghost, Chalice is quickly unlocked as a permanent, selectable character with a unique moveset that fundamentally alters the game’s rhythm. Her double-jump replaces the standard parry, her dash makes her invulnerable, and her extra hit point provides a crucial buffer. She is not a "easy mode," but rather a different mode. For veterans, she offers new strategies and approaches to familiar and new challenges. For newcomers or those who struggled with the base game, she is a more forgiving gateway to experiencing Cuphead's brilliant combat. Her inclusion is a stroke of genius, adding strategic depth without compromising the game’s core challenge.
The new arsenal of weapons and Charms further expands the player’s tactical options. The Crackshot homing weapon, the spread-fire Twist-Up, and the powerful Converge offer compelling alternatives to the classic Peashooter and Spread. The new Charms, particularly the one that allows parrying without jumping, encourage even more diverse playstyles. These tools are not just novelties; they are viable, powerful, and essential for mastering the new challenges. They empower the player with more choice, allowing them to tailor their loadout to their specific approach to each encounter.
And what encounters they are. The five new main bosses are arguably some of the finest in the entire Cuphead pantheon. Each is a breathtaking feat of animation and design, pushing the already-high bar to new heights. The fight against the mischievous antlion Glumstone the Giant is a dramatic, multi-phase spectacle set against a mountainous backdrop. The Howling Aces, a dogfight against a squadron of canine pilots, is a chaotic and exhilarating test of aerial reflexes. Each boss phase is a flurry of meticulously patterned attacks that demand perfect timing, spatial awareness, and quick adaptation. The difficulty is, expectedly, excruciatingly high, maintaining the series' infamous "learn through failure" ethos. The final boss, a climactic and shocking confrontation, is a monumental challenge that serves as a fitting capstone to the entire adventure, testing every skill a player has honed over dozens of hours.
Beyond the main bosses, the DLC includes a new side quest involving the parry-able spectral ghosts of the "King's Leap" challenges. These pure, no-weapons platforming and parry tests are a brilliant addition, offering a sharp change of pace that highlights the game’s tight controls. They are short, incredibly demanding, and immensely satisfying to conquer, providing some of the most memorable and unique moments in the expansion.
Is there any room for criticism? Perhaps only that for all its brilliance, The Delicious Last Course is, at its heart, a serving of more of the same. It doesn’t attempt to fix what wasn’t broken, and some might have wished for a more radical departure. The run-and-gun platforming levels, a staple of the base game, are conspicuously absent, with the focus placed entirely on bosses and the new platforming challenges. While this is a logical choice given that bosses are the main attraction, their absence is slightly felt.
Furthermore, the expansion is brief for the dedicated. Skilled players might blaze through the new bosses in an afternoon, though achieving a full S-Rank or Pacifist run will extend that time considerably. The value is not in raw hours but in the density and quality of the experience. Every second is polished to perfection.
In conclusion, Cuphead: The Delicious Last Course is a rare example of downloadable content done to absolute perfection. It respects the source material so thoroughly that it feels less like an add-on and more like a vital, missing chapter of the original game. With the game-changing addition of Ms. Chalice, a suite of fantastic new weapons, and a set of bosses that stand among gaming’s most creative and challenging, Studio MDHR has delivered a masterpiece on top of a masterpiece. It is a delicious, satisfying, and utterly essential last course that reaffirms Cuphead’s status as a modern classic. It is the highest quality DLC, not for its scale, but for its sublime execution.
