Cuphead Sells One Million Units in Just Two Weeks

Cuphead Sells One Million Units in Just Two Weeks

StudioMDHR’s Cuphead is a resounding success, having sold over one million units in just two weeks. Making this milestone doubly impressive is that the game is exclusive to Microsoft’s platforms.

“We never could have dreamed of the reception we’ve received from our amazing fans,” a post credited to StudioMHR’s Chad and Jared Moldenhauer reads. “Today, we wanted to take a moment to thank each and every one of you for your support and we’re excited to share that Cuphead has gone platinum with over 1 million units sold.”

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Cuphead is a visual feast, but it’s also somewhat controversial. The game was originally supposed to be released in 2016 and was in development hell for over two years, and received Microsoft funding to finish. Worse, the delivered game is simply too difficult for most gamers, and is a non-starter for casual gamers. My bet is that most of those one million sold games will never be finished. Hopefully, they’ll fix that.

Difficulties aside, I’ve been impressed by how easily that complaint has been cast aside by reviewers, all of whom seem to just love this game. Clearly, whatever StudioMHR did worked: You can’t argue with the sales figure. Especially for a game that is stuck on Windows (Steam, Windows Store) and Xbox One only.

 

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Conversation 17 comments

  • Michael Rivers

    14 October, 2017 - 10:47 am

    <p>It's great that this has paid off for both the game's developer and Microsoft. </p><p><br></p><p>The game is fantastically difficult on the default setting, but picking "simple" difficulty for each battle makes it much more playable. According to my achievement list, around 45% of players have made it to the second island, which is up a lot from last week, so players are indeed progressing </p>

  • redstar92

    14 October, 2017 - 10:55 am

    <p> So good 🙂 But so tough on default setting 🙂 </p>

  • Usman

    Premium Member
    14 October, 2017 - 10:57 am

    <p>Just want to point out that just over 600k came from Steam, so around 400k was from Windows Store / Xbox One.</p>

  • Demileto

    14 October, 2017 - 11:10 am

    <p>"<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Worse, the delivered game is simply too difficult for most gamers, and is a non-starter for casual gamers. My bet is that most of those one million sold games will never be finished. Hopefully, they’ll fix that."</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Git gud?</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;">Seriously, the game is fine. It is CHALLENGING, no doubt, but not hard: it's all about choosing the weapons, super power and special skill that best suit each boss and learning through (a lot of) trial and error how to deal with each boss phase, once you master these then victory is just around the corner – and really, it feels truly rewarding to hear the announcer yelling "Knockout!". I got to Inkwell Isle 3 just yesterday and already managed to defeat Captain Brineybeard at Shootin 'n' Lootin, so I know what I'm talking about.</span></p>

  • RonV42

    Premium Member
    14 October, 2017 - 11:32 am

    <p>Are you kidding me, difficult? I had two days of fun with this game and finishing off all bosses. Every move is telegraphed and yes there is a lot going on but once you understand the bosses and moves it gets easier. Now let me get back to getting all the achievements. </p>

    • OwenM

      Premium Member
      14 October, 2017 - 8:29 pm

      <blockquote><a href="#207259"><em>In reply to RonV42:</em></a></blockquote><p>There is always that one guy…</p>

      • Brandonlpierce

        Premium Member
        16 October, 2017 - 1:05 pm

        <blockquote><a href="#207355"><em>In reply to OwenM:</em></a></blockquote><p>Ugh, who invited Ron?!</p>

  • webdev511

    Premium Member
    14 October, 2017 - 11:48 am

    <p>I'd be fine with an "easier" mode with no achievements. Make those points worth something again. :D</p>

  • Todd Northrop

    14 October, 2017 - 6:48 pm

    <p>Seriously, does every piece of good news for Microsoft have to be painted as a negative on this website? It is "stuck" on Microsoft platforms? Are PlayStation exclusives "stuck" on Sony? The fact that reviewers love the game is confounding for you? I'm really sick of the negativity here.</p>

    • BoItmanLives

      15 October, 2017 - 11:58 am

      <blockquote><a href="#207337"><em>In reply to Speednet:</em></a></blockquote><p>Stuck because there are 3x as many ps4's as xboxen.</p><p><br></p><p>The MS bribe to keep it off of PS4 for a while will end soon enough though.</p><p><br></p>

      • rameshthanikodi

        15 October, 2017 - 12:47 pm

        <blockquote><a href="#207483"><em>In reply to BoItmanLives:</em></a></blockquote><p>As opposed to Sony bribing Naughty Dog to keep Uncharted off Xboxes, that is totally legit, a strategy that led to their success, something Microsoft will never get, right?</p><p><br></p><p>Ridiculous.</p>

  • Brazbit

    14 October, 2017 - 8:22 pm

    <p>I purchased this one despite being way out of practice on the genre. The visual style was compelling enough and the unexpected price point sealed the deal. </p><p><br></p><p>I've only had about a half hour to play with it so far and, while difficult, I have played harder games. It's definitely balanced around the two player experience and could use some tweaks to compensate for the lack of someone to catch your spirit but other than that it plays wonderfully. </p><p><br></p><p>I would love to see a remake of Dragon's Lair with this style and interactive game play. </p>

  • rameshthanikodi

    15 October, 2017 - 12:46 am

    <p>"Worse, the delivered game is simply too difficult for most gamers, and is a non-starter for casual gamers."</p><p><br></p><p>Um. No. The game is fine. The difficulty is part of its charm – the rewarding part of playing a game like cuphead is beating the challenging difficulty to begin with. There is no need to worry about casual gamers, this game isn't for them. I'm really happy that this game has decided to buck the trend of dumbing down of games (especially side-scrolling platformers) and hand-holding. Some of the most difficult games i've played were old games (exactly like cuphead) that didn't care for catering to the lowest common denominator. What cuphead has done is nothing new; this was how games were first made. Making games that are easy to beat and to cater to casuals is the relatively recent trend in gaming, not the other way around.</p><p><br></p><p>I'm really tired of game "journalists" trying to push this difficulty narrative when it's a complete non-issue. The Steam reviews are off the charts. Cuphead players have no problem with it. Only "journalists" seem to have a problem with it.</p>

  • xapache

    15 October, 2017 - 10:34 am

    <p>I do not like exclusive content for a platform but I think "stuck on Windows.." is a bit unfair. As if that is a bad thing – clearly in this case it isn't a bad thing at all. </p>

  • pwrof3

    15 October, 2017 - 6:07 pm

    <p>You know, ever since they started showing the percentage of people who unlock certain achievements, I have been appalled at how many people never finish a game! I just played Quantum Break, for example. Great game. Pretty simple to beat. Yet, only 47% of people who start the game finish it. Most other games I have played have this same issue. No one takes the time to really work at and finish a game anymore. </p>

  • Travis

    15 October, 2017 - 8:05 pm

    <p>I agree that this game is too difficult. I have a suspicion that they made it so difficult because it lacks content and depth. If it were easier if could probably be beat in a couple hours or less and that isn't acceptable for a game in development for so many years.</p>

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    05 June, 2018 - 9:25 am

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