Cuphead and Mugman - Legendary Couch Co-op

The more contracts I take in the game industry, the more I'm appreciating the nuances of game writing. And the more I appreciate the differences between straight fiction and interactive experiences, the more I'm blown away by the creativity of some people involved in producing video games.

Cue the total, mind-bending insanity of Cuphead and Mugman. I have no idea how, or why, this game came into existence. No doubt I could search it and discover all the details I'd ever want and more, but I don't need to. Cuphead and Mugman is perfectly well appreciated simply by playing it. With visuals reminiscent of early Disney cartoons - or even early Popeye - this game is like no other.

It looks amazing. It sounds amazing, and it IS amazing, but in this case it's not the graphics, story, or even the gameplay that really make Cuphead a great experience for me. It's the all-pervasive, persistent absurdity of almost every element of the game that has me entranced. Cuphead is normally the kind of thing I would run from at a million miles an hour, because:

1) It's super-super hard
2) When you die, you're sent right back to the beginning of the level
3) In some instances death is unavoidable
4) Did I mention it's super hard?
5) It's super hard

But for the reasons mentioned above, I will play levels in this game over and over until I defeat them. And while I love video games, I'm not really all that good at them, so that means playing some of these levels a lot (like 20 times). I played with a friend and we had so much fun, despite the total carnage, because it's just that kind of game.

If you like co-op games, and you also like bouncing up and down on your couch shouting "Holy crap I'm gonna die!" for a couple of hours straight, get this game and play with a friend.