September 29th will mark the sixth anniversary of Cuphead's release on Xbox One, and developer Studio MDHR is celebrating with a special update exclusively coming to Xbox systems. The "Xbox Anniversary Update" will add a new Bonus section to the game, which will include an Art Gallery, Music Player, and a Behind-the-Scenes video player. While Cuphead eventually came to other platforms, Xbox is where it debuted, and Studio MDHR has created this update as a thanks to those that have been supporting the game since its earliest days. Speaking to Xbox Wire, Studio MDHR co-director Chad Moldenhauer offered insight into what to expect.

"Original sketches, concept art, process footage of painting or model work, unused music tracks, orchestra session footage, you name it," said Moldenhauer. "Knowing that we wanted to give our thanks to the Xbox community that has shown us love from day 1, we really thought about the kinds of things we would want to see as fans of Cuphead. The goal was to make this update feel like a real peek behind the scenes at what went into bringing the game to life, across all parts of development!"

Cuphead Xbox Anniversary Update Features
For diehard Cuphead fans, the update seems like it will have a lot to enjoy! It's already clear that Studio MDHR put a lot of effort into curating these materials in a way that makes sense and feels satisfying for fans. For example, the soundtrack will feature every single track from the base game, as well as the DLC. The team debated doing that at first, as they were concerned about spoilers, but opted to make it all available for players to take a listen.

Increasingly, more developers are making documentary footage available in games, and players have seen this in recent titles like Atari 50 and The Making of Karateka. Cuphead's Xbox Anniversary Update will similarly include documentary featurettes, offering a look at the painting process, an unused animation reel, and more.

Will the Cuphead Update Come to Other Systems?
Cuphead's Xbox Anniversary Update will arrive as an automatic update on Xbox platforms and Windows on September 29th. Following the developer's announcement on Twitter, the Tweet was inundated with requests from fans on Switch and PlayStation. It's possible the update could come to those platforms at some point in the future, but the developer has offered no information. For now, Studio MDHR studio director Maja Moldenhauer has made it clear that this is a thank you to the Xbox community.

"It's no exaggeration to say that we couldn't possibly have envisioned Cuphead reaching as many people as it has since it launched on Xbox six years ago," Maja Moldenhauer told Xbox Wire. "Like so many developers releasing their first game, our dream goal was to connect with a large enough audience that we could stay together as a team and work on another project. We ended up – and remain – blown away by the audience we found for our little animated adventure. And it all started with the love and enthusiasm we received from fans on Xbox!"

Posted: Oct 01, 2023 10:21 pm
Last Updated: Oct 01, 2023 10:22 pm
Related Forum: Xbox Forum

Source: https://comicbook.com/gaming/news/cuphead-anniversary-update-xbox-exclusive/