Few video games are less anime than Cuphead, but the artist behind the Final Fantasy series has changed that. Yoshitaka Amano, the artist behind some of your favorite Square Enix games, has turned Cuphead, Mugman, and Ms. Chalice into JRPG heroes. This isn’t the first time that Amano’s iconic artwork has been used on characters outside of Final Fantasy, as he has given his twist on characters like Batman, Wolverine, and Morpheus from The Sandman in the past.
Related: All secret achievements and trophies in Cuphead and how to unlock them
Cuphead launched in 2017, but some ports didn’t receive physical editions until the end of 2022, including Cuphead on Nintendo Switch. These physical editions come with a bonus in Japan, as Twitter user Maku has confirmed that they come with Amano artwork, depicting the heroes and villains of Cuphead in his unforgettable style. This Amano Cuphead art appears on the slipcase for the soundtrack that comes with the game.
Amano’s version of the Cuphead cast has turned them into humans who bear a strong resemblance to popular Final Fantasy characters. In Amano’s version of Cuphead, Ms. Chalice looks like Terra if she wields a spoon, Mugman resembles Setzer if he wears a blue coat, and Cuphead looks like Cecil if he stole Zidane’s outfit. The heads of the three protagonists also have hair that resembles liquid spilling from a cup, which is an awesome touch. Cuphead’s version of The Devil is also present, and he resembles Amano’s rendition of the recurring Final Fantasy Behemoth monster.
The most striking aspect of the Cuphead video game is its visuals, as the developers went to great lengths to recreate the look of the old Max Fleischer cartoons, creating a video game that feels like a cartoon that has come to life. By contrast, Amano has turned the Cuphead cast into anime heroes, painting a picture of what the game might have looked like if the developers were inspired by animation from a different country.
