A Super Smash Bros. Ultimate fan is reimagining every fighter from the Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch Lite game as a Cuphead character, and naturally the art series is going viral over on Twitter, as do many art series that reimagine Super Smash Bros. Ultimate’s roster brimming with iconic characters. Since the game released in 2018, we’ve seen a plethora of artist take their stab at this, including Raf Grasseti, the art director of God War over at Sony Santa Monica, and one of the best artists in the industry. That said, this new series from cartoonist Daniel Cortes ranks right up there with the very best we’ve seen so far.
For those that don’t know: Cuphead is a run and gun game that debuted back in 2017 via Studio MDHR and that boasts an incredible art style inspired by the rubber hose style of animation that defined the 1930s. It’s an incredibly arduous technique and a big reason why Cuphead is held by many as one of the best games of the generation, especially from a visual perspective.
Videos by ComicBook.com
Below, you can check out every reimagined character so far, including Mario, Samus, Link, and the one and only Piranha Plant. Unfortunately, one character that isn’t included is Waluigi, but that’s not Cortes’ fault. That’s Nintendo’s fault for having no heart.
Mr. Game & Watch
Kicking it off with the oldest Smash bros character, #MrGameandWatch! Already works well with the 1930’s style since he’s literally just a silhouette and flat lol #smashbros #smashbrosultimate #nintendo #cuphead #rubberhose #1930scartoon #cartoon #cartoonist #characterdesign pic.twitter.com/YshmNHfxtr
— Daniel Cortes (@DannyCortoons) December 15, 2020
Pac Man
It’s the arcade video game mascot himself, #PacMan!! He’s already in the #1930scartoon style, so there’s literally no change to his design lol, super happy he’s in smash! 😀#pacman #smashbros #smashbrosultimate #nintendo #cuphead #rubberhose #cartoon #cartoonist #characterdesign pic.twitter.com/toVzV1P2cQ
— Daniel Cortes (@DannyCortoons) December 16, 2020
Mario
The popular boi!! It’s Mario “Jumpman” Mario!! This one was really interesting putting in this style since he’s loosely inspired off of Popeye, so it’s cool to bring it back full circle!#mario #smashbros #smashbrosultimate #nintendo #cuphead #rubberhose #1930scartoon #cartoon pic.twitter.com/FyKKUGM4hn
— Daniel Cortes (@DannyCortoons) December 17, 2020
Donkey Kong
Day 4 of Drawing every #SmashBros Character in a #Cuphead/ #Rubberhose/ #1930sCartoon Inspired Style! Today’s character, Donkey Kong!! pic.twitter.com/qHK0xRVyFG
— Daniel Cortes (@DannyCortoons) December 18, 2020
Luigi
Day 5 of drawing every #SmashBros character in a #Cuphead/ #rubberhose/ #1930scartoon inspired style! Starting off this week’s character batch, It’s #Luigi!! Forever to be player 2 (Unless you’re playing Luigis Mansion tho lol) pic.twitter.com/deEIBtNp2f
— Daniel Cortes (@DannyCortoons) December 21, 2020
Little Mac
Day 6 of Drawing every Smash Character in a #Cuphead/ #Rubberhose/ #1930sCartoon Inspired Style!! Up next we have #LittleMac from the #PunchOut series!! Just your average short 17 year old from Brooklyn throwing hands with Mike Tyson!! pic.twitter.com/MekcWiswKq
— Daniel Cortes (@DannyCortoons) December 22, 2020
Duck Hunt
Day 7 of drawing every #SmashBros Character in a #Cuphead/ #Rubberhose/ #1930sCartoon inspired style!! Today’s #DuckHunt!! This one’s one of my favorite characters in smash! I just love how out of left field their inclusion was lol!! pic.twitter.com/vM01kmRupx
— Daniel Cortes (@DannyCortoons) December 23, 2020
Ice Climbers
Day 8 of drawing every #SmashBros character in a #Cuphead/ #Rubberhose/ #1930sCartoon inspired style!! And just in time for Christmas Eve we have the #IceClimbers!! 😀 pic.twitter.com/wi1aCEDLuf
— Daniel Cortes (@DannyCortoons) December 24, 2020
ROB
Day 9 of drawing every #SmashBros Character in a #Cuphead/ #Rubberhose/ #1930sCartoon inspired style!! The Robotic Operating Buddy!! Or #ROB for short! Millennials know him as the Toy that came with the NES, Zoomers know him as that unlockable character in Mario Kart DS ha!! pic.twitter.com/IXdcAk7lyy
— Daniel Cortes (@DannyCortoons) December 26, 2020
Piranha Plant
Day 10 of drawing every #SmashBros Character in a #Cuphead/ #Rubberhose/ #1930sCartoon inspired style!! Starting this week early because New Years is on Friday lol, but it’s #PiranhaPlant!! This is literally the best character choice in smash and no one can tell me otherwise!! pic.twitter.com/3HjzOuQbos
— Daniel Cortes (@DannyCortoons) December 27, 2020
Peach
Day 11 of drawing every #SmashBros Character in a #Cuphead/ #Rubberhose/ #1930sCartoon inspired style!! Today we have the lovely Princess herself, #PrincessPeach!! She should really get better guards other than Toads cause they’re not doing a very good job lol!! pic.twitter.com/n6v5lzNRbX
— Daniel Cortes (@DannyCortoons) December 28, 2020
Bowser
Day 12 of drawing every #SmashBros Character in a #Cuphead/ #Rubberhose/ #1930sCartoon inspired style!! Here we have The King of Koopas, #Bowser!! The first REAL villain I’ve posted lol. I used Pete from Mickey Mouse as a reference, and I’m glad with the results haha! pic.twitter.com/dqXLm7cVQZ
— Daniel Cortes (@DannyCortoons) December 29, 2020
Link
Day 13 of drawing every #SmashBros Character in a #Cuphead/ #Rubberhose/ #1930sCartoon inspired style!! It’s The hero of the Wild, Link!! Same way Mario was based off of Popeye, Link was based off of Peter Pan, so I HAD to use old Peter Pan sketches as reference for his design!! pic.twitter.com/JGoRDwYcWg
— Daniel Cortes (@DannyCortoons) December 30, 2020
Zelda
Day 14 of drawing every #SmashBros Character in a #Cuphead/ #Rubberhose/ #1930sCartoon inspired style!! Today we have Princess #Zelda!! This is my favorite design of her because I loved Link between worlds so much!! Went with a classic Disney Princess aesthetic for her design 🙂 pic.twitter.com/btIJFxl3st
— Daniel Cortes (@DannyCortoons) December 31, 2020
Ridley
Day 16 of drawing every #SmashBros Character in a style inspired by #Cuphead/ #Rubberhose/ #1930sCartoons!! Aight so hear me out, I really wanted to keep the integrity of #Ridley’s character design, so the style is a lot more subtle on him! pic.twitter.com/HeogwOCcdA
— Daniel Cortes (@DannyCortoons) January 5, 2021
Simon Belmont
Day 17 of drawing every #SmashBros Character in a style inspired by #Cuphead/ #Rubberhose/ #1930sCartoons!! Up next we have the legendary vampire hunter, #SimonBelmont!! Kinda funny he’s after the Metroid characters, really rounds out the Metroid-vania genre lol!! pic.twitter.com/rtfrLQZn0E
— Daniel Cortes (@DannyCortoons) January 6, 2021
Pit
Day 18 of drawing every #SmashBros character in a style inspired by #Cuphead/ #Rubberhose/ #1930sCartoons!! The fight is on!! Today we have #Pit from Kid Icarus!! Really enjoyed what I played of Uprising, Sakurai did a great job with that game too lol! pic.twitter.com/IlKkO7yFKU
— Daniel Cortes (@DannyCortoons) January 7, 2021
Palutena
Day 19 of drawing every #SmashBros Character in a style inspired by #Cuphead/ #Rubberhose/ #1930sCartoons!! Today’s character is the Goddess of Light, #Palutena!! She’s a big fan of divine intervention haha!! pic.twitter.com/fUuL6IM0Xa
— Daniel Cortes (@DannyCortoons) January 8, 2021
