While some PlayStation gamers might have been hoping that StudioMDHR will go back on the claim that “there will be no PS4 version” of Cuphead, it seems other, more unorthodox platforms have a better chance at getting the game. While the studio is sticking to its finger-guns and not bringing Cuphead to the PlayStation 4 any time soon, it is coming to another, unexpected platform: Tesla electric vehicles.
In an interview with Ryan McCaffrey on his Ride the Lightning podcast, Tesla CEO Elon Musk shared that the company has been able to get the Unity engine running on the Model 3, Model S, and Model X cars’ dashboard screens. It then began working with StudioMDHR to get the stylish shooter playable in Tesla vehicles. Musk noted that the hardware used with the vehicles’ dashboard screens were never really intended to play games, and so there is a very limited amount of storage space for software. Musk suggested that only one game at a time can be downloaded and used in a Tesla vehicle. (Obviously, the PS4 has quite a bit more room and power.)
Musk did not go into details about how Tesla owners could download and play Cuphead. Although, when McCaffrey reached out to Maja Moldenhauer, the game’s producer and artist, she emphasized that Cuphead would “play super, super clean” on the screen and “control precisely.” Moldenhauer noted that only a wired controller will work for the game, as the screen’s touch inputs are likely not tight enough. (The vehicle’s dashboard screens do come with a USB input, so a wired controller could be plugged in to play the game.) Anyone concerned that their next accident might be prompted by a driver who has lost one to many times to Hilda Berg need not worry, as the game will only be able to be played while the car is parked.
When Cuphead will be available on the Tesla Model 3, S, and X in summer 2019. That means the Xbox One, PC, Switch, and cars will all have the game before Sony’s console even catches a glimpse of it. Maybe it will make PlayStation 4 owners feel better to know that it will only have Inkwell Isle One, due to space restrictions?
[Source: Ride the Lightning, Episode 200]
