Cuphead: How to Parry

How to Parry in Cuphead

There’s more to Cuphead’s combat than selecting weapons and holding down the trigger to fire. There’s also a parry system that allows you to defeat enemies in the air, and charge your super meter. Here’s how to parry in Cuphead.

How Parrying Works

The first thing to know about the system in Cuphead is that it’s not technically a parry… That is to say that you’re not really deflecting enemy attacks and then going on the offensive with a counter-attack as you might imagine. Instead, it is more of an air attack.

To perform the move, simply jump (A, Xbox One; B, Nintendo Switch) and then press the button again in mid-air while intercepting any pink colored enemy. Cuphead will perform a slap in mid-air and defeat the enemy.

You’ll notice that when you parry, Cuphead will actually gain altitude, so you can chain parries together from one enemy to the next.

Parrying Tips

Do keep in mind that Cuphead can parry any pink colored enemy or object, including pink bullets and boss limbs. Just remember that, because you rise up in the air after performing the action, you do need to be mindful of colliding with another enemy or boss limb above you.

You’ll also need to use the action to revive your teammate in cooperative mode, so it’s a good idea to get this technique down pat as you’ll be using it a lot in the game.

Performing the action also charges your Super Meter, which is represented in the bottom-left of the screen with playing cards that pop up. For one you pull off, a new playing card will appear, and once you have four you’ll be able to shoot an EX attack.

That should be everything you need to know about how to parry in Cuphead. For more useful tips and guides on the game, be sure to search Twinfinite.