10 Cute Games That Are Deceptively Difficult

Looks can often be deceiving, and first impressions can often lead to us committing to something we might have otherwise avoided like the plague. This is one of life’s many curve balls, and the gaming industry is also capable of throwing you an awkward pitch you aren’t ready for.

You’ll often watch a game trailer, create an idea of what you’ll get when you buy the full game, and then promptly realize that you’re getting more than you bargained for.

A good example of this is games with cute visuals. It would be natural to think that these cute-looking titles would offer cozy, relaxing, and light-hearted content, but that isn’t always the case.

Sometimes these cute games have a dark side, and sometimes, they offer surprisingly unrelentingly difficult experiences. If you don’t believe us, check out these deceptively cute games that offer more of a challenge than you might think at first glance.

10 Tunic

A Deceptively Difficult Zelda-like

We begin with a game that either definitely belongs on this list or really doesn’t, depending on how much you messed with Tunic’s accessibility settings.

However, if you decided to go with the default settings, you’ll have found out first hand that Tunic is a Zelda-like that pulls no punches, offering difficult combat and punishing bosses aplenty.

It’s also a game that doesn’t hold your hand at all when it comes to quest markers or explaining mechanics. Plus, the game doesn’t even place you in the shoes of a character who understands the language of the world around them, making each note you discover complete gibberish.

At first glance, this may seem like a cute little love letter to the Zelda franchise, but beware, because this cute little fox game has some bite.

9 Rayman

Limbless and Laborious

If you grew up in the golden era of mascot platformers, you’ll likely have played the original Rayman title. It’s a game that feels like something out of a fever dream with surreal cartoon visuals, unique and interesting levels to navigate, and surprisingly satisfying platforming for the time.

But, through the power of hindsight, those who go back and play this one again find that it is a notoriously hard game.

This is largely due to some rather poor design choices where you would need to be frame-perfect at times to avoid damage. You would often have to completely guess where platforms were off-screen, and when you lost all your lives, that meant you would need to start the game over from scratch.

Perhaps it wasn’t intentional, but this cute little platformer inadvertently serves as one of the hardest ever made.

8 Super Meat Boy

Prepare to Meat Your Maker

Now, from an accidentally brutal platformer to one that intentionally offers players a grueling experience. At a glance, Super Meat Boy seems like a game cut from the same cloth as Mario, where you will need to complete levels to save the princess from their captor.

However, as you routinely get massacred by buzzsaws and get crushed in huge mechanisms, you’ll find that this game isn’t quite as light-hearted as the mustachioed plumber’s various outings.

It’s a game where you’ll die repeatedly in the pursuit of a perfect run, and that perfect run will only come through complete mechanical mastery. So, despite appearances, Super Meat Boy is far from a feel-good platformer.

It’s a devilishly difficult affair, and only the most skilled platforming veterans will be able to ace every stage in this indie darling.

7 Crash 4: It’s About Time

N-Sane-ly Difficult

If we are being completely transparent here, it wouldn’t be a stretch to say that all the Crash titles out there are deceptively hard, as you go in expecting a zero-stress platformer, and end up getting a brutally tough 2.5D experience that punishes mistakes and asks the world of those who want to 100% the game.

However, it has to be said that the most recent game, Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time, definitely asks the most of players.

Even if you just want to beat the game, you’ll have to beat a series of pretty challenging bosses, endure some long sections with unforgiving checkpoints, and also, you’ll need to really step things up to beat the final few levels that represent one of the sharpest difficulty spikes in modern gaming.

And if you want to beat all the bonus stages, all I can say is, I pray for your sanity.

6 Another Crab’s Treasure

Disney Does Dark Souls

When you hear the term ‘Souls-like’ you would be forgiven if you immediately pictured a game with a gritty, bleak setting, dreary visuals and a macabre story.

But Another Crab’s Treasure flips the script when it comes to Souls games, offering all the trappings of a traditional Souls game while offering a setting, storyline, and art style that feels a stone’s throw away from a Pixar production.

This title serves as an ideal introduction to anyone seeking to enter the harsh but fair world of Souls-Likes, as while it’s a lot easier than the more established FromSoft titles, it’s still a title that is very hard, requires a great understanding of the mechanics and systems present to progress.

Plus, it has some genuinely amazing Souls’ bosses that could give some Dark Souls bosses a run for their money. So, in short, for something that feels like ‘Disney Does Dark Souls,’ this is just the ticket.

5 Celeste

A Mountain To Climb

On the surface, Celeste is a touching 8-Bit platformer that tells a profound story about mental health and the need to accept ourselves for all that we are, good and bad.

However, this message is delivered through the medium of one of the toughest platforming games in modern gaming.

Celeste forces players to master climbing, dashing, planning their routes, and thinking one step ahead. Because if you don’t, you’ll fall off the mountain, or worse, get impaled on some spikes.

The ‘Assist Mode’ can make this one a little easier. But even still, Celeste is a cute title that will only allow its most skilled players to reach the summit.

4 Rain World

When It Rains, it Pours

Of all the deceptively cute games on this list, one could argue that Rain World is the most inaccessible game featured. I know that the many critics who wrote this one off for that exact thing certainly would.

But as the fans of this cult classic will tell you, this was a ‘skill issue’ because if you give this game the time and effort it demands, you’ll come out the other side having had a truly amazing experience.

It’s hard to describe Rain World, as it’s sort of like a Metroidvania, but also, not at all. Essentially, it’s a game all about ecosystems, and only through trial and error, and a genuine effort to understand the world around you will you survive in this brutally hostile world.

It’s a Marmite game for sure, but one I would urge you to try.

3 Hollow Knight

Born of God and Void

When it comes to cute mascots representing indie darlings, I don’t think they get much cuter than the little knight in Hollow Knight.

But he’s not the only thing that’s cute as a button in this game, as the hand-drawn visuals, cute bug NPCs, adorable collectible grubs, and the vibrant biomes within Hallownest all lull the player into a false state of zen and calm.

Only for you to be beaten to a pulp by a series of unyielding bug bosses.

Hollow Knight is effectively a Metroidvania Souls-Like, blending the two genres to offer one of the most refined and mechanically impressive titles in gaming.

But, those who are sold on the visuals and Chris Larkin’s soundtrack alone will find that a lot of the content is locked behind huge skill checks that might even have some Souls veterans sweating.

So be warned, the life of this little knight is far from sunshine and rainbows, especially when you get to Deepnest. It still gives me the fear.

2 Don’t Starve

Spoliers. You Will Starve

I mentioned that many would argue that Rain World is the least accessible game listed, but for me, that accolade absolutely belongs to Don’t Starve, as this indie survival hit feels like a game where newbies simply can’t excel without a wiki-page constantly open on a second screen.

This Tim Burton-esque title will lure many an Inquisitive gamer in to try this one on for size, but many will likely struggle to merely survive in this unforgiving world.

It’s a game that gives you all the tools to succeed, but never tells you how to use them. This leads to a lot of short runs and premature deaths, and there are only so many times the casual player will endure this before they call it quits.

I know a great game is buried under the depth of systems and obtuse mechanics present here. But it seems that I and many other gamers have to resign ourselves to defeat, thrown our hands up, and said, “It’s not for me.”

1 Cuphead

Retro & Relentless

Lastly, we have the game that is our pick of the bunch. It offers a cute and colorful vaudeville romp but equally a painstakingly difficult run-and-gun Bullet Hell platformer extravaganza that only the most skilled platforming veterans will be able to navigate without pulling their hair out.

The retro cartoon visuals would have you believe that this game would be a walk in the park by all accounts, but this is far from the case, as a variety of tough bosses like Dr. Kahl’s Robot and King Dice prove that even colorful, animated bosses can pack a punch.

That being said, it’s one of the more unique and interesting modern platformers in existence, so if you’re up for a challenge, Cuphead is certainly a game you should give a try.