Escaping from prison can either be planned or not. In the latter, imagine a scenario where there’s a breach in the maximum security prison. As the doors swing open, everyone dashes out of their cells. They pick up any tools they can find and carve out an escape route to the outside world.
Cuffbust proposes a chaotic party game where rules don’t apply. No, really. You can even sabotage your fellow prisoners if it allows you to escape from prison unscathed. Check out everything we know so far about Cuffbust below.
What is Cuffbust?
Cuffbust is an upcoming multiplayer co-op game. It plans to host up to 20 players per gaming session. Once the prison doors swing open, it’s every man for himself. Sure, you may team up to take down the SWAT team preventing you from escaping. But there are no rules that prevent you from sabotaging your fellow inmates.
The goal is to escape at whatever cost. It doesn't matter if you end up being the only prisoner who makes it to the outside world. As bleak as that sounds, Cuffbust seems determined to craft a heck of a blast playing with friends. It doesn’t restrict you to rules, thereby allowing you to explore wild possibilities in executing your best escape yet.
Story
Cuffbust’s story so far is straightforward. A breach at a maximum security prison sends cells’ doors swinging open. Chaos erupts as all the prisoners run amok, exploring all the ways they can make it to the outside world.
Sometimes, you’ll use violence to get past guards. Other times, you’ll need to be creative. You could blow up toilets to escape through the sewers or climb to the rooftop to steal the chopper.
Gameplay
Cuffbust’s gameplay promises “destructible environments, proximity chat, a multitude of escape routes, and 20 player lobbies.” On the destructive environments front, get ready to smash through walls using explosives, spoons, and other tools. You’ll break through doors by hacking into computers and climb through vents to access restricted rooms. You’ll dig tunnels, the good old traditional means of escaping from prison, and a great stealthy escape route at that.
The environment will incorporate interactive elements. For instance, you’ll break into the surveillance room and use the cameras to locate guards’ positions. By hacking into the intercom, you’ll alert your fellow prisoners to the guards’ positions. Thereafter, you can use the devices to keep track of one another’s locations. You’ll be free to explore out-of-the-box ideas, like cutting the power line, phone lines, and disabling weapons. Disabling the anti-aircraft guns, in particular, will come in handy as you make a break for it using the chopper on the rooftop.
The proximity chat will have party game lovers excited, with its “dynamic reverb, occlusion, and directional audio.” With up to 20 players per server, you’ll explore multiple escape routes. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution, with the freedom to team up, sabotage your fellow inmates, or work your way out of the prison solo.
Cuffbust crafts an unplanned escape, and so every tool, no matter how useless it seems, can come in handy. From saucepans to ray guns, you’ll access a wide assortment of tools to kill the guards or destroy the environment. According to the Cuffbust Steam store page, there will be hundreds of escape plans, thanks to various tools, routes, and mechanics.
Development
Two Star Games is currently working on developing and publishing Cuffbust. The game was first announced to be in development at the Summer Game Fest 2024. It’s one of the games that stole gamers’ hearts with its adorable cast of gummy bears up to no good. This isn’t Two Star Games’ first rodeo. The studio, made up of solo developer Gavin Eisenbeigz, is most known for developing Choo-Choo Charles, alongside My Beautiful Paper Smile, My Friend is a Raven, and many more games.
In a devlog posted on YouTube, Gavin Eisenbeigz talks about the development journey, including brainstorming on the concept art and project implementation. He expresses how Cuffbust is his first multiplayer project, and from the trailer, evidently his first try at adorable art styles. Speaking of the trailer…
Trailer
CUFFBUST - Announcement Trailer
Check out Cuffbust’s first announcement trailer out now on YouTube. While rather short, it showcases enough of the story and gameplay to build anticipation for the final game. A breach at a maximum security prison causes the prisoners to escape. Since the game will be multiplayer, you’ll be working together with other human players, searching for the best escape routes before backup arrives.
You’ll run amok, with some players dashing to all sorts of places, including showers, surveillance rooms, and even the rooftop to hop on a chopper and escape. The trailer, however brief, is chaotic in the best ways possible, made more so by the players' creativity. You’ll use spoons to chip away underground tunnels, screwdrivers to smack guards in the head, and even throw soaps on the ground so guards slip and fall.
Then there’s room to betray your fellow prisoners, too, with the prisoners who manage to get to the chopper leaving their pals behind. In the end, only two prisoners make it to the outside world, with the trailer showing them relaxing by the beach, smoking a joint. If the final game is as fun and chaotic as the trailer portrays, Cuffbust has a high chance of topping the charts of most played multiplayer party games.
Release Date, Platforms, & Editions
Cuffbust will launch sometime in 2025, as the game’s Steam store page suggests. However, the release date could quite possibly slip into 2026, with the trailer wrapping up with “coming 2025, maybe, idk tbh.” Still, we can at least confirm that Cuffbust will launch on PC platforms via Steam. Feel free to add Cuffbust to your Steam wishlist here to get a notification as soon as it drops.
As for editions, they remain unconfirmed at this time. You can alwaysfollow the official social handle here to keep track of new updates. Meanwhile, we’ll keep our eyes peeled for new information and let you know as soon as it comes up.
