You might remember Mouse: P.I. For Hire as the drop-dead gorgeous shooter that went viral across TikTok before going viral everywhere else on the internet. Some people called it a Cuphead meets Call of Duty Frankenstein. Some people hailed it as the Steamboat Willie shooter we never knew we needed. But now it has a real name, and a brand new, very cool trailer.
Developer Fumi Games announced that their 1930s cartoon-inspired shooter is officially called Mouse: P.I. For Fire (previously just Mouse), because you play as P.I. Pepper, a mouse, and also happen to shoot lots of mice, naturally. Cartoon violence, Indiana Jones references, and some of the best first-person reload animations I've ever laid eyes on are all in the trailer below.
Despite the Steamboat Willie comparisons (heck, even I thought I saw a glimpse of Pete in the trailer), Mouse: P.I. For Hire isn't actually based on Disney's early Mickey Mouse renditions. It just so happened to go viral right around the same time as Steamboat Willie's induction into the public domain, which probably gave those Steam wishlists a bit of a bump.
Mickey Mouse imitator or not, P.I. Pepper's romp looks confident enough in its own retro swagger and exaggerated crook-busting that it doesn't really need to rely on 100-year-old nostalgia.
"Unravel a quest for justice in a noir city mired in chaos, corruption, and vibrant energy, utilizing a diverse arsenal of weapons, power-ups, and explosives to thwart the takeover by corrupt politicians," the game's blurb explains. We'll need to wait for Mouse: P.I. For Hire to release sometime in 2025 before we can whack some anthropomorphic gangters.
In the meantime, check out some upcoming indie games of 2024 and beyond for more.
