Watch a tough-guy mouse blast the heads off dirty rats in the first gameplay trailer for Mouse, the shooter that adds a Tommy gun to a 1930s Mickey Mouse cartoon

YouTube

We got our first look at Mouse back in May, and it was immediately intriguing: How could you not be at least a little curious about an M-rated FPS with a visual style clipped straight out of 1930s Disney animations? It was very barebones at the time, just some concept art and early animation clips, but now we've got a better look at what's coming courtesy of IGN, and I am no longer just intrigued—I am interested.

Mouse, as described on its Steam page, is "a gritty and noir-fueled FPS shooter that draws inspiration from classic cartoons of the 1930s." Players will take on the role of a private detective in a noir city riddled with corruption, and embark upon a quest for justice that will of course lean heavily on guns, explosives, and the occasional head-popping uppercut.

That sounds like a good time, but what really sells Mouse at this point is how it looks: It's basically Steamboat Willie with a Tommy gun and some TNT. Cuphead is the obvious comparison but I'd say Mouse is more overtly anachronistic: Mickey Mouse is bustin' caps in asses!

You may like

Of course it's not Mickey, but as we noted when Mouse was first revealed, Steamboat Willie is set to enter the public domain on January 1, 2024, and that long-overdue shift may have inspired and/or emboldened developer Fumi Games to run with the idea.

It still seems very preliminary, particularly in the way heads seem to pop with a consistent sameness (I can't believe I'm saying this about a Mickey Mouse game), but the environments look great and the music is spot-on. Also note that you'll have the opportunity to drop at least one grand piano on the heads of the bad guys, and that right there is a big plus in my book.

Mouse has a release target now, although it's still quite distant: The Steam page says it'll be out sometime in 2025.

Image 1 of 7

Mouse screenshot — (Image credit: Fumi Games)

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.