Fumi Games and PlaySide Studios are about to drop one of the most visually distinctive shooters in years. Mouse: P.I. For Hire puts players in the shoes of Jack Pepper, a former war hero turned hardboiled private investigator, voiced by none other than Troy Baker. What starts as a routine missing persons case quickly spirals into a tangled web of corruption, intrigue, and tommy gun firefights across a city dripping with 1930s cartoon style.
Every frame of Mouse is hand-drawn in classic rubber hose animation, the kind of exaggerated, fluid character work that defined early animation. The black-and-white aesthetic gives the entire game a striking vintage look that immediately sets it apart from anything else releasing this month. But don’t let the art style fool you into thinking this is a gentle experience. The gunplay is fast, punchy, and explosive, blending old-school FPS design with creative gadgets like sonic dampers, micro-scale cameras, and wind-up automata.
Between the action, investigation sequences play out as interactive clue-based puzzles. Players interpret evidence, interrogate a cast of quirky NPCs, and make choices that ripple through the story. It’s a genuine blend of detective work and first-person shooting that gives Mouse a flavor all its own.
The game promises 12 to 20 hours of content depending on playstyle, which feels like a solid chunk for a $29.99 title. A Digital Deluxe Edition at $39.99 adds the first DLC expansion, the full original soundtrack, and a digital comic book. Physical copies are planned for July 10.
Mouse: P.I. For Hire launches April 16 on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC via Steam, and Nintendo Switch 2. PS4, Xbox One, and original Switch versions are coming later.