Following a Tail – How Mouse: P.I. For Hire Ties a Slapstick Cartoon Mystery to This Year’s Most Surprising Shooter - Gamers News

Summary

We step into the shoes of Mouse: P.I. For Hire’s premiere detective, Jack Pepper, and endeavor to crack a mysterious case.
The upcoming game channels old school shooters, noir thrillers, and cartoon violence to create a distinct gaming experience.
Mouse: P.I. For Hire is set to launch on April 16, 2026, for Xbox Series X|S and is Handheld optimized.

It’s a little mind-boggling how many elements the developers at Fumi Games are packing into the upcoming Mouse: P.I. For Hire. It’s blending an old school shooter inside a black and white noir thriller, mixed with a chunk of cartoon violence, complimented by a catchy big band soundtrack, and tons of hand-drawn animation in a world dominated by mice and rats. Yeah, it’s a lot.

Still, from everything we’ve had a chance to play as part of a recent hands-on preview, it all seems to work. Really well, in fact. Mouse P.I. For Hire puts you in the shoes of a private mouse detective named Jack Pepper, and he’s not only well-versed in the means of investigation but also has an uncanny ability to wield a large variety of weapons to dispatch evildoers. For our hands-on time, our task was to seek out a rumored Secret Laboratory hiding in the hills outside of town that may yield the whereabouts of a missing local magician, Steve Bandel.

Our demo started off with us heading down a dirt trail off the side of the road — it isn’t long until a few bizarre cultists appear and we’re thrown into the “shoot first, ask questions later” portion of Pepper’s detective work. Once the foes were dispatched, we continued along the trail until it led to a secret elevator that was living a double life as an outhouse, which then delivered us to the underground lab.

The combat has a distinct old-school, first-person shooter feel to it in the way Pepper moves through the level, matched to a steady, always-present weapon in the lower-right corner of the screen. These enemy cultists, dressed in menacing robes and armed with a variety of guns, spawn in waves, and I wouldn’t say they’re necessarily the brightest of goons in the world. This is fine with me, as I’m allowed to approach fights in my own way, sampling Pepper’s arsenal while dashing away from incoming fire by pressing down on the right thumbstick.

My weapon selection is straightforward (pistol, shotgun, etc.) but lots of fun to use, accessible either via a radial wheel by holding down the Y button, or by selecting two primary weapons to hot swap between with a tap on Y. I liked this approach — instead of having that button function as an endless rotation of firepower, I can hone in on two to get the job done most of the time.

For most of my playthrough, I kept the Boomstick (shotgun) at the ready, as it delivered a solid punch and great damage output to help dispatch the various waves of enemies. From there I’d switch it up between two others: James Gun (a tommy gun) and then the Devarnisher, which is uncovered later in the level. This beauty coats enemies in turpentine (because everyone’s a cartoon, get it?) and deals acid-like damage to great effect.

Enemy reactions to being attacked by these weapons were comical and bloody, with heads being shot off and black cartoon blood spewing from their necks, all adding a bit of maturity to the shooting and world – despite the cartoony demeanor, this game isn’t for kids. I also appreciated the little touches – for instance, each character elimination seemed to be distinct based on which weapon did them in. If I fired on them with James Gun, I’d see them spin around and fall into a lifeless heap, whereas the Devarnisher would see them cry out in pain and then dissolve, leaving only a skeleton standing in their wake for a short time before it crumpled to the ground.

Strategically, if I stayed on the move, I was able to get past most of these enemy encounters unscathed. There were also a few challenging boss fights against mouse-looking robots where dashing, jumping, and well-timed shots were mandatory to succeed. And it’s not just shooting that gives you a bit of a challenge here. There’s also a fair number of platformer and electrical switch puzzles to solve as well – Pepper’s double-jump ability came in handy here more than once. In some cases, shooting an explosive barrel next to a wall can reveal a passageway to the next area.

I get the feeling that Mouse P.I. For Hire isn’t trying to reinvent the shooter genre here – it’s leaning in on the familiar to allow its unique noir-meets-vaudeville, rubberhose-style cartoon art to shine even brighter. I also liked that all the characters presented here are in 2D, an appreciative nod to those classic 3D shooters like DOOM and Wolfenstein 3D.

Health vials also seemed plentiful for this demo – there always seemed to be a heart-labeled bottle nearby to restore a bit when needed. And this was just one small slice compared to the larger game, so I’m looking forward to seeing how much more challenging some of the puzzles and enemy encounters may be in the latter portions – and what other unique weapons might be in store for us to use here too.

I also appreciated a few times where our lockpicking skill had to come in handy through a “tail pick” which basically works like a classic game of Snake, where you need to navigate your tail through the lock pick to press down each of the pins. It’s a distinct mechanic that plays up the mouse-angle some more – of course I’d use my tail to pick a lock if I was a mouse!

One thing that I’d like to get a better sense of with further hands-on time is how the detective work plays into all of this. Right now, it was easy to find clues and make progress through the demo. But what if I miss a clue, what does that do to the experience? How does being a detective reinforce the other abilities that I can upgrade later in the game? This inquiring mind would like to know…

In all, I think this was a good primer on what the comical mix of shooting and puzzle solving is going to look like for Mouse P.I. For Hire. But what’s at the end of the demo is what has really intrigued me. Once the case was wrapped up, we drove across an open-world map to our next destination. Many areas were chained off for this demo, but it hinted at the larger exploration of what the game might have in store.

Once we stepped out of the car we were allowed to walk around the streets of Mouseburg – seeing so many other mouse-folk walking around was a nice touch, giving life to this city block. We could also interact with the local bartender, John Brown, who runs the local pub, Little Big; Wanda Fuller, a local reporter looking for the latest scoop from Pepper’s investigation; and Tammy Tumbler who runs Tammy’s Workshop, where you can upgrade your weapons at the B.A.N.G. workbench.

The variety of upgrades here are impressive, and I’m excited to dive into this feature some more at the full release – the workbench is shown off as more of a teaser at the end of the demo — but reading about alt-fire modes for some of my favorites like the Devarnisher, which can fire an explosive sticky blob, or a charged-shot for the Boomstick, hints at greater wanton destruction potential to compliment an already fun feeling shooter.

To wrap things up, we then headed up to Pepper’s office to interact with his crime wall, where the words “Missing Magician” were scribbled on the board, accompanied by several photo clues connected by string – just like all great detectives do. We add our three new photo clues – The Cultists, Robo-Bettey, and Ze Arrival Card – all obtained by completing the Secret Laboratory mission.

All this starts to bring more questions to the larger mystery that’s afoot as I’m really interested in learning more about how the crime wall feeds into the overall mission structure and how the larger mystery will unfold. How much will the open world exploration feed back into all of this? And where can someone get a good slice of cheese in this city? Thankfully, we won’t have long to wait, as Mouse: P.I. For Hire is slated to launch on April 16, 2026, for Xbox Series X|S.

MOUSE: P.I. For Hire

PlaySide

☆☆☆☆☆

★★★★★

MOUSE: P.I. For Hire is an action-packed first-person shooter that draws inspiration from the classic cartoons of the 1930s. Its black and white rubber hose visuals are drawn by hand, frame by frame, delivering a striking vintage aesthetic. Unravel layers of corruption with a thrilling noir-fueled detective story, lively environments to explore, an original big band jazz soundtrack, and a fully-loaded arsenal of cartoon weapons and devastating power-ups. DEADLY INVESTIGATIONS Meet Private Investigator Jack Pepper, a former war hero-turned-detective in a world where danger lurks even in the smallest mouse hole. Uncover the truth when a simple missing persons case quickly escalates into a complex web of intrigue, with corruption, kidnapping and murder all on the docket. Investigate the seedy underbelly of Mouseburg, battle heavily armed gangs and crooked cops, and discover clues to reveal the conspiracy buried underneath the surface. LOCK, LOAD & LAUGH From crackling machine guns to explosive firepower, each weapon in Pepper’s arsenal is designed to deploy non-stop cartoon chaos. Arm yourself with an array of classic, creatively twisted and experimental firearms, and consume powerful upgrades when you need that extra spinach-loaded punch! Lethal encounters and manic boss battles await in this boomer shooter-inspired, retro-vibed adventure – and the denizens of Mouseburg never go down without a fight. A CITY OF SECRETS Explore a diverse city playground, from dark streets to classic film studios, opulent opera buildings, poisonous swamps and underground sewers. With a myriad of cases to solve and collectibles to find, Mouseburg is truly a detective’s delight! Use every tool at your disposal to wall-run, grapple-hook and double-jump through this unrelenting cartoon world. FEATURES – Black and white, hand-drawn rubber hose animation, inspired by cartoons of the 1930s – Fast-paced FPS combat, where constant movement is key – A thrilling single-player campaign that unravels a complex web of crime and corruption – Over 20 noir-infused levels, teeming with mice, rats and shrews – Fully-loaded arsenal of over a dozen unique weapons and equipment – with a cartoon twist – Devastating consumable power-ups, capable of turning the tide of any battle – Unlockable movement abilities and Metroidvania-inspired level traversal – Original jazz soundtrack, featuring a big band orchestral ensemble

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