Mouse gets gameplay trailer: new FPS boomer shooter delivers gritty 1930s Cuphead animated noir aesthetic and loads of character

At this point, there are plenty of boomer shooters floating around the internet, from the gory Doom franchise to the more unique rhythm-based spin-offs, like Metal: Hellsinger. Mouse is a recently-announced FPS that takes aim at the boomer shooter franchise with charming black-and-white graphics with classic rubber hose animation, hilarious Easter eggs, and plenty of character.

Just a few months after the early 2023 unveiling, Mouse has received an early gameplay trailer (also embedded below), giving us a look at what to expect from the Looney Tunes facsimile.

The game will centre around a private detective that is on a mission for justice, which results in going on a chaotic rampage through the myriad crooks of the city. The unorthodox animation style, quirky weapons, and musical choice all seek to add a touch of light-hearted comedy to an otherwise grim, dark genre that tends to take itself too seriously at times.

Mouse will feature fast-paced gun play, fun weapons, and upbeat jazz music, but we all know how gaming's last adventure into early-1900s cartoon-land went. Given Cuphead's status as one of the most challenging mainstream games of the last five or so years, it wouldn't be a surprise to see Mouse, which admittedly pays homage to the success of the recent bullet-hell game, go a similar direction.

Cuphead inspiration aside, the trailer features plenty of references to old cartoons, the most obvious of which are the POV character chugging a can of spinach before unleashing a flurry of fisticuffs and the Mickey Mouse-lookalikes that litter the battlefield. At one point in the trailer, the character comically resorts to finger guns to clear a room of NPCs.

The title card at the end of the trailer also makes reference to the 1937 cartoon Porky's Duck Hunt with the MPPBA (Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America) certification code 3190.

An exact release date for Mouse has not yet been announced, but it is expected to launch on consoles and on Steam on PC in 2025. Follow along on the Mouse Steam page for more info.

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