When Cuphead was first revealed, it kicked off a storm with its hand-drawn animation that resembled 1930s rubber hose style cartoons, and used those visuals well with its run-n-gun gameplay. Other developers have taken influence with their own games using visuals inspired by classic animation, but often in different styles. MOUSE: P.I. For Hire from Fumi Games and Playside takes the idea of classic animation and applied it to the FPS genre, but adds in a film noir inspired hardboiled detective story, creating something special. I happen to be a big fan of Film Noir ( keep an eye out this November for a special series related to that) and was instantly hooked when I saw the first trailer, but how does it play?
The first thing to note is that MOUSE: P.I. For Hire is not exactly a boomer shooter like some have thought. Rather think of it as closer to Bioshock but with elements of Doom, as while it definitely has elements of a Boomer shooter, there is a much deeper narrative and some adventure aspects. The film noir setting works to make the narrative strong here, while still letting you go wild with combat
I will note that I have seen complaints that the story is a bit lacking for a film noir detective tale, or that the FPS aspects seem to clash with the narrative elements, but I do not agree at all. MOUSE: P.I. For Hire is not a game that sets out to be a true to the classics fikm noir story, but is a loving tribute to them and the golden age of animation in video game form. As a blend of the two, it is able to do a lot more than either side would on its own. I will also note that MOUSE: P.I. For Hire is not the first animal cartoon tribute to the classics, for instance Jim Henson’s brilliant series Dog City, which like MOUSE: P.I. For Hire has a great number of animal and food puns. But if there is anything to really compare it to, I would say Who Framed Roger Rabbit? and its (rather more mature) source material, Who Censored Roger Rabbit?, which were brilliant blends of animation and film noir storytelling.
MOUSE: P.I. For Hire stars Jack Pepper, a cartoon mouse gumshoe who is asked to investigate the death of an actress, only to stumble into a far deeper conspiracy. MOUSE: P.I. For Hire touches on serious themes, especially relating to situations in the 1930s and even uses characters based on real figures who are obscure now. That being said, it never loses sight of the fact that it is a cartoon video game, which keeps things in the fantastical realm.
Because MOUSE: P.I. For Hire is inspired by those classic cartoons, Jack is able to do things that would not be possible in real life, like hovering using his tail, and picking locks with his tail. There is a neat variety in the gameplay and the developers knew to always keep things fresh and never let you get bored. Jack uses a variety of weapons, but these are cartoon versions of real weapons and often with pun names, like a Mouser instead of Mauser, and James Gunn instead of Tommy Gun (hey, I didn’t say they were all good puns).
MOUSE: P.I. For Hire is very referential to other media, but that is not a bad thing. I have to admit I was not expecting a shoutout to the film adaptation of Conan the Barbarian, but considering the original Conan stories were being published in pulp magazines in the 1930s in real life, this one kind of fits rather well. There are also tributes to other video games, as well as classic and modern cinema, and it never really feels out of place, with one particular section being very poignant for film history buffs.
But to note some flaws, MOUSE: P.I. For Hire has very sensitive controls that do need to be adjusted a bit. I was playing on Steam and Jack Pepper was just a bit too jittery of a mouse until I realized the solution was to adjust the sensitivity on my computer mouse….fitting in a way.One I made those modifications to the control scheme, MOUSE: P.I. For Hire played a lot better and I had no real issues in that regard, though I was not expecting how difficult the game could be in some sections.
Still, using the weapons felt amazing and natural, with smooth combat that never felt clunky. Upgrading your weapons works like a skill tree similar to some RPGs ( though MOUSE: P.I. For Hire does not try to pass itself off as an RPG) and can be thought of as similar to how things work in both Bioshock and modern Doom games, while taking some minor RPG influence. Some may be surprised that throwables were not handled separately from the other weapons, but MOUSE: P.I. For Hire does try to go for that classic style of FPS, at least with regards to weapon inventory.
MOUSE: P.I. For Hire throws everything it can at you, while still telling a coherent narrative, and without giving spoilers, there is a reason I noted this game owing much to both Doom and Roger Rabbit. I will also note that some sections that see you drive a car on the overworld to get to different areas, while also collecting clues, made me think of the infamous Roger Rabbit video game from LJN, and how in many ways, MOUSE: P.I. For Hire is more true to Roger Rabbit ( especially the source material). MOUSE: P.I. For Hire also has some interesting minigames, including the baseball card game that will end up sucking up a lot of your time, and you will eventually just want more of it.
MOUSE: P.I. For Hire pretty much sold itself on its visuals, and while they are amazing, the music and voice acting are also a big part of the game and really pull you into the experience. But more than anything, it is the gameplay of MOUSE: P.I. For Hire, which is far deeper than expected. Not only do you have to collect evidence while taking down bad gays, the levels can be very creative (although some sections are admittedly repetitive and bland) and the game forces you to think carefully. The boss fights are some of the best I have seen in an FPS game in a long time, and I tip my detective cap to Fumi Games and Playside for how inventive they were.
MOUSE: P.I. For Hire is not just a game with a neat visual gimmick. It understands its blending of mediums and narrative storytelling and manages to create a fantastic tribute to classic animation, film noir and pulp storytelling, while remembering that it does not need to be an exact recreation and can be creative about it. With more content en route via DLC, I am excited to see what comes next for MOUSE: P.I. For Hire. As it stands, this is a must play game and one I will wholeheartedly recommend.