Combining traditional Thirties “rubber-hose” animation, retro gunplay, fashionable mechanics and exploration, and a deeply weird setting, Mouse: P.I. For Rent is shaping as much as be a really uncommon deal with – however there’s extra to this sport than you might need realized from earlier trailers.
After asserting a March 19, 2026 launch date throughout right this moment’s ID@Xbox Showcase, we had been handled to a deep-dive on the sport, straight from the builders at Fumi Studios in Warsaw, Poland.
You possibly can watch the total deep-dive above, or learn on to seek out out the massive new particulars we discovered alongside the best way:
“Extra Than Simply an Outdated-school Shooter”
If there’s one factor to remove from right this moment’s introduction, it’s that Mouse is excess of a retro shooter in even extra retro clothes. Whereas your core interplay is with the sport’s gunplay (extra on that later), this can be a way more fashionable sport than you would possibly assume.
For a begin, your character – struggle veteran-turned-private investigator, Jack Pepper – doesn’t have only a single case to resolve. From the very starting, Jack’s introduced with three separate circumstances to resolve, every of which can take him throughout town of Mouseburg to unravel their secrets and techniques.
Every case will be taken on in any order, asking you not simply to take down the enemies in your manner, however to seek out clues – whether or not these are bodily objects, data discovered by speaking to NPCs, or pictures you would possibly take. Clues can then be taken to your workplace’s traditional string-adorned corkboard, and put in place to unlock new revelations and locations.
With 10 biomes to discover, every containing a number of ranges, that is very totally different to a Level A-to-Level B shooter.
The Hub
On the core of all that exploration is the sport’s hub world – set on the centre of Mouseburg, the hub comprises Jack’s workplace, his native pub, and a workshop the place he can improve his weaponry earlier than heading to the subsequent case. However there’s way more right here than a collection of menus. NPCs would possibly provide conversations, and a variety of minigames are on provide to supply totally different gameplay experiences, and even rewards of latest clues, or upgrades.
The largest of those minigames will take you throughout all the sport – a traditional collectible card sport, themed round baseball, will see playing cards dropped throughout lots of the ranges you’ll be preventing by means of, letting you construct a deck and tackle more and more tough matches.
And when you’re prepared to depart, you may bounce in your automotive and make a journey throughout the attractive overworld map to your subsequent firefight.
Cartoon Fight
Mouse’s fight attracts on traditional shooters like DOOM, however with added touches that convey it proper updated. With a philosophy of “difficult however truthful”, you’ll be pitted in opposition to hordes of enemies, accumulating weaponry that ranges from the anticipated (Tommy weapons, shotguns) to the gleefully insane (a mind in a jar that fires psychic waves).
Each gun comes with an alt-fire mode, and will be upgraded over the course of the sport, serving to issues keep contemporary. However beware – enemies themselves will see upgrades, too. As you progress, acquainted enemy sorts will begin to get their very own modifications – a tank-like enemy you might have mastered can begin coming geared up with a forcefield, for instance, forcing you to vary you tried-and-true method.
Bosses would possibly even throw in entire new mechanics, too – we noticed a ghost-like boss named the Third Spouse, which appears to require you to weaken her with a flashlight earlier than you can begin pumping lead.
Making the Previous the Future
And, after all, we have to discuss how this sport seems. Whereas enivronments are rendered in 3D, each single character, enemy, and weapon has been painstakingly hand-drawn and animated to resemble traditional Thirties “rubber hose” animation. The way in which all the pieces on this planet bounces, stretches, and bends is a tribute to that particular fashion (even shotgun shells appear to bop of their chambers throughout a reload), and took an infinite quantity of labor from Fumi.
So as to add to the problem, the sport is solely black-and-white, which modified how Fumi approached conventional stage design. The place most video games use color to subtly information the participant, Fumi wanted to take that method with gentle, giving all the sport a singular look from a participant’s perspective. Even right here, we’re seeing a tribute to traditional cartoons – interactable objects dance in place, ready so that you can discover them.
And to finish that tribute to the previous, we even discovered that Fumi has added customizable audio filters to the sport – you may select to play with crisp, fashionable sound results and music, or add degradation to assist it all the pieces sound as if it’s being performed off of old-school vinyl. The eye to element – and to how gamers would possibly wish to expertise it – is evident throughout all the pieces Fumi has touched.
Mouse: P.I for Rent involves Xbox Collection X|S on March 19, 2026.
MOUSE: P.I. For Rent
PlaySide
MOUSE: P.I. For Rent is an action-packed first-person shooter that pulls inspiration from the traditional cartoons of the Thirties. Its black and white rubber hose visuals are drawn by hand, body by body, delivering a hanging classic aesthetic. Unravel layers of corruption with an exhilarating noir-fueled detective story, energetic environments to discover, an unique large band jazz soundtrack, and a fully-loaded arsenal of cartoon weapons and devastating power-ups.
DEADLY INVESTIGATIONS
Meet Non-public Investigator Jack Pepper, a former struggle hero-turned-detective in a world the place hazard lurks even within the smallest mouse gap. Uncover the reality when a easy lacking individuals case rapidly escalates into a posh internet of intrigue, with corruption, kidnapping and homicide all on the docket. Examine the seedy underbelly of Mouseburg, battle closely armed gangs and crooked cops, and uncover clues to disclose the conspiracy buried beneath the floor.
LOCK, LOAD & LAUGH
From crackling machine weapons to explosive firepower, every weapon in Pepper’s arsenal is designed to deploy continuous cartoon chaos. Arm your self with an array of traditional, creatively twisted and experimental firearms, and devour highly effective upgrades if you want that further spinach-loaded punch! Deadly encounters and manic boss battles await on this boomer shooter-inspired, retro-vibed journey – and the denizens of Mouseburg by no means go down and not using a struggle.
A CITY OF SECRETS
Discover a various metropolis playground, from darkish streets to traditional movie studios, opulent opera buildings, toxic swamps and underground sewers. With a myriad of circumstances to resolve and collectibles to seek out, Mouseburg is actually a detective’s delight! Use each instrument at your disposal to wall-run, grapple-hook and double-jump by means of this unrelenting cartoon world.
FEATURES
– Black and white, hand-drawn rubber hose animation, impressed by cartoons of the Thirties
– Quick-paced FPS fight, the place fixed motion is vital
– An exhilarating single-player marketing campaign that unravels a posh internet of crime and corruption
– Over 20 noir-infused ranges, teeming with mice, rats and shrews
– Absolutely-loaded arsenal of over a dozen distinctive weapons and tools – with a cartoon twist
– Devastating consumable power-ups, able to turning the tide of any battle
– Unlockable motion skills and Metroidvania-inspired stage traversal
– Authentic jazz soundtrack, that includes an enormous band orchestral ensemble
