Mouse: P.I. for Hire is one of the most visually striking games we’ve seen in quite some time. We played Mouse last year – and we’ll be doing so again as part of this month’s exclusive IGN First coverage – but the thing is, it’s going to need more than just a unique art style in order to leave a lasting impression on the first-person shooter genre. And so today we’re digging into the people, the city, and the story underneath that rubber hose-animated black-and-white veneer.
By now you might know that the player character is played by the talented Troy Baker. That character is Jack Pepper, a war hero-turned-cop-turned-private investigator. You’ll be assigned three different cases over the course of the single-player campaign (Mouse has no multiplayer mode), sniffing out clues and talking to perps and pedestrians alike (not to mention doing a lot of shooting at gang members and corrupt cops) to try and solve each one as you roll around in the rotting underbelly of the city of Mouseburg.
In the image gallery above, you’ll see gifs of five characters:
- Jack Pepper: our aforementioned hero. He enlisted in the war in his teenage years, serving in the same unit with Cornelius Stilton (see below). They owe each other their lives, along with a third member of their unit, Steve Bandel. Jack joined the police force after the war ended, but struck out on his own as a P.I. after getting fed up with the corruption of too many of his fellow cops. Jack has one major vice: gambling.
- Tammy Tumbler: Born during the war, Tammy lost her mother at a young age and never learned the identity of her father. When her stepfather got busted by the police officer Jack Pepper when she was 13, she went into the foster care system and immediately sought to escape, angry at Jack and the world – at least until they got to know each other. She’s street-smart and resourceful, and has worked for Jack as needed for a long time. She trusts Jack as well as one other person: Wanda Fuller (see below).
- John Brown: John can frequently be found hanging out at the bar he owns outside of Jack’s office. He’s a shrew (the literal animal kind) from Shrewthicket, a once-thriving town that was destroyed, leaving John to haunt the surrounding swamps, becoming a cheeselegger (think: bootlegger but for cheese), a hired farming hand and blue cheese dealer. When the stove got too hot, he made his way to Mouseburg and opened a shrew-sized bar called Little & Big. He’s full of old stories and isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty.
- Wanda Fuller: Wanda is a journalist for the Mouseburg Herald who came from similar working-class means as Jack. She uses him as a source on occasion, particularly when he was with the police. They’re not exactly friends, but they share a mutual respect. She’s a cynic, but she genuinely wants to help people.
- Cornellius Stilton: Finally we have Cornellius, an upper-class resident of Mouseburg who was a commanding officer in the war. After the war, he went into politics, and he’s got a plan he’s been slowly executing. He’s a people pleaser, but to what end?
These are a handful of the key players you’ll meet in Mouse. If you’re interested in learning more, check out our deep-dive on the crazy arsenal at Jack’s disposal. And if you’re eager to play, circle March 19 on your calendar, as that’s when Mouse: P.I. for Hire will be released on PC, PlayStation platforms, Xbox platforms, and Nintendo Switch platforms.
Ryan McCaffrey is IGN’s executive editor of previews and host of both IGN’s weekly Xbox show, Podcast Unlocked, as well as our semi-retired interview show, IGN Unfiltered. He’s a North Jersey guy, so it’s “Taylor ham,” not “pork roll.” Debate it with him on Twitter at @DMC_Ryan.
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