Highlights
- Mouse sets itself apart with a unique art style reminiscent of 1930s cartoons, a departure from the high-tech worlds of BioShock.
- The fast-paced action of Mouse evokes intensity similar to BioShock, focusing heavily on polished shooting with some BioShock Infinite-like hook traversal also worth noting.
- Although Mouse lacks a power system, its varied arsenal and movement options offer a fresh but familiar take on the FPS format.
While the next BioShock and its spiritual successor in Judas are both set to continue the legacy of lore-heavy single-player FPS titles, upcoming indie game Mouse has been shown to be aiming for what could be the most original take on the formula yet. Set in a black and white world fashioned after the aesthetic of rubber house 1930s cartoons, this action-packed shooter appears to be capitalizing on the public domain status of Disney’s Mickey Mouse during the Steamboat Willie era. Unlike several other projects in the same vein, however, Mouse is shaping up to be a meaningful addition to the subgenre.
Sequels and titles like Prey managed to occupy a similar niche in the years since, as they all utilize the combat and immersive-sim-inspired elements which shined in the original, self-contained BioShock. Mouse has become an anticipated FPS release not only through the merits of its own setting, but the way it seems to be translating similar mechanics into this world as well.
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Mouse Already Stands Out Among Its FPS Competition
The Flavor of Mouse’s Theme Flips BioShock’s Retrofuturism on Its Head
While its presentation down to the UI is reminiscent of the Irrational Games classic, Mouse‘s setting differs in a crucial way even beyond its cartoon look. BioShock established high-tech, dystopian worlds in Rapture and Columbia despite being rooted in a retro timeline, but this rubber hose shooter is fully committed to the old-school motif. Tommy guns, cigars, and cans of spinach are examples of thematically appropriate items which replace the outlandish offerings of other “shock” experiences.
A Unique Art Style Can Stack Up to AAA Fidelity
Not only is Judas, developed by BioShock‘s original creator, shaping up to be an impressive title that has taken years of development, but existing games like the Dishonored titles have set a high bar for Mouse to clear if it wishes to properly compete with them. While indie developer Fumi Games is unlikely to be able to offer the same kind of scale or visual realism, the immediately recognizable animated look of its project allows its gameplay to stand out above all else.
Mouse’s Fast-Paced Action Evokes the Intensity of BioShock Which Fans Miss
Gunplay That’s Light on Powers, but Heavy on Movement
From what has been showcased so far, Mouse seems to merely take heavy inspiration from BioShock as opposed to being a one hundred percent accurate clone. Plasmids and Vigors don’t have any clear parallel in this context, with the enhanced melee attacks of the “Spike-D” canned spinach power-up serving as the closest the player seems to be able to come to harnessing similar energies. It’s unknown if firing bullets from the player’s finger is a power or unique weapon, but it’s just another aspect which exemplifies that the title is mainly concerned with its polished shooting. Through trailers featuring enclosed and open areas filled with aggressive enemies being both quickly shot down and defeated by environmental obstacles, it’s clear that Mouse is going to feature hectic scenarios that wouldn’t feel out of place in the next BioShock.
There might not be a power system like in other “shock” games, but the ability of the player to hop around between hooks using their tail somewhat resembles the Sky-Line capabilities of Booker DeWitt from Infinite. A varied arsenal composed of everything from a sniper rifle to dynamite also complements this as another apparent layer of options within combat, indicating that Mouse might be able to harness its immersive sim roots through supporting many different combat approaches. Whether Judas and BioShock 4 succeed or not, fans of these alternative-style FPS games can at least look forward to a fresh but familiar take on the format.
BioShock: Infinite
- Released
- March 26, 2013
- Genre(s)
- Shooter
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Language, Mild Sexual Themes, Use of Alcohol and Tobacco
- How Long To Beat
- 12 Hours
- Metascore
- 94
- PS Plus Availability
- Premium (Complete Edition)
