Field guide · 9 games compared

Games like MOUSE: P.I. For Hire: 1930s cartoon and detective FPS games

By Ekin, a solo developer in Istanbul (Whale Development Studios), maker of Iron Curtain Call. Published 8 November 2026; every price, release date and platform below was checked on 8 November 2026 against the US Steam store and the sources at the end.

Iron Curtain Call in first person: a white rubber hose cartoon glove aims a typewriter submachine gun at a grinning 1930s steam locomotive bursting from a brick tunnel
Iron Curtain Call, chapter 1, Rubbleton: the 6:15 Express, playable in the free demo. A real gameplay frame.
The short answer

If you loved MOUSE: P.I. For Hire, start here.

Fumi Games released MOUSE: P.I. For Hire on 16 April 2026 at $29.99 on Windows, proving that a first person shooter drawn like a black and white 1930s rubber hose cartoon can play with real weight. Because it has no free demo on Steam and runs on Windows only, players who finish it or want to test a 1930s cartoon shooter for free first immediately look for what else sits in this lane.

If you want another 1930s rubber hose cartoon FPS that you can try for free right now, play the free Steam demo of Iron Curtain Call (out 11 March 2027 on Windows and macOS, with the demo on Linux too, plus a 60 second browser version): it trades black and white detective investigations for full Technicolor 1965 propaganda, wind up robot armies and fast DOOM Eternal style melee resource loops.

If you want the 1930s crime noir detective mood in first person, play Fallen Aces ($14.99, Early Access since 14 June 2024). If you want the original 1930s hand inked rubber hose masterpiece in 2D, play Cuphead ($19.99, Windows and macOS). If you want hand drawn comic horror or pulp action, look at Forgive Me Father ($19.99), Bendy and the Ink Machine ($19.99), The Darkness II ($29.99) and XIII ($12.99).

At a glance

All nine games, side by side.

Prices are US Steam list prices before any sale, read on 8 November 2026. Every row links to its section below and to its Steam store page.
GameCartoon / noir styleHow it playsFree demo on SteamUS priceOut
Iron Curtain CallMy gameFull colour 1930s rubber hose cartoon noirFast arena FPS: punch for health, saw for ammo, burn for armorYes, free: Mission 1, about 15 to 20 minutesNot priced yet11 March 2027Free demo since 28 October 2026
MOUSE: P.I. For HireBlack and white 1930s rubber hose cartoonNoir private eye FPS with jazz score and cartoon weaponsNo$29.9916 April 2026
Fallen Aces1930s pulp crime comic book artImmersive crime noir FPS with fists, pipes and improvised weaponsNo$14.9914 June 2024Early Access
Cuphead1930s Fleischer and Disney cel animation, watercolour backgrounds2D run and gun boss rush with parry and dashNo$19.9929 September 2017
Bendy and the Ink MachineSepia 1930s animation studio ink lookFirst person cartoon puzzle horror across studio chaptersNo$19.9927 April 2017
Forgive Me FatherHand drawn comic book sprites in a Lovecraftian pulp worldOld school boomer shooter with madness skillsNo$19.997 April 2022
BioShock Remastered1960 Art Deco underwater city with 1930s rubber hose tutorial reelsStory driven FPS with plasmids and environmental trapsNo$19.9915 September 2016First released in 2007
The Darkness IIGraphic novel ink lines and bold pulp shadingFast dual wielding and demon arm execution FPSYes, free$29.999 February 2012
XIII Classic1960s French comic book cel shading and onomatopoeia panelsConspiracy espionage campaign shooterNo$12.9911 June 2020First released in 2003
Game by game

Nine games for MOUSE: P.I. For Hire fans

Each card covers how the game compares to MOUSE: P.I. For Hire in art style, combat pace and tone, and whether it offers a free demo.

Iron Curtain Call

My game

Play it if you want the 1930s rubber hose cartoon look in a faster, full colour shooter that you can try free on Steam or in your browser today.

Where MOUSE: P.I. For Hire is a black and white detective story set in Mouseburg, Iron Curtain Call is a Technicolor war movie satire set in an alternate 1965 where a customer service computer named the Supreme Chancellor runs World War III. Every gun, boss and wind up robot is drawn with thick 1930s ink lines, pie cut eyes and rubber hose bounce.

The combat is built around aggressive forward momentum: your Knuckle Sandwich punch restores health, the Can Opener saw cracks tin soldiers open for ammo, and the Hot Take shoulder flamethrower builds armor. You dash, grapple and parry through twelve chapters and twelve theatrical bosses.

Unlike MOUSE: P.I. For Hire ($29.99, Windows only, no demo), Iron Curtain Call has a free Steam demo on Windows, macOS and Linux right now, plus a free 60 second browser version with no download.

Developer and publisher
Whale Development Studios
Out
11 March 2027
Free demo out
28 October 2026
On Steam
Windows and macOS (demo on Windows, macOS and Linux)
US list price
Not priced yet
Demo
Yes, free
Gameplay trailer · 1:00 · Twelve chapters in sixty seconds. YouTube · Video page

Download the free Steam demoPlay 60 seconds in your browser, no download

Iron Curtain Call in first person: a white rubber hose cartoon glove lands a WALLOP! punch on a golden robot in a theatre while holding the Care Package rocket launcher
Chapter 12, Curtain Call: pie cut eyes, white cartoon gloves and comic book impact words.

MOUSE: P.I. For Hire

The benchmark · Black and white 1930s detective FPS

Play it if you have not played it yet and want a full length monochrome 1930s cartoon detective shooter.

Fumi Games and PlaySide launched MOUSE: P.I. For Hire on 16 April 2026 at $29.99. You play private investigator Jack Pepper uncovering corruption across a 1930s city of cartoon rodents, complete with big band jazz, tommy guns, dynamite and slapstick power ups like spinach cans.

Its greatest strength is how completely it commits to the 1930s film strip look: every reload, muzzle flash and enemy death animates like a vintage projection reel.

MOUSE is slower and more investigative than a pure boomer shooter; pair it with Fallen Aces for more detective crime noir or Iron Curtain Call for faster arena combat.

Developer
Fumi Games
Publisher
PlaySide
Released
16 April 2026
On Steam
Windows
US list price
$29.99
Demo
None on Steam

Fallen Aces

1930s crime noir · Hand drawn comic FPS

Play it if your favourite part of MOUSE: P.I. For Hire was the 1930s gangster and private eye atmosphere.

Fallen Aces, made by Trey Powell and Jason Bond and published by New Blood Interactive, entered Early Access on 14 June 2024 at $14.99. Instead of rubber hose animation, its characters and weapons are drawn like a 1930s Sunday crime comic strip, voiced with full period grit.

Levels work like an open ended immersive sim: you can sneak across rooftops, eavesdrop on mobsters, throw trash cans and bottles, or brawl through speakeasies with brass knuckles and tommy guns.

If you loved the noir crime story of MOUSE more than the cartoon animals, Fallen Aces is the closest match on Steam.

Developers
Trey Powell and Jason Bond
Publisher
New Blood Interactive
Entered Early Access
14 June 2024
On Steam
Windows
US list price
$14.99
Demo
None on Steam

Cuphead

1930s cel animation · 2D run and gun boss rush

Play it if you came to MOUSE for authentic 1930s Fleischer and Disney rubber hose animation.

Studio MDHR released Cuphead on 29 September 2017 ($19.99, Windows and macOS), and every modern rubber hose game stands on its shoulders. Its bosses were inked on paper by hand, painted onto cels and laid over watercolour backgrounds with a live jazz orchestra.

It is a 2D sidescrolling boss rush rather than a first person shooter, but its demand for pattern reading, dash timing and pink slap parries feels right at home for shooter players.

Our games like Cuphead guide covers more hand drawn and boss focused games across 2D and 3D.

Developer and publisher
Studio MDHR
Released
29 September 2017
On Steam
Windows and macOS
US list price
$19.99
Demo
None on Steam

Bendy and the Ink Machine

1930s studio ink · First person puzzle horror

Play it if you want to explore a spooky 1930s animation workshop in first person.

Joey Drew Studios released Bendy and the Ink Machine on 27 April 2017 ($19.99). You walk the ink flooded halls of a 1930s cartoon studio where the mascot cartoons have come to life off the drawing boards.

Combat is light and puzzle focused compared to MOUSE: P.I. For Hire, but the sepia ink palette and vintage pie eyed posters tap into the exact same era of American animation.

If you want the 1930s ink aesthetic without horror jump scares, read our games like Bendy without the horror guide.

Developer and publisher
Joey Drew Studios
Released
27 April 2017
On Steam
Windows
US list price
$19.99
Demo
None on Steam

Forgive Me Father

Hand drawn comic FPS · Lovecraftian 1920s pulp

Play it if you want 2D hand drawn sprites inside a fast, gun heavy retro FPS.

Byte Barrel and Fulqrum Publishing released Forgive Me Father on 7 April 2022 ($19.99), followed by Forgive Me Father 2 on 24 October 2024 ($24.99). Every weapon reload, cultist and monster is a hand drawn 2D comic illustration moving inside a 3D world.

Set in a 1920s Lovecraftian port town, it swaps cartoon slapstick for pulp horror, giving you a madness meter that powers up your guns the more aggressive you get.

More pure boomer shooter gunplay than MOUSE, with the same love for flat, hand inked 2D weapon sprites in first person.

Developer
Byte Barrel
Publisher
Fulqrum Publishing
Released
7 April 2022
On Steam
Windows
US list price
$19.99
Demo
None on Steam

BioShock Remastered

Art Deco immersive FPS · 1930s cartoon tutorial reels

Play it if you want a grand mid century dystopia where vintage cartoon reels teach you how to fight.

Long before full rubber hose shooters existed, BioShock (2007; Remastered 15 September 2016, $19.99, Windows and macOS) used 1930s style rubber hose cartoon instructional films to introduce every Plasmid power in the underwater city of Rapture.

Its combination of period jazz, vintage radio broadcasts, tommy guns and dark political satire remains the blueprint for atmospheric period shooters.

Our games like BioShock guide and upcoming games like BioShock guide compare its closest successors.

Developers
2K Boston, 2K Australia, Blind Squirrel and Feral Interactive (Mac)
Publisher
2K and Feral Interactive (Mac)
Released
15 September 2016
On Steam
Windows and macOS
US list price
$19.99
Demo
None on Steam

The Darkness II

Graphic novel noir FPS · Brutal close combat

Play it if you want a fast mobster shooter inked like a dark graphic novel.

Digital Extremes and 2K released The Darkness II on 9 February 2012 ($29.99). You play crime boss Jackie Estacado fighting a mob war with two guns and two demonic serpent arms that grab, slice and throw enemies.

Every surface is painted with thick black comic ink lines and moody crime noir lighting, and finishing enemies up close restores your health.

A short, punchy crime noir campaign that rewards the same close range aggression as Iron Curtain Call.

Developer
Digital Extremes
Publisher
2K
Released
9 February 2012
On Steam
Windows and macOS (demo on Windows)
US list price
$29.99
Demo
Yes, free

XIII Classic

Cel shaded comic FPS · Classic conspiracy campaign

Play it if you want comic book panels popping up on screen during firefights.

Ubisoft’s classic comic book shooter XIII (classic edition on Steam 11 June 2020, $12.99) adapts the Belgian graphic novel about an amnesiac operative uncovering a presidential assassination plot.

Headshots and stealth takedowns trigger inset comic panels and bold onomatopoeia words across the screen, giving every room a hand lettered page layout.

See our best cartoon FPS games guide for more cel shaded and comic book shooters.

Developer
Ubisoft Paris Studio
Publisher
Microids
Released
11 June 2020
On Steam
Windows
US list price
$12.99
Demo
None on Steam
Questions

Questions players ask

Does MOUSE: P.I. For Hire have a free demo on Steam?

No. On 8 November 2026, MOUSE: P.I. For Hire ($29.99, released 16 April 2026) listed no free demo on the US Steam store. If you want to try a 1930s rubber hose cartoon FPS for free on Steam today, Iron Curtain Call has a free Mission 1 demo on Windows, macOS and Linux, plus a 60 second browser version at ironcurtaincall.com/play/.

What is the closest game to MOUSE: P.I. For Hire?

For the 1930s rubber hose cartoon art style in a first person shooter, Iron Curtain Call is the closest match, trading black and white detective noir for full colour 1965 Cold War satire and faster DOOM Eternal style combat. For the 1930s crime detective setting and mobster brawls, Fallen Aces ($14.99) is the closest match.

Is MOUSE: P.I. For Hire on Mac?

On 8 November 2026, MOUSE: P.I. For Hire listed Windows only on Steam. For 1930s rubber hose and retro shooters that run natively on macOS, Cuphead ($19.99), BioShock Remastered ($19.99) and Iron Curtain Call (free demo out now, full game 11 March 2027) all list macOS on Steam.

What is rubber hose animation in video games?

Rubber hose animation is the style of 1920s and 1930s American cartoons, named for curving limbs that bend without sharp elbow or knee joints, paired with white gloves and pie cut eyes. Cuphead brought it back in 2D, and MOUSE: P.I. For Hire and Iron Curtain Call bring it into first person shooters.

What PC and indie games are coming out in 2027?

More than one page can hold: Steam shows a lot of PC and indie games with a 2027 date, and dates keep moving. What we checked on Steam on 7 November 2026 are the shooters and the Mac action games, in two dated lists: upcoming FPS games and upcoming Mac games. Iron Curtain Call, our own cartoon noir shooter, is due 11 March 2027 on Windows and macOS, and its free demo is on Steam now.

What games release on 11 March 2027?

Among the shooters we checked on Steam on 7 November 2026: Blood of Rations (11 March 2027) and Iron Curtain Call (My game, 11 March 2027). We only checked shooters, so this is not the full set for that day; Steam’s own Coming Soon page has the rest.

What is a good new single player FPS I can play for free right now?

Iron Curtain Call has a free demo on Steam (Mission 1, about 15 to 20 minutes) and a free 60 second browser trial with no download. It is a single player cartoon noir shooter, and it is our game, so weigh that. For other free shooters, our list of free FPS demos on Steam holds the best rated ones.

Sources and verification

Every release date, US list price, platform and demo status on this page was checked on 8 November 2026 against the official Steam store pages and reference articles below.

  1. Iron Curtain Call, Steam store page
  2. MOUSE: P.I. For Hire, Steam store page
  3. Fallen Aces, Steam store page
  4. Cuphead, Steam store page
  5. Bendy and the Ink Machine, Steam store page
  6. Forgive Me Father, Steam store page
  7. BioShock Remastered, Steam store page
  8. The Darkness II, Steam store page
  9. XIII Classic, Steam store page
  10. Rubber hose animation, Wikipedia
  11. Mouse: P.I. for Hire, Wikipedia
  12. Cuphead, Wikipedia
  13. Bendy and the Ink Machine, Wikipedia
  14. Forgive Me Father, Wikipedia
  15. BioShock, Wikipedia
  16. The Darkness II, Wikipedia
  17. XIII (2003 video game), Wikipedia

Want a 1930s cartoon FPS you can try free right now?

Play Mission 1 of Iron Curtain Call free on Steam on Windows, macOS or Linux, or jump into a 60 second brawl in your browser with no download. The full 12 chapter campaign launches on 11 March 2027.

Download the free Steam demoWishlist and Follow on SteamPlay 60 seconds in your browser, no download