Walt Disney‘s 1928 short Steamboat Willie, which starred Mickey and Minnie Mouse, is considered the essence of intellectual property and possibly the most iconic character in American pop culture, was released from Disney’s copyright on Jan 1, 2024 into the public domain.
It didn’t take long for the floodgates to open on using the famous mouse in a variety of different media. Within hours of being in the public domain, Mickey, Minnie, Pete, and even the wiseguy parrot were getting their own spinoffs, reboots, and reimagining by a public that had waited for the moment Mickey was ready to be lampooned and reused.
MICKEY’S MOUSETRAP
A teaser for a horror comedy film starring Mickey Mouse as the killer was released on the same day that Disney’s 1928 short became publicly available. “It’s Alex’s 21st birthday, but she’s stuck at the amusement arcade on a late shift so her friends decide to surprise her,” the movie’s synopsis for Mickey’s Mouse Trap goes, “But a masked killer dressed as Mickey Mouse decides to play a game of his own with them which she must survive.“
In the teaser, a person dressed as Mickey Mouse is shown attacking a victim and pursuing other people inside a Chuck E. Cheese-like establishment. This scene is eerily similar to the horror hit Five Nights at Freddy’s from the previous year. Jamie Bailey, the film’s director, said, “We just wanted to have fun with it all. I mean, it’s like Mickey Mouse from Steamboat Willie murdering people. It’s absurd. We took it and ran with it, and I think that shows.“
The film was produced by Paul Whitney, Mark Popejoy, Andrew Agopsowicz, Sophie McIntosh, Callum Sywyk, Allegra Nocita, Ben Harris, Damir Kovic, Mackenzie Mills, Nick Biskupek, and Simon Phillips. Mem Ferda of Filmcore co-produced the picture. The film does not yet have a release date, but producers are aiming for March.
There could be some complications, however, as the Mickey being used in the movie may not fit the criteria of “fair use.” We’ll have to wait and see if Disney is willing to put the kibosh on these and other horror-theme films with the mouse.
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Infestation 88
The “Five Nights at Mickey’s” vibes continue in the video game world with Infestation 88, an episodic four-to-four-player cooperative survival horror game set in 1988, by Nightmare Forge Games. As an exterminator, you are tasked with purging homes of “twisted versions of classic characters and urban legends.” Indeed, Mickey Mouse is among those figures. Later this year, the game will be available as an Early Access title on Steam.
Players will visit several “unique locations” in Infestation 88 to solve the mysteries (and horrors) surrounding the origins of each infestation. According to a line in the game description, “Find the source at all costs.” Every location in the game has an urban legend or “classic character” of its own; with one of these is our beloved mouse.
Teams can work together to defeat the evil creatures in Infestation 88 thanks to its private and public lobbies, proximity-based voice chat, and regular voice chat features. According to Nightmare Forge, the randomization of the items should increase the game’s replayability. Players will be able to gain experience, skins, perks, and other items as they progress through Infestation 88.
Mouse
Fumi Games, a Polish developer, released an early look at Mouse in May. Even in its early stages, with boxy gray levels and placeholder art, the shooter looked impressive and distinct due to its black-and-white, classic cartoon style and animation. Fumi Games has now released a longer trailer featuring an even better-looking version of Mouse, just in time for the new year.
In this noir FPS, a private eye rodent uses his trusty Tommy gun to take down numerous mouse gangsters in a cartoonish, violent manner, all in the name of cleansing up his corrupt city. We also get to see some other lethal techniques, such as throwing dynamite, shooting pianos so they fall on enemies, or simply punching goons. In between all of this, the mouse protagonist collects baseball cards, converses with characters, and consumes tea and spinach for presumably health reasons.
“An FPS shooter with a noir-fueled aesthetic that takes cues from vintage 1930s cartoons” is what Fumi Games describes. As private investigators, players will have to look into a “noir city teeming with gangs, mobs, and characters from the dark side.” According to Fumi, enemies will act like cartoon characters, which ought to make Mouse play and appear unlike any other shooter out there when paired with the graphics.
New enemies and weapons, such as a pump-action shotgun, are featured heavily in the Mouse gameplay trailer. We also get a glimpse of how fighting will function in this cartoon setting, where players may be able to dash about and blow off heads in stunning monochrome graphics. The scene where an enemy was burned and turned into a cartoonish heap of ash with blinking eyes is a chef’s kiss on how good this game might be.
‘Mouse’ is scheduled to be released on PC in 2025. Fumi’s official website also confirms that the cartoonish shooter will be released on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.
What do you think of the current lineup of Mickey-inspired media? Are you interested in where the famous mouse might end up next? Leave a comment below!
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