Moving into a new flat is meant to involve unpacking boxes, arguing over where the sofa goes and discovering that one cupboard has a very odd smell. In Mousebusters, it also involves being turned into a mouse and drafted into a supernatural clean-up operation.
Now available on Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S, Mousebusters is a quirky ghost-hunting adventure from Odencat. Its newly rodent-sized protagonist has only one route back to normal life: clear an entire apartment block of the spirits making its residents miserable.
At A Glance
- Game: Mousebusters
- Price: £10.74
- Platforms: Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S
- Publisher: Odencat
- Developer: Odencat
An Apartment Block With Bigger Problems Than Damp
The premise starts with a curse, but Mousebusters is not simply about chasing ghosts from room to room. Each apartment has its own resident, its own story and its own unwelcome spectre hiding somewhere nearby.
The ghosts feed on negative emotions, so finding them means first getting to know the people who live in the building. Players will need to investigate their neighbours, work out what is troubling them and avoid being spotted while snooping around their homes.
It is a strange job for a mouse, but someone has to do it.
The Chief Has A Plan
Fortunately, the protagonist is not left to deal with the curse alone. Early on, they meet another rodent who goes by the name of Chief – a desk-bound partner who remains in contact throughout each mission.
Chief offers instructions, advice and plenty of commentary while you explore the building, solve puzzles and follow the clues that lead to each ghost. There is clearly more to him than he first lets on, however, and the wider mystery begins to grow as the investigations continue.
The deeper you get into the apartment block, the more suspicious its history becomes.
Exorcisms With A Ray Gun
Once a ghost has been uncovered, Mousebusters swaps quiet detective work for a more direct approach. Your weapon of choice is a ray gun, used to dodge incoming attacks, target weak points and expose the spectral core that needs destroying.
That gives the game a nice shift in pace. One moment you are trying to understand a resident’s insecurities and pick through a puzzle; the next, you are avoiding projectiles and trying to send an angry apparition packing.
There are bigger questions waiting behind those hauntings too. Why was the protagonist cursed in the first place? What is really happening in this building? And how much does Chief know?
A Small Hero For A Very Big Job
Mousebusters has a playful setup, but it has plenty of room for a darker story underneath it. The building is full of unhappy residents, the ghosts are not there by accident, and a cure will not come without getting to the bottom of it all.
For £10.74, Mousebusters is available now on Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S, through the Xbox Store. If you have ever wanted a ghost-hunting game where the detective is the size of a mouse and the support team consists of one suspiciously knowledgeable rodent, this could be the move-in day from hell you have been waiting for.
