Once they’re absolutely sure that Disney actually let Steamboat Willie slip into the public domain, indie studio Nightmare Forge Games revealed their new upcoming co-op horror survival game Infestation 88. What’s Steamboat Willie got anything to do with this game, you ask? Well, in this game, you’re supposed to exterminate infestations of horrific creatures that somehow look familiar – like they look like beloved classic characters that somehow turned vile and sinister.

Of course, we’re talking about Mickie Mouse. But no, this isn’t your keyboard-wielding King Mickie we’re talking about. Rather, we’re talking about the old Rubber House Animation version of Mickie Mouse that debuted in Steamboat Willie and first came to the screen in 1928. The short animated film was directed by the legendary Walt Disney himself, but it doesn’t seem like Disney’s current management is at all interested in keeping the copyrights for the old film.

As a result of the cartoon entering the public domain, Nightmare Forge Studio is now free to make use of characters in the cartoon for their commercial pursuits, free from worry that Disney’s lawyers might start haunting them instead.

This is an incredibly ballsy move by Nightmare Forge Studio for having the guts to develop the game without the certainty that Disney will not renew their copyright for Steamboat Willie.

As for the game itself, Infestation 88 is described by the studio as “a co-op horror in which you’re an exterminator treating sinister infestations caused by twisted versions of classic characters and urban legends.” The game is set to release at an unspecified time this 2024.

While it could be shocking for some to see Mickie Mouse used as a sinister horror character in a video game, he’s not alone. Back in 2022, when Winnie the Pooh also entered the public domain, filmmakers used the opportunity to turn the beloved Pooh bear into a murderous criminal in Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey, emotionally scarring fourth graders in the process.