The Public Domain - Game Announcement

After 96 years of copyright protected status the world's most famous Mouse is being thrown out into the cold. Ejected out into the Public Domain with the rest of yesteryear's garbage He must fend for himself and try to find his place in a world where he's no longer the big cheese.

The most ambitious asset flip of all time! A new 2D Platformer with Adventure Game elements created by a single rouge nerd! Every single image and sound in the above trailer is taken from a public domain or royalty free source.

This project is NOT AFFILIATED with the Walt Disney company or any other corporation or IP license holder. It is the work of a single individual WITHOUT THE PERMISSION OR ENDORSEMENT of ANY of company or rights holders.

[jacobs.]

It warms my heart to see this whole public domain thing being actually used for something creative and interesting.

[HalIucinations]

Public Domain being a kind of limbo for characters that lost their copyright is a super cool idea

[ItemlabelOtto]

This is one of the most "Mickey-ish" things I've seen come out of the Mouse's recent release from Disney.

[JJMcCullough]

I think it would be fun if the game has a bunch of public domain characters and settings and music. Like stuff from fairy tales, holidays, children’s songs. Stuff like that.

[stilltrying_butwhy]

I love this idea, I like how you aren't just making Mickey "spooky"

[toastedprocastinator]

LET'S COOL, WE FINALLY GOT A HARD ASS SIDE SCROLLING PLATFORMER, don't rush the project, and try your best to push out your vision of this, the idea of everything being completely derived from free sources is honestly creative and smart af ngl

[_three]

now this a good use for public domain media, hope this project succeeds

[Lo-Sir]

the concept is great, though it's clear the game does need more polish

[SegaChannl]

This is the most normal thing to come out of the public domain release of steamboat willie, it’s like Epic Mickey but for Steamboat Willie

[sonicraptor]

I think this is probably the most creative usage of Mickey since Steamboat Willie got added to the public domain that I've seen. Can't wait to see how you expand this, and it's looking good already. If you need a voice actor by any chance, just lemme know!

[MarcoAnaya-ksbp]

This is WAY better than a Mickey Mouse horror game.

[charliemacsart]

This is a great idea! A game made of entirely pre-made, public/royalty-free sources is such a unique idea with tons of potential. Plus, the dialogue implies a bit of a character study of Mickey Mouse and his legacy, which could be really interesting! Perhaps the journey of Mickey coming to terms with his new fate and being humbled?

[keithblevinsgraphics]

This looks really creative and amazing! I'm excited to see what come of this. Hopefully my boy Oswald the Lucky Rabbit makes an appearance. Maybe he could part of a two-player co-op (similarly to Epic Mickey 2)? A lot of people tend to forget Oswald is in the public domain now too, along with the entirety of the original Disney-produced shorts from 1927-1928.

[alanhumanguy]

I love the concept bruv seeing all the forgotten public domain characters in one whole trash island sounds like a perfect representation of them today 😀

[skyblock]

This game should be put into public domain as soon as it releases.

[ThePublicDomainTheGame-sbeb]

FOR THOSE COMMENTING ABOUT MICKEY'S GLOVES

Firstly, thank you all so much for the interest and encouragement you've all shown for this project. I appreciate the concerns but rest assured I've done a lot of research about this. There do in fact exists examples of Mickey with gloves in the public domain. The title cards of all three original shorts feature him with gloves as well as the 1933 cartoon "The Mad Doctor" which uses a slightly later design with gloves and has already slipped into the public domain a while ago. The territory of a character existing only partially in the P.D is quite grey though not entirely uncharted. One of the few precedents that has been established is that P.D images of trademarked characters can be used commercially. As every single image of Mickey in this game comes from a P.D source it would much more difficult for Disney (or any other company whose IP I'm using) to claim infringement than if I were creating new original images of these characters. Again, thank you for the support you've all shown and know that I'm working very hard to make this the best game that I can possibly make.

[thephantomist]

Super excited for this! Obviously could use more polish, but the scrapbook-esc aesthetic could look really good!

Also really digging forgotten characters like Bimbo the Dog showing up. Hopefully Felix has a role somewhere!

[thatoneXman]

The game looks rough around the edges, but by golly THIS is the kind of public domain content that SHOULD be getting made! Honestly hoping this sparks the flame for more out-there experimental public domain content then just "Mickey scary"

[LocalDaydreamer]

WHAT OMG THIS IS AMAZING
I love the game design and the way Mickey jumps out of his original background
This is so sick!
Keep up the good work, I can’t wait until I can play this!

[owenharry]

I come back to this trailer every time I see a poorly executed “steamboat Willie but horror” idea (which I sadly often now), to remind myself what a genuinely cool and original idea looks like. Looks great hope to see more!