When you make it to The Depths during the Mouse: P.I. For Hire “Shrewd Shrews” job, you’ll find a locked door on the ground floor, left of where you come out of the elevator. Next to it is a panel displaying four zeros, and levers below each number that allow you to raise each one to nine. It’s obvious there’s a code to open this door, but where — and what — is it?
Turns out, there are actually lots of unique codes for this door in Mouse: P.I. For Hire, and each one opens into something slightly different. Here are all possible codes for the door in The Depths and where to find them.
Update (April 20): We’ve added more working door codes to this guide.
All codes for the ‘Shrewd Shrews’ door in Mouse: P.I. For Hire
First ‘Shrewd Shrews’ door code
The first code is very close to the door, you just need to know how to read tally markings. Underneath the wooden platform that leads up to the door, you can crouch beneath to find two coins, alongside a tally scratched into the wood: 2 1 3 7.
Head back up to the door and enter the numbers in that order, then pull the lever. Jack Pepper will speak some Polish, which (according to Google) translates to “Why should I choose, it’s best to take both!” while inside you’ll find a table with some cash atop and scattered around the base, for 10 coins in total. Unfortunately, there are no other collectibles inside.
Second ‘Shrewd Shrews’ door code
The second code is on the same floor with all the non-hostile shrews, you just need to walk around to the other side of the small community. Look for the Quick Loans shop: inside, you can find a code with 0 4 5 1 on some paper at the very back.
Using this code reveals a BioShock reference, a game Mouse: P.I. For Hire is heavily influenced by, and Jack will call it a classic. You’ll get another 10 coins for your trouble.
Third ‘Shrewd Shrews’ door code
For the second code, you must progress through the level, but don’t worry: you can come back to the door at the very end of the level, before you leave. As you’re climbing up through The Depths with the objective of finding the pump room, you’ll reach the second floor, indicated by graffiti on the wall, alongside more graffiti stating “Writers untie!,” a flower, and an anchor. There will also be a hook to grapple on hanging from some balloons and a wide garage door.
Use the grapple to swing up to the ledge above, and the path you’ll need to go down will be indicated by some fish graffiti on the wall above a wooden platform. Rather than going through the door however, crouch underneath the platform.
At the far end, you’ll see a warp pipe. You’ll exit in a tiny room with graffiti asking, “Why did you get in here?” and beneath it is another tally code: 1 2 3 4.
Using the 1234 code opens into a room with a broken barrel and some spilled drinks on the floor, with another 10 coins to pick up on the floor. Pepper quips, “The same combination as my luggage.” What a joker.
Fourth ‘Shrewd Shrews’ door code
The third code comes when the magnet you’re chasing, as it’s carrying the valve you need, finally drops it on a desk that says “lost n’ found” on the wall above it. Before you pick up the valve, look at the shelves to your right. The lowest shelf will have a piece of paper displaying four numbers: 3 1 2 5.
3125 is slightly more exciting: a creature I can best describe as having the face of a cartoon dog, with bright glowing glasses, bearing its teeth, wearing a puritan’s hat, with flowing black hair, and extremely long rubber hose arms hovering statically above some candles and an open suitcase. The only tangible reward here is another 10 coins, but hey, it looks funky. Jack’s silent for this one though… probably out of fear.
Additional ‘Shred Shrews’ door codes
Here are a couple more codes that work on the door, as sourced by other players both in our own comments and via Steam Community:
- 1 9 2 0 will take you to a slightly older version of Jack Pepper’s office. As far as I could tell, there’s nothing to really see here, as it looks mostly the same, but it’s a neat easter egg nonetheless.
- 2 0 1 9 will show you a desk with a blackboard behind it, with “[Insert Fumi team here]” displayed. Beneath it is a note that says “Fumi Team xoxo.” It’s unclear whether this is yet to be updated with a team photo of everyone who worked on the game at Fumi Games, or if it’s just a tongue-in-cheek reference to other games that do include hidden photos of the dev team, but you can grab another 10 coins either way.
- 0 3 1 6 also works, but I don’t quite have an explanation for this one. Inside is a giant framed photo of a bald, bearded, bespectacled man with his top off behind a rock. If this is a reference, I’m not sure what to.
- 1 2 2 4 opens with a cloud of smoke, but when it dissipates, you’re in a small room with a reclining surgical bed stained with blood, alongside scissors on the floor, some other tools in an open briefcase, and some Groucho glasses on a square block of cheese. At least you get another 10 coins for this one, because Jack accurately refers to it as “creepy.”
For more Mouse: P.I. For Hire help, we have guides to all of the following: how to use schematics, a list of all jobs, the unique reward from the Prize D-Spenser, the math puzzle solution in “A Bit of a Scene,” where to find the three thingies in “Perfect Bog Fondue,” and more. And why don’t you check out our review while you’re at it too?
