Hotline Miami

Year: 2012
Genre: Action, Shoot-'Em-Up
Website: http://www.hotlinemiami.com/

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Shane:

• Platform: PC
• Hours logged: 4.0
• Playthroughs: 1
• Rating: 8/10

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Notes and Discussions:

• Shane (11/6/2014):  I have to be honest here that I still think about this game.  My playthrough was over a month ago, but I want to go back and do it again.  On the surface, the game doesn't appear to have outstanding replayability, but they did a few things right with regards to that.  First they gave us a LOT of unlockables.  Masks that offer various perks and new weapons that kill things differently seem to be the most of it, but there is also an odd little word puzzle that I don't understand yet.  The letters are hidden throughout the levels and are collectible by standing over odd colored spots on the floor and pushing a button.
  
  I think the main selling points for the game from the development point of view would have been the music (80's style EDM) and the rampant violence (very satisfying).  The ambiance throughout the game has a disjointed dreamlike feel that was heightened by the haunting music and the echos of the creaking doors.  Recently, I have been playing most games with the sound off or very low, but this one was an exception to that rule.
  
  The top-down view didn't actually take that long to get used to, much to my surprise.  It didn't hit me until later that I had seen a similar perspective while playing the old Grand Theft Auto games (before they went 3D in GTA III).  This was easier to grasp though.
  
  I really liked the rapid restart feature of the game.  When something kills you, there is an immediate restart of the level (or floor).  No lengthy death screen or drawn out musical interlude (looking at you, Mario), just a quick message that you died, and then back to the beginning where you can try again.  The penalty for getting killed is so minor it is easy to get locked into a "Just one more time" loop.
  
  I feel like I stomped through this game pretty quickly.  Four hours is surely not the fastest playthrough.  Not by any stretch of the imagination.  I enjoyed it though.  I want to boot it up again and collect more masks and weapons.  I stopped playing after I beat it once, thinking I should spend some time on a different game.  I think this game has earned a bit more time though.