Review: Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number (PC)

Quarter-munching video games used to be relegated to arcades. At least in North America, arcades, as a location, are basically extinct but somehow the DNA of those games were injected into games outside the confines of arcades. The so-called “Free to Play” games are always more than happy to take small bits of cash from you to shorten timers, provide boosts and buffs, or slap a new skin on your on-screen avatar. Traditionally though, arcade games were all about trying to squeeze every last quarter out of your pocket by making the games difficult, sometimes really difficult, and making the “Continue?” countdown seem like the most urgent thing in the world. That same DNA was infused into Hotline Miami 2, where reaction time and somehow dodging incoming fire from off-screen is the only way to prevent a level restart.

When the player dies, which will happen a lot, the level restarts. It's possible to almost clear an entire floor only OH C'MON!

When the player dies, which will happen a lot, the level restarts. It's possible to almost clear an entire floor only to misjudge a line of sight and have the last enemy cut ARGH! I THINK I'LL GO BACK TO MASS EFFECT 2!

When the player dies, which will happen a lot, the level restarts. It's possible to almost clear an entire floor only to misjudge a line of sight and have the last enemy cut the player in half with a shotgun blast then have to try again. And this will happen repeatedly. It's like I should have a roll of quarters on standby while playing! Strangely enough, even after clearing a floor, I didn't actually feel any level of satisfaction, only dread at what the next floor would bring.

Even with the ability to slide the screen further out from the character to recon the area to see if there are enemies ahead that have a patrol pattern, that just leaves the player vulnerable to attack from enemies that are coming the other way.

“Patrol pattern” is a bit of a misleading way to describe the enemy behaviour because it can be wildly unpredictable. It's often the case that the sound of gunfire can send nearby enemies into a “frenzy” mode where they will forget all good sense and run straight toward the location of the player. Sometimes this means half the enemies on the floor can be bottlenecked in a doorway making for some seriously easy shooting. Try the same strategy again, and maybe only two or three enemies come barrelling around the blind corner. Even then, if you're not quick on the mouse button one of them can get lucky and drop the player sending him back to the start of the level. Trying a different tact – making use of stealth by throwing weapons at enemies or whapping them with a door to knock them down to silently beat their brains out their ears – might net a better result but there's the risk that after cautious minutes of taking guys out, the end result will still be a shotgun gut shot.

As Hotline Miami 2 progresses, the player gains access to character-specific abilities, represented by animal masks. This is a choice that is made at the start of most levels but besides using each one once to see what the ability could be applied to I played the game without caring which ability I was using (except Ash & Alex, one with a chainsaw, one with a gun and they're controlled at the same time – that was mostly agonizing).

The top-down view is reminiscent of the likes of Smash TV (and the control: WASD for movement, mouse to control attack direction), but even that game had some depth to its look, but the extremely

gory action reminded me of an amped-up version of the Sega Genesis game Techno Cop. The comparison makes some sense when seeing just how tight Hotline Miami 2's hold is on the early '90s. From the pause menu to the awesome 16-bit soundalike soundtrack, it definitely conveys the “old school” qualities of mid-90's technology and game sophistication, right down to the story, which didn't make a lick of sense to me, possibly because I was much more focused on the stages over any story developments which I clicked through as quickly as I could, but maybe because I just couldn't follow it.

Honestly, if the game didn't have such terrific music and the ability to “nab” the era I really got into video games, then I would have dropped Hotline Miami 2 in frustration. I'm passed the point of not being affected by instant death/restart. The part of me that played those kinds of games without bitterness or anger – it was a simpler time – was eroded a while ago and no longer do I want to play a game for an hour or more and make almost no progress. There are too many demands my time. I want a game I can play in chunks and push forward, rather than play a game where I hope I'll just get lucky and climb to the next flo–OH, FOR...!

Quarter-munching video games, used to be relegated to arcades. At least in North America, arcades, as a location, are basically extinct but somehow the DNA of those games were injected into games outside the confines of arcades. The so-called “Free to Play” games are YOU ARE NOW DEAD TO ME!

- Aaron Simmer
Follow @EmpireArmchair

The Good:
- Such a great soundtrack
- Does a fantastic job capturing a certain era of video games
- $16.99 might be good price for those that want a quick "blast from the past"

The Bad:
- Lightning reflexes feel like a requirement
- Combos and scoring don't feel like they add anything to the game