Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number

[JaySevenZero]

Here's where you can contribute your thoughts and opinions of Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number for potential inclusion in the forthcoming podcast.

A friendly reminder to all that where feedback for the podcast is concerned, we love it - but self-editing (brevity) is appreciated. We do want to include a breadth of opinions where appropriate, but no-one wants a discussion podcast that’s mainly reading. Better to save yourself time and cut to the chase if you can.

[Superuser]

I believe I speak for everyone when I say this is a lesser game to the original.


The game:

They didn't understand why people liked the first game. The neon 80s aesthetic was losing its luster by the time 2 came out, so it had to deliver equally great gameplay, which it didn't. There were two chief failings: first, this is a very hard game that you'll die a lot at, just like its predecessor. Restarting is instant like before - one of HLM's best innovations, but the levels are very long. Where an HLM1 level was 40 seconds clean, you're looking at 3 minutes for most levels in the sequel.

The other problem is that you constantly get shot offscreen. The levels were deliberately crafted, so I find this a baffling decision. It also means the game loses its fast paced style, favouring a cautious approach that relies on trial and error, plus a lot of holding the right mouse button to see further afield. It break's the vibe the game is going for in other ways, because you're not rolling in and causing a storm of sudden violence, using any tools to hand.

Unless you're doing a speedrun, you're planning your entry before every room, and that's just lame. There's even a sniper level, which is one of the worst levels I've played in a top down action game.

I bought the game near release which is rare for me. At the time, there were a lot of irritating behaviours with pathfinding and doors. It was difficult to tell how enemies would move, and predictability is important in a tense game like this. This was most obvious with the dog enemies, who could jump at you and instakill you at random times. I still have memories of certain section in a very green sewer level.

It's still fairly tight, and I thought the restrictions of each character enhanced the game, even if they were at times annoying. It kept the game interesting much more than the original was able to.

The plot:

I liked it! It had a very convincing nihilism to it that made the ending all the more tragic. I personally had little idea of what's going on, but I connected with a lot of the characters and find them memorable to this day. I sympathised with Evan, Richter and Beard. I even started liking The Fans in the final level as they were losing each other. It's interesting that the game was able to evoke that connection when they are all horrible people.

The final level is so amazing it almost redeems the game. It works because the rest of the game is positively dull by comparison, but by god was it a trip (literally). There are comparisons to be made with Half-Life 2's final level, but rather than calling it derivative, I think that's the highest of praise I can offer.

I'd be remiss if I didn't talk about the rape depicted. Whether it was 'real' in-universe or fake isn't relevant to the discussion in my opinion. It succeeded in being shocking. Being merely shocking isn't enough, and if there was a warning - I do not recall there being one, but I think it would also be a cop-out to have a skip button like Modern Warfare 2 did in its equally controversial scene. So I begrudgingly credit them for standing by it in that sense, but also think it was of little value and just left a bad memory going through that level.


Closing thoughts:

I recommend that everyone find a post online by fans that have put the timeline in order, which makes the story much easier to comprehend. I was a bit sour after my first run, in part due to the frustrating gameplay, but the detailed, unusual plot made me justify my time with the game and left a lasting impression.

In summary, if Hotline Miami was Drive, Hotline Miami 2 is the spiritual sequel by the same director, Only God Forgives. It's definitely worse, but still very impressive in a few aspects.

Three word review: PLAY FOR STORY

[SludgeWizard]

The final level is so amazing it almost redeems the game. It works because the rest of the game is positively dull by comparison, but by god was it a trip (literally). There are comparisons to be made with Half-Life 2's final level, but rather than calling it derivative, I think that's the highest of praise I can offer.

Hotline Miami 2's final level is the best, most memorable level in either game, and one of my favorite levels in gaming period.

It's the LSD soaked murder nightmare, in a series made up exclusively of LSD soaked murder nightmares.

[Angry_Kurt]

Hotline Miami 2 is the most disappointed I have ever been with a game. This was primarily due to me adoring the first game for a multitude of reasons, so much so that I would place it in my top 5 games of all time and went on to get the platinum trophy in the game, which I rarely do. So needless to say I was massively hyped for the sequel.
I felt that the game went from being difficult but fair to being difficult and unfair. The increased map size led to many deaths by enemies who were off the screen which I had no hope of knowing were there. With this in mind I made my way through levels at a rather slow pace which was the total opposite of the fast and frentic action of the first game. I pressed on in the hope things would get better later on but it didn't and it came to head during one of the later Vietnam missions which were probably the largest and most open levels where i cracked and had enough of the game, putting it down never to return.
The game did have one redeeming feature though for me which was the soundtrack which was excellent yet again.

[Alex79]

I don't have a great deal to add to this conversation other than I also was disappointed first time I played it. It didn't feel like the first game, it almost felt like a traditional twin stick shooter in places, and the story absolutely baffled me. Once I accepted it for what it seemed to be, more of a shooter than the tactical, almost puzzle like nature of the first game, I really had a lot of fun with it though.

THREE WORD REVIEW: Soundtrack still great.

With this in mind I made my way through levels at a rather slow pace which was the total opposite of the fast and frentic action of the first game.

Ha, this is interesting, and I didn't read your post before making mine, but we approached both games in the total opposite way. It was the first game that was more slow and methodical for me, contrasted by the hectic shoot 'em up way I played the sequel!

EDIT: This is what I wrote on the forum when I was first playing it...

I'm really enjoying Hotline Miami 2 now I've worked out 'how to play it'. I played the original as a kind of puzzle/stealth game, and approaching the sequel in the same manner just doesn't work. Now I've got my head in the right place for it, playing it as a balls out action packed ultra violent twin stick shooter it's much more fun! The chainsaw / gun double team is so much fun it should be illegal.

[Angry_Kurt]

Maybe I should go back to it and approach it more aggressively then. I should be getting a Vita this week so will download it again.