Hotline Miami is that rare, (relatively) modern game that deserves to be called a computer game and not just another “interactive entertainment” for 100 hours of wandering around an empty, albeit open world with an annoying grind, inappropriate mechanics added for show and other sores of modern games.
This is a dynamic, balanced and easy to learn game that is entertaining and allows you to relax. Gameplay is a top-down shooter. There are bladed weapons and firearms. The mechanics of shooting and hand-to-hand combat are simple, pleasant and work on literally three buttons. Despite the simplicity of the gameplay, it does not become boring even after two or three playthroughs in a row, and the reason for this is simple. Each level of the game consists of several small maps filled with enemies of different types and with different weapons, and also on the maps there are randomly generated weapons that can and should be selected. All missions boil down to a simple goal - to destroy all enemies on the map. In this simplicity lies the crazy replayability of the project: relatively small maps can be cleared in many ways. Opponents behave predictably and yet periodically surprise you with a changed route of movement or other surprises. At the same time, the opponents are accurate and fast, and our character dies with one shot.
The game encourages experimentation; on the same map you will have to use a quick run with almost simultaneous killing of 2-3 opponents, and targeting the enemy with a firearm and firing at an armored enemy while moving backwards.
Passing a level consists of a dozen attempts to find the right tactics, and even having found one, you are not immune from accidents. But even after completing the level, you feel an obsessive desire to replay it in a different way. And more often than not, you give in to this desire because playing Hotline Miami is incredibly enjoyable, the shooting is implemented well, and all the weapons feel different.
We should also talk about the bosses, there are not many of them, they have simple behavior patterns, and do not irritate with excessive vitality; in general, everything is fine with them.
The game itself is not particularly hardcore - having straight hands and getting used to the gameplay from the fifth level, you will die solely due to your own stupidity. Frequent deaths are not annoying - respawn is literally from one button, and given the small size of the maps, you can catch up on lost progress in a couple of tens of seconds. There are checkpoints between different cards, which greatly simplifies the process.
The game is perfect for people who spend most of the day at work and have only a couple of hours of free time in the evenings. This watch is perfect for thoughtfully going through a couple of stages in order to continue the passage tomorrow.
There is a plot, like the whole game it is imbued with the spirit of the 80s, light madness, but at the same time simple and banal. However, the very presentation of the plot, the style of narration, and the lack of answers until the very end of the game make you follow the plot inserts. More than that is not required from the plot in such a game; moreover, a too complicated plot in a hurricane action game, in my opinion, would look alien and strange. There is a secret (aka canonical) ending and a couple of bonus levels.
There are few cons. The first throw and selection of items on the RMB, because of this, situations happen in which instead of picking up a weapon, you throw it. However, this is a small minus and you get used to this mechanics very quickly. The second minus is that most of the masks are unnecessary junk and don’t really affect the gameplay, but since collecting masks is voluntary, this is also a small minus. The biggest disadvantage in my opinion is the length. Twenty chapters of levels tell the story perfectly, but I wouldn’t mind playing another hundred missions without a plot.
I recommend the game in 2022. and I think that it will not become outdated for a long time. If you are not put off by retro graphics, liters of blood, mountains of corpses and a light psychedelic atmosphere, then I recommend playing the game.