Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number Announced
Devolver Digital and Dennaton Games’ Hotline Miami is getting a sequel. That was fast. Not that I’m complaining.
According to the official teaser trailer, Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number is coming to “PC, Mac and Linux in 2013. Maybe.” If the first game’s release cycle is anything to judge by, I’m expecting a PC version in late 2013 while the Mac and Linux versions will trickle out months later. Granted, that’s pure speculation, but I’d put money on it.
Some of our more well-adjusted readers may have missed the neon-soaked, ultraviolent original. With bright pink visuals, quick-yet-brutal violence and a thumping 80s-inspired electro-pop soundtrack, Hotline Miami was equal parts Drive and Smash TV. There’s some Manhunt and Funny Games in there too. At the very least, the game was a unique piece of entertainment.
The bare-bones plot put the player in the shoes of a masked serial killer, charged with brutally slaying Russian mobsters. But the story was almost an afterthought. Hotline Miami was more interested in examining how you, the player, felt about the experience of quickly slaughtering people with surgical precision.
- Are you enjoying all of this violence?
- How do you approach games?
- Are you a completionist? Do you have to collect every item and know every secret? Or is the base experience—a taste—enough to satisfy you?
This episode of Errant Signal explores Hotline Miami‘s concept of player agency and the possible meanings of the first game.
Hotline Miami 2 is poised to continue examining this idea. Directly following the first game, players will now control multiple characters inspired by the original “mask killer.” Dubbed “The Fans,” these killers will each have their own motivations and intersecting storylines. This is clearly a direct response to the horde of fan videos and cosplay projects that celebrated and revered the extreme violence of the original game.
If you listen to the Brain Freeze podcast or follow me on twitter, you know that I’m a massive, obsessive fan of the Hotline Miami. I’d love to sit with the creators and more intelligent critics and pass judgment on the obsessive fans… but I’m shallow. I just like hurting other people. Principal Lewis, please demonstrate my excitement:
About the Author
Scott Meaney Scott is a massive film nerd, yet spends half his time arguing the artistic merits of Robocop 2 and Crank. Follow him on twitter: http://twitter.com/scottmeaney
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