This review contains spoilers
First time replaying it since 2012-ish. Used to be one of my favorite games back then, but after a discussion I had with @Blowing_Wind and replaying it, I don't think the meta-commentary aged that well.
I guess for context I'll clarify that gaming back then was going through a rough patch. I remember being particularly bored with AAA games, which started feeling formulaic and uninspiring. It was during this time that indie games like Hotline Miami, Journey, Stanley Parable, started coming out, daring to be different. And in the case of Hotline Miami, what made it unique is that it works as a meta-commentary on the desensitization of violence in gaming, with the developers themselves shaming players for their enjoyment.
The game's story is divided in two parts: Jacket's, who is the character that represents the player that only wants violence (who is the most rewarded, ironically); and Biker's, who is the player that wants a story, to find meaning behind Jacket's actions (through more violence). And during the game's course you would find the developers taking not-so-subtle jabs at both of these, by masking themselves as characters inside the game: the masks/janitors.
In the context of 2012, this concept alone was enough to deem it a great game. But after discussions surrounding violence in games have evolved, and others tackled this concept in much better ways, the game's message now ends up somewhat basic and one-dimensional. I don't think there's much of a point in it, actually. Should I feel bad for killing pixels on the screen? Specially when it's designed to be enjoyable by the same devs? It doesn't make a meaningful statement on violence whatsoever. Overall feels kind of hypocrite and pointless.
That said, since the game's still fun and since I find the representation of both types of players an interesting take, I'll still give it a good rating, but yeah, not as good as I remembered it. Brought it down from an 8 to a 6.
★★★ – Good ✅
(Kind of curious how Spec Ops: The Line came out in the same year, with the very same commentary 🤔)
I guess for context I'll clarify that gaming back then was going through a rough patch. I remember being particularly bored with AAA games, which started feeling formulaic and uninspiring. It was during this time that indie games like Hotline Miami, Journey, Stanley Parable, started coming out, daring to be different. And in the case of Hotline Miami, what made it unique is that it works as a meta-commentary on the desensitization of violence in gaming, with the developers themselves shaming players for their enjoyment.
The game's story is divided in two parts: Jacket's, who is the character that represents the player that only wants violence (who is the most rewarded, ironically); and Biker's, who is the player that wants a story, to find meaning behind Jacket's actions (through more violence). And during the game's course you would find the developers taking not-so-subtle jabs at both of these, by masking themselves as characters inside the game: the masks/janitors.
In the context of 2012, this concept alone was enough to deem it a great game. But after discussions surrounding violence in games have evolved, and others tackled this concept in much better ways, the game's message now ends up somewhat basic and one-dimensional. I don't think there's much of a point in it, actually. Should I feel bad for killing pixels on the screen? Specially when it's designed to be enjoyable by the same devs? It doesn't make a meaningful statement on violence whatsoever. Overall feels kind of hypocrite and pointless.
That said, since the game's still fun and since I find the representation of both types of players an interesting take, I'll still give it a good rating, but yeah, not as good as I remembered it. Brought it down from an 8 to a 6.
★★★ – Good ✅
(Kind of curious how Spec Ops: The Line came out in the same year, with the very same commentary 🤔)
4 Comments
@Blowing_Wind uff, no te quiero decepcionar, pero...es casi exactamente lo mismo que HM jajaja. Yo diría que talvez peor, pero ponele que tiene sus cosas interesantes.
@fancyynancyy En serio, todo lo que escuchaba aclamado hace diez años ya envejeció, yo pensé que eso solo ocurría con juegos de principios de los 2000 para atrás jajaja :'(
@Blowing_Wind Ojalá. Ya se me ocurren juegos que salieron 2020+ que van a envejecer como leche.
Blowing_Wind
8 months ago
Tengo muchas ganas de jugar a Spec Ops, estaba viendo una reseña de Heavy Rain que decía que el plot twist en ese juego es muy bueno