Hotline Miami game review
Miami HotlineYou knew the old-fashioned crisps, traditional mustard and granny soup, now video games are also looking to touch your nostalgic side. The old has never been so fashionable. This does not mean that you have to plant yourself in a retirement home with a Commodore 64 to be connected, but only that the titles that directly refer to their elders are on the rise. It falls rather well, it is precisely the case of Hotline Miami which offers us a delicious trip to the past.
The scene of independent games has not finished surprising us, it is indeed from this crucible that come out the most unusual and most innovative titles of the moment. But this innovation can also sometimes take the form of a return to basics. It is in any case the bias of the two developers of Hotline Miami who serve us there a fun, transgressive and delightfully old school game. Imagine a title that pays homage to both the early GTAs and the action movies of the 90s, and you get a vague picture of what to expect. Add to that a true declaration of love for pixel art and a demanding gameplay that harms both neurons and reflexes, and you get the recipe for this Miami Hotline.
The first thing that is obvious is obviously the resolutely retro look of the title. The menus play the card of nostalgia but this is nothing compared to the game itself: we then find an aerial view combined with simplistic and particularly pixelated graphics. Are you afraid that everything will sting your eyes? You will certainly be disconcerted if you are looking for a photorealistic rendering, but pixel art lovers will on the contrary benefit from this riot of cubic violence. Indeed, the old-fashioned aspect does not water down the subject, here it is a question of very bloody massacres. You play a real killing machine with a rather fragile psyche: the guy receives strange messages on his answering machine inviting him to joyfully murder members of the underworld. Then he just has to put on an animal mask to transform himself into a real butcher boy, determined to bring a touch of red to the interior decoration of the places he visits. This tortured scenario does not lack cinematic references, we think of Killing Zoe as well as Donnie Darko or Inland Empire, but everything is above all carried by an incredible psychedelic soundtrack that would almost make you lose your mind.
Hotline Miami is not the kind of game that comes out unscathed. Not only is its exacerbated violence disturbing, but it goes hand in hand with old-school gameplay that leaves no room for amateurism. The handling is simple, we move with the keyboard and we use the mouse to aim and shoot, but the difficulty is such that it forces us to always remain on our guard. It only takes a bullet, a bat or a knife to kill yourself. You will have to start over the entire floor where you perished. Prepare for the idea of dying often, Hotline Miami is a real Die & Retry! You will therefore have to think about the situation before rushing into the pile and playing on the particularities of the different masks to find the right approach. In general, it is a matter of discreetly getting rid of a maximum of guards with knives and then cleaning up with the shotgun or the machine gun. Firearms do indeed make noise and generally gather people, which is not always easy to manage when you have a very small stock of ammunition ... We still regret that there are still some small bugs annoying and that the enemy AI is also really old-school, but these small flaws are not enough to spoil the game experience. A score will be assigned to you at the end of the level and will therefore push you to surpass yourself in the art of massacre. In short, are you a fan of scoring, tortured atmosphere, challenge and psychedelic music? You will inevitably find your happiness in this Miami Hotline.
The notes
Graphics 15/20
Difficult to note the graphics of a game such as Hotline Miami: its resolutely old-school appearance will inevitably put off some while pixel art lovers will be in the sky ...
Gameplay 15/20
We find a very demanding gameplay that requires both reflexes and a minimum of savvy. We regret, however, that a few collision bugs come to the party, sometimes resulting in frustrating deaths.
Lifespan 14/20
Count about four hours for eight euros ... You will do the account yourself but it is not very long, fortunately the difficulty sustained and the scoring aspect promises you a certain replayability.
Soundtrack 18/20
The soundscape is quite simply out of the ordinary: the massacres are supported by psychedelic music which may well turn you into a true psychopath.
Scenario 16/20
The scenario is twisted at will and should delight fans of killings, lead shots and introspective adventures.
Better to be warned, Hotline Miami is not a title to put in every hand. You may well, in fact, be put off by its extreme violence, its retro look and its uncompromising gameplay. But if you are a nostalgic gamer addicted to blood, pixel and challenge, you cannot miss this raw pearl which could well make you lose your mind.
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