Donlevy Reviews Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number -- Beware the Chicken Mask

Hotline Miami was psychedelic insanity and brutality in an inexpensive and replayable package; a stellar example of simple mechanics with intense execution. It's sequel, Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number, aims to expand on what the original created with new masks, more gameplay and an improved story that tackles even more characters and time frames.
Given the nature of the preceding game it's an ambitious undertaking, but one that, sadly, doesn't come together unscathed. An incredible new soundtrack and expanded narrative don't make up for flawed and frustrating gameplay choices that take away from what made the original so invigorating, even though there are semblances of such greatness to be found.

In Hotline Miami, the player controlled the mysterious Jacket as he went about 1980's Miami slaughtering Russian gangsters in their hideouts at the behest of bizarre phone calls. He could wear multiple masks that would each bestow a trait or bonus that changed how you approached each level. In Hotline Miami 2, the player now controls multiple characters rather than select individual masks, with events flashing between both before and after the first entry. This means the game serves as both a sequel, and as a prequel. The story is divided up into several chapters, made up of various "scenes" each with an intro and ending/results screen. Of the characters, some are allowed a choice of ability or weapon, or in the case of The Fans, four (technically five) different characters with their own traits. Other characters exhibit unique attributes never before seen. Evan, for instance, is the only character that is non-lethal, unless you continue to finish off a downed enemy. Otherwise, he disassembles guns he picks up, and doesn't kill with melee weapons. Alex & Ash of The Fans are a brother/sister duo who wield a chainsaw and gun. They're hard to control, and susceptible to a few pathing issues, but are absolutely memorable.

What makes the Hotline Miami games so immediately striking is two-fold: a combination of the pixel-based ultra-violence and the mesmerizing electronica/house soundtrack. The games evoke a colourful, exuberant 80's landscape through these features, and are stylized with an almost hedonistic flair. In fact, it's in this sense that the games bridge their theme and gameplay; from psychedelic to psychosis. Levels are drug-addled insanity, with a pumping, fast-paced song filling each level, peppered with colours, numbers and blood flying all about, and dozens of bodies in the wake. When the mayhem is done, the record stops and you're left to witness the gruesome landscape before you, as a terrible reminder of your actions.

Because make no mistake, like its predecessor, Hotline Miami 2 is bloody, brutal and utterly, utterly violent. Parents best keep their children away from this one. You take out the faceless, pixel-made enemies in morbid and horrific ways, and Hotline Miami is not above disturbing the player. Guts and gore are commonplace as you achieve your main objective: eliminate each level's opposition. From a top-down view of the level (usually a building), you control the character in any direction, being able to throw punches or use weapons with one button, throw and pick up said weapons with another, and finish a downed enemy or perform a special move with one more. You also have a "lock-on", and a "look" button, the latter of which allows you to see further ahead, and which you'll be using a lot, and the former of which you will likely not use at all, as it is often more trouble than it's worth. You usually can only withstand one hit, or a few stray bullets, so the core element of Hotline Miami is quickly and efficiently taking out every enemy before they get you. Simple, hey? Well, besides the average bat-wielding henchmen, other enemies include gun-wielding henchmen -- the bane of every player -- bigger baddies that can only be killed with said guns, and fast baddies that can only be killed by melee attacks. These folk exist to screw with you, so juggling priorities on who to take out and when is an engaging element of the typical fast-paced nature of the game.

That is of course all well and good in theory. Sadly, a few additions to the game hinder what is already a proven formula. For starters, while the decision to have multiple characters over different masks make for better story and variety overall, it's ultimately more linear because of your restrictions on playstyle. Most of the levels don't feel particularly geared towards a certain character from a gameplay perspective, and the levels where you do have a choice are limited to 3-5 masks/characters/weapons.

Which leads to the most evident problem: the levels themselves, which have been expanded both in length and level size. It's surprising, given that a few key levels are totally unique and delightful only because of their scope. Indeed, those levels evoke classic Metal Gear, except with an unreal amount of blood. Yet they too fell prey to the irony I faced: that even though the levels appear to be sufficiently wider and privy to different tactics, I felt more restricted in my approaches than I have ever been before.

As an example, there's an opening section of a mid-game level that's one large hallway with two slight indents on the north and south side. You don't start with a weapon, and only one of the guards has a gun: and he has a clear line of sight to you in every possible way unless you are essentially in the doorway of the level start. There's absolutely no cover at all. And of course, he patrols alongside a melee-immune enemy. So, you either get shot/hit trying to take out a nearby enemy holding a throw-able weapon (presumably to throw at the guy with the gun), or taken out by his buddy AND shot if you try and get the guy with the gun outright. You know, some might call that a "challenging puzzle," but I say nonsense. You are entirely limited on options, and you'll be replaying such a simple level over and over until it feels like you either cheated your way to the next section or exploited a glitch or "cheesy" solution. That's simply not fun. That's insulting.

And when I said you'd be using that "look" button a lot, I meant it. You'll be making good use out of the feature, so much so that most of the game will be spent in it, which causes problems when encountering enemies at close range where the disorientation usually leaves you dead. Levels at each point in the game practically force you to constantly and consistently use the feature to look for two things: windows, and gun-toting henchmen. Windows, as you might infer, are an immense hazard, and an immense pain. They allow enemies to spot you, AND shoot you, through the glass. Windows are not a new feature, but they've been exploited to an absurd amount, to the point where I'd call the enemy hangouts less "gang den" and more "carnival fun house." With less of the fun.

In fact, the amount of both windows and guns in this game has seemingly been increased by a tremendous amount. And you might be able to tell where I'm going with this. The larger and less timely levels make you a target from across the map by enemies with pin-point accuracy. Sometimes far enough that you'll likely not even see them until they unexpectedly run up to you. This fact, coupled with the partitioned design of the rooms, means that a great majority of your successes will be from baiting enemies to a hidey-spot and eliminating them as quickly as you can, while you sit in a corner and wait. It feels dissimilar to the first Hotline Miami, wherein many levels were quick, calculated, and deliberate rushes to the finish, and your speed and reflexes determined the outcome. Here, too much time is spent in a mock game of hide-and-seek and peek-a-boo. These common occurrences make for what is basically a "camping" simulator. Enter room, sit in corner, fire a shot, wait, kill, peek out, repeat. Don't get me wrong, this was a problem in the first game too, but not in this capacity. And the longer levels make these excursions far more tiring.

There were simply too many times where when I finished a level I wouldn't feel gratified, happy, or even victorious; I'd feel relieved. Like I had just finished a burdening test of both patience and willpower. I held no care for whatever final score I was awarded upon the complete tally of my meta time and effectiveness; a complete reversal of my thoughts from the original. Several levels just dragged on, while I continually hoped the next room would be the last. That's not right, man!

On top of all of this, there's recurring glitches and annoyances to contend with everywhere. Doors and doorways are hazard zones, mostly because it's far from uncommon to see a baddie stutter and flicker in the middle of the doorway, sometimes being immune to damage unless it's precise. These enemies can also sporadically fix themselves, and proceed to end the player in the confusion. In a rush, it's also entirely possible to cycle through empty firearms in a feverish bid to save yourself, due to the stockpile of bodies likely in front of you in such a scenario. It's a consistent pain, since you're basically at the mercy of how far apart the weapons happen to be, in which case you better watch carefully. And for one reason or another, it always seems that guns never properly fire through an archway, usually as you try and move and shoot. A strange bit of clipping. You could try the lock-feature, but in that case, I say good luck.

It's unfortunate that for a game with such strong production values, the gameplay can't do it the justice it deserves. The style and themes are endearing and fascinating, and I can not stress enough how great the soundtrack is. I suppose one of the few positives of the long levels is that you have more time to listen to the stage's music! And I do highly respect the tone and art-house feel the narrative provides (the original game listed the movie Drive as an inspiration). It's tough; there are parts of the game that feel like a truely improved sequel, and that energetic rush that defines Hotline Miami is still present in the better parts. Yet the grievances and frustration in the level design are not something so easily put aside. It's fun mayhem, but it's also heavily flawed mayhem.

YAY

• The soundtrack is glorious. Might well be the best part of the game.
• An expanded story that adds different characters and points in time, making for good variety. A thematically fascinating game.
• The additional characters play differently and have unique abilities. The brother/sister duo are particularly notable.
• Occasional exhilarating moments reminiscent of the best Hotline Miami has to offer.

NAY

• Longer levels don't work in the game's favour: makes completing them feel more relieving, rather than satisfying or exciting.
• A few recurring glitches and design flaws make luck a far more common crutch than it really should be.
• Too many levels just become a glorified (and violent) game of "peek-a-boo." Kills the hectic pace the series is known for.

Mass Effect Retrospective: Part 1

Today, March 6, 2015, marks the three-year anniversary of the release of Mass Effect 3, effectively concluding BioWare's epic, space opera RPG trilogy. So I, Donlevy, have decided that a retrospective is in order to honour perhaps my favourite original game series of the last several years, certainly of the previous console generation. Parts 2 & 3 will come, but not immediately. I still need to replay the other two! Hopefully that will encourage me to put more stuff up in the meantime!

The Edmonton-based studio BioWare has been responsible for a legacy of quality RPG releases, from the Dungeon's & Dragons driven Baldur's Gate and Neverwinter Nights games, to Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Jade Empire and the recent Dragon Age series. But before Dragon Age, BioWare released the original Mass Effect on November 20, 2007 for the Xbox 360, and the PC six months later. A version for the PS3 came digitally just over five years later, as a result of the Mass Effect Trilogy compilation.

With Mass Effect, the team at BioWare created an original futuristic science-fiction epic spanning the entire galaxy. In the 22nd century, ruins on Mars are discovered that house the technology of an ancient spacefaring civilization, the Protheans. From this discovery, humanity learns of the phenomenon known as the "mass effect", which through the use of dark energy, allows travel to the furthest stars. Now, 30 years later, humanity is a young player on a galactic stage filled with multiple spacefaring races. As Commander Shepard, you embark aboard the SSV Normandy on a mission critical to the survival of not only the human race, but of every species in the galaxy. As an RPG, Mass Effect lets you make crucial choices and decisions, and affects much of the story. Either redeeming or damning, how you respond to characters and your own actions influences different stages of the game, and a great many choices have repercussions in later games, when you import a completed character into Mass Effect 2 and 3.

In creating Shepard, either female or male, you choose one of three personal background histories, and one of three stories of repute. You also choose between one of six classes: the combat-heavy Soldier, the biotic-specialized Adapt, the technical Engineer, the biotic warrior Vanguard, the sneaky Infiltrator, and the multitasking Sentinel. While the personal histories affect mostly conversations and certain quests, your class (along with however you customized Shepard's facial features) will be the most visible differences during a playthrough. Your class will determine how you act and react during combat, and what you can equip or upgrade throughout the game.

Because, indeed, the galaxy is a dangerous place. Commander Shepard will have bounty hunters, synthetic robots, and other scum and villainy to contend with while exploring planets and completing missions. As is customary with this genre, doing said missions advances the story, but there are many more assignments to find on the side that bring you to other worlds in other star systems, where there is more gear and experience to earn.

The previously mentioned Normandy is your starship; the base of operations where you as Shepard can talk to crew members and plot destinations via a galaxy map. The map shows you whichever planet you're currently orbiting, with the ability to zoom out to a solar system level, further still to a cluster level, and finally to the entire expanse of the galaxy. Obviously you can't go anywhere and everywhere, but the Galaxy Map still features as an exciting part of every Mass Effect game, and really gives a sense of scale to the galaxy at large. Even with restrictions, you are given dozens of systems to explore within multiple clusters, and each solar system is guaranteed at least one planet you are able to land on, with the others being scannable for resources or quest items.

Landing on a planet (or station) gives both one of the best and one of the worst parts about the game. You see, Mass Effect excels at atmosphere and design. Grand structures of intrigue and mystery and starships of intricate and precise craft permeate the game world. It's clear from a design standpoint that Mass Effect has subtle references to other works of science-fiction, but succeeds in making something wholly unique and special. Places look sufficiently alien but also delightfully futuristic, and places like, for example, Feros and The Citadel are unique in both their architecture and their history. And the uncharted planets you land on can range from sprawling dunes to mountainous regions of dangerously frigid temperatures. Sadly, that leads to the bad part: physically exploring these planets. The Normandy houses a land rover called the Mako, equipped with a machine gun and turret, that you use to get around on the planets below.

The Mako is, to put it lightly, quite aggravating.

Controlling the Mako itself is cumbersome and unintuitive, and half the time ground-side you'll be struggling to keep the silly thing level and stable, or otherwise desperately using the small boosters to try and push yourself out of a ditch. Many planets feature hills and mountains, and there is not always a clear way to get up or around these besides just powering up them, sometimes vertically. Most of the time it feels like you're fighting against both the controls and the terrain. And if the landscape doesn't get to you, a rare occasion of a thresher maw rising from the ground and flinging your poor Mako to certain doom most certainly will.

You can still exit the Mako at nearly any point, and from there on foot can explore interior structures, oftentimes leading to combat scenarios. You can direct your two chosen squad mates to an area, or have them use one of their powers, in a way that allows for tactical set-ups. Depending on your class, you'll have varying access to your four weapon types: assault rifles, snipers, shotguns, and pistols, and each can be outfitted with a modification and other forms of ammo, noting that weapons overheat rather than have a finite supply of bullets. Each have their uses, but you can't effectively use a weapon that you're not specialized in. Taking cover is an option, but there is no actual button press to go in and out of cover, rather you simply run up against a wall and hope Shepard will cling to it. Taking out enemies will give you freedom to explore areas and gain loot. Crates and lockers are plentiful, and opening one will give you weapons, armour, amps, or multiple upgrades, usually scaled to your current level. I'd recommend selling excess equipment frequently, as you can quickly reach the inventory limit if you plunder every crate and box around. Hoarders beware.

The combat and action itself is functional and varied, that much can be said. But it is, unfortunately, geared far more towards the use of weapons over powers, and this makes any class other than the soldier feel immediately less effective, at least initially. The biotic classes, ones who use a form of telekinesis to affect objects and/or enemies, are particularly affected. Power recharge rate is atrocious before you can truly level up the abilities, so classes like the Adept or Sentinel are at the mercy of their strongest pistol. It must be said, however, that by the late game the powers of the other classes can become incredibly useful, and even ridiculously strong. The Adept's Throw, for example, simply annihilates groups of enemies at higher levels, especially when used wisely by other objects or ledges. It would be utterly disgusting were it not for how incredibly satisfying it is. If you ever wanted the equivalent of a massive Force Push from Star Wars, that's your ticket.

Yet even with all of that said, to this day the combat of the first Mass Effect is something of a mess. Its sequels improved combat (among other things) by leaps and bounds, so it is admittedly hard to look back on the original gameplay without an immediate comparison. There is something to be said though of overall technical performance in relation to one's experience of the gameplay. Many problems within combat, as well as much of the game really, stem from performance issues and fluidity. The Xbox 360 version is arguably the worst offender in this regard, and it's quite common for the game to stutter and slow down during battle, making otherwise simple tasks a hassle while playing on the console.

Which is of course a symptom of a larger problem: the overall technical and graphic performance of Mass Effect is not great. PC users have far less problems to fix and deal with, but for users of the Xbox 360 version, the game is littered with texture pop-ins, uneven sound effects or complete lack thereof, and glitches involving the world and structures, some of which can even freeze you in place. Such glitches involving the game world are uncommon, but you'll find that the game has almost a fragile feel to it, and I recommend keeping that auto-save on. Preferably while also saving often.

And yet, despite the tech and gameplay issues, Mass Effect still excels magnificently at its other core features: world-building and character development. Opening the start menu lets you view the Codex; a treasure trove of information pertaining to the different races, planets, technologies, and scientific principles that play into the story and lore of Mass Effect. The Codex is just brilliant, and it does a marvelous job of making one invested in the game's universe. A lengthy bit of reading for each section, but worthy reading nonetheless. In fact, invested is the word that can summarize how much one gets out of the overall story of Mass Effect. The game is story-driven, and as such, it pays to invest into learning about the various races and histories. While it may seem tough at first given the extent of the lore, I promise you the pay off is incredible by the end of the game.

And of course, the character's themselves will also likely highlight much of your overall experience. Mass Effect is filled with memorable crew members and squad mates, all of whom have many interesting things to say. Everyone has a history of some sort, and taking time to talk to team members builds upon their individual histories and personalities. Exploring conversation is a staple of the Mass Effect games, and this is done via a wheel that allows you to select responses and actions. Upper choices typically result in a "paragon" action, while the lower choices fit the "renegade" style. This does allow you to govern the path you want Shepard to take, of course, but I do think personal choice should always be considered. The paragon and renegade system is the core of Mass Effect, and the result of your moral choices will change how others perceive you. And as mentioned before, the choices you make have consequences, and affect the story accordingly, with many actions making huge impacts in the sequels: perhaps the hugest draw for playing the first game before 2 & 3. I do hope I'm doing the mechanic justice: it really does affect nearly everything you do, and will do. It is something best played and experienced, rather than told.

And it has to be said that the voice work is excellent across the board. You'll no doubt recognize some voices and their actors. Of course, one can't help but mention how great both Jennifer Hale and Mark Meer are as the female and male Shepard, respectively. Quite notable, indeed. And the soundtrack, oh, the amazing soundtrack! The joint work of both Sam Hulick and Jack Wall is a synth-heavy, electronic score that is reminiscent of space and sci-fi films of the 80's. The soundtrack nails the tone, and combined with the already impressive visual design make for a wonderful sense of place throughout the game.

With all of its elements put together, the original Mass Effect is a unique benchmark. While still suffering from gameplay and technical issues (albeit, with some fixed in the PC version), its lasting impression is one of admiration. Yes, combat is rough. Yes, the Mako is a test of patience. But these problems are vastly outweighed by the sheer amount of combined elements of design, production, and world-building, and the absolutely incredible story it began. Clunky, yes, but memorable in its own way. Mass Effect laid the groundwork for an absolutely outstanding series, and I'll personally always look back on it fondly. This story is just beginning.

Oh and as a bit of foresight: thankfully and mercifully, you will never have to worry about the Mako over the rest of the series!


YAY

• Stand-out sci-fi excellence, and a story worth investing in.
• Visual style and world building replete with care, substance, and detail.
• Incredible synth soundtrack and audio design. Voice acting is superb. Jennifer Hale and Mark Meer provide stellar work as Shepard!
• Quintessential RPG elements that together craft an intricate and personalized story.

NAY

• Littered with visual hiccups and glitches, especially on the Xbox 360.
• Combat is sluggish and messy; doesn't hold a candle to its successors.
• Several instances of repetitive, clunky animations and combat dialogue. 
• The Mako land rover is little more than a gigantic pain in the ass.