History YMMV / HotlineMiami

** The game owes a massive debt of influence to ''Film/Drive2011'', so much so that Creator/NicolasWindingRefn is specifically thanked in the credits. Accordingly, the two works share a retro 1980s-themed neon- and synth-heavy aesthetic (with ''Hotline'' actually being set in the 1980s); a mysterious, nameless protagonist who talks very little, if at all, and is known primarily by an [[IconicOutfit instantly recognizable jacket]]; and graphic depictions of shockingly brutal violence (one of the game's finishing moves even resembles the film's infamous head-stomping scene).

** The game owes a massive debt of influence to ''Film/Drive2011'', so much so that Creator/NicolasWindingRefn is specifically thanked in the credits. Accordingly, the two works share a retro 1980s-themed neon- and synth-heavy aesthetic (with ''Hotline'' actually being set in the 1980s); a mysterious, nameless protagonist who talks very little, if at all, and is known primarily by an [[IconicOutfit instantly recognizable jacket]]; and graphic depictions of shockingly brutal violence (one of the game's finishing moves even looks very similar to the infamous head-stomping scene from ''Drive'').

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: Were Jacket and Girlfriend really in a relationship? Or Was this all part of Jacket's coma dream as well?

* BreatherLevel: The third segment of Chapter 11. Compared to the fairly challenging segment before it, this area is very simple with you only having to focus on one or two enemies at a time. This segment also comes just before an ambush by the third boss and the game's WhamEpisode.

* BreatherLevel: The third segment of Chapter 11. Compared to the fairly challenging segment before it, this area is very simple with you only having to focus on one or two enemies at a time. This segment also comes just before an ambush by the third boss and [[spoiler:the game's WhamEpisode]].

* BreatherLevel: The third segment of Chapter 11. Compared to the fairly challenging segment before it, this area is very simple with you only having to focus on one or two enemies at a time. This segment also comes just before [[spoiler:an ambush by the third boss and the game's WhamEpisode]].

** The ''Carl the Cricket'' mask gives you a drill as a starting weapon. It's a melee weapon that can't kill anyone directly, but finishing a stunned enemy off with it (by drilling into their skull) grants you a ''ton'' of bonus points. Completing the level using only the drill will guarantee a perfect rank.

* FriendlyFandoms: While it's a minor case, there are numerous fans of ''Hotline Miami'' who are also into ''WesternAnimation/TheLoudHouse'', drawing characters from the latter show with masks and weapons from the games and writing crossover fanfics between the two series. Lola and Lana from the show in particular have been portrayed as Alex and Ash (respectively, and ''always'' that way) due to the twin dynamic between both duos.

* HarsherInHindsight: Richter [[spoiler: being revealed to have also received the same phone calls as Jacket]] is one thing. ''VideoGame/HotlineMiami2WrongNumber'' reveals that [[spoiler:he is even more of a nice guy than Jacket is (he doesn't seem to hate anyone, even Russians), has a sick mother to take care of, and seems to have been a mere civilian before being dragged into killing people.]]

* FriendlyFandoms: While it's a minor case, there are numerous fans of ''Hotline Miami'' who are also into ''WesternAnimation/TheLoudHouse'', drawing characters from the latter show with masks and weapons from the games and writing crossover fanfics between the two series. Lola and Lana from the show in particular have been portrayed as Alex and Ash (respectively, and ''always'' like that) due to the twin dynamic between both duos.

* FriendlyFandoms: While it's a minor case, there are numerous fans of ''Hotline Miami'' who are also into ''WesternAnimation/TheLoudHouse'', drawing characters from the latter show with masks and weapons from the games and writing crossover fanfics between the two series. Lola and Lana in particular have been portrayed as Alex and Ash (respectively, and ''always'' like that) due to the twin dynamic between both duos.

* FriendlyFandoms: In a minor but surprising case, there are numerous fans of ''Hotline Miami'' who are also into ''WesternAnimation/TheLoudHouse'', drawing characters from the latter show with masks and weapons from the games and writing crossover fanfics between the two series. Lola and Lana in particular have been portrayed as Alex and Ash (respectively, and ''always'' like that) due to the twin dynamic between both duos.

** It also shares a lot of its structure and themes with ''VideoGame/NoMoreHeroes'' - specifically the shadowy organization calling up the protagonist at the beginning of each chapter to instruct them on where to go to do their next round of killing, and using these killings as a metaphor for video game violence and making fun of video game narratives in general. The main difference is that ''Hotline Miami''[='=]s tone is markedly more serious - that, the technicolor environments, and the geopolitics background story (made more prominent in the sequel) are somewhat similar to ''VideoGame/{{killer7}}'' (by the same dev) instead. Both of those games also share ''Hotline Miami''[='=]s mask motif, among other shared themes. Naturally, the developers are both huge fans of eachother.

* CatharsisFactor: Oh boy! Basically the entire game revolves around this. Committing mass murders has never felt so good.

** "Trauma". Not only is it a sudden unarmed stealth mission in the middle of a game as frantic as ''Hotline Miami'', but it's also a massive InterfaceScrew too.
** The following level, "Assault", can qualify too. Loads of enemies, most of which have guns, very little opportunity to stealth through, and multiple Thugs.

* ThatOneLevel: [[HotlineMiami/ThatOneLevel Has its own page.]]

* ThatOneLevel:

* ThatOneAchievement: Get A Life requires you to get an A+ rank on all levels. [[NintendoHard This is easier said than done.]] The achievements for getting kills using specific weapons (Guns for Show, Knives for a Pro, and Pitcher) are also a pain to get as it requires the player to remember which weapons were used, since there's no way to keep track in-game.
** [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Plain Luck]]. You need to kill (not just hit) three enemies with one thrown brick.

* NauseaFuel: The sheer brutality of the violence, and the executions in particular, can have this effect. The game manages to avoid [[CrossesTheLineTwice Crossing The Line Twice]], making even the most desensitized gamer slightly disturbed at what they're doing to enemies (which fits in very well with the tone of the game).

* DoNotDoThisCoolThing: The CentralTheme of both games is the self-destructive nature of violence, as well as the amorality of enjoying such violence. However, they appear to make sure that said violence looks, feels and plays very good.

* DoNotDoThisCoolThing: The game (as well as its sequel) send some very mixed signals in the regard that for a game with a heavy underlying message of self-destructive nature of violence as well as amorality of enjoying such violence, it sure makes that violence look, feel and play very good.

** Trauma. Not only is it a sudden unarmed stealth mission in the middle of a game as frantic as ''Hotline Miami'', but it's also a massive InterfaceScrew too.
** The following level, Assault, can qualify too. Loads of enemies, most of which have guns, very little opportunity to stealth through, and multiple big enemies.

* SpiritualLicensee:

* SignatureScene: Jacket carrying Hooker out of Fisker's mansion, as seen in the cover art and trailer. What makes this iconic is that it serves as an EstablishingCharacterMoment for Jacket, as it juxtaposes his [[AxCrazy violent nature]] with his [[PetTheDog potential for kindness]] in a single image.

* UnderusedGameMechanic: You can take a HumanShield if you're holding a one-handed gun (such as a pistol) and use the "execution" key near a knocked-down enemy. It's rather hard to do unless you're specifically trying to pull it off (especially since two-handed guns are more common than one-handed ones) and most players complete the game without doing it even once (except to get one particular achievement). This feature gets scrapped in the sequel.

* SelfFanservice: The characters of ''Hotline Miami' tend to look rather strange and {{Gonk}}ish in order to fit the unsettling mood of the game, but there's a lot of fanart that cleans them up and makes them look glamorously attractive. Biker and the Girlfriend get a lot of this, and Jacket tends to look just as good as Creator/RyanGosling when he's presented without his mask.

TearJerker/HotlineMiami

* TearJerker: [[spoiler:Jacket finding Hooker's dead body in his apartment.]]

%%As with the main page, items for the sequel go on their own YMMV subpage.