Hotline Miami: Top-Down Carnage in Neon 1989

Hotline Miami is a top-down shooter set in 1989 Miami. You pull on an animal mask and clear a building of Russian mobsters after a strange message on your answering machine.

One bullet kills you. One bat swing kills them. That trade is the whole game. A floor with twelve enemies on it can be over in nine seconds or take you fifty tries, and the restart button is instant either way.

You play as a silent man in a letterman jacket. Fans call him Jacket. The phone tells him where to drive, he kills everyone inside, and the bits of story between chapters get harder to trust as the game goes on. Dennaton Games, the two-person team of Jonatan Söderström and Dennis Wedin, built it and Devolver Digital released it in 2012. There are 19 chapters.

How Do You Play Hotline Miami?

You move with WASD and aim with the mouse, so you can back away from a doorway while still pointing a shotgun at it. You start most levels with nothing. Punch a guy, take his bat, and work your way up to whatever the next room drops.

Guns are loud. Firing one pulls every enemy on the floor toward you, which is usually how a clean run falls apart. Doors are better than they sound. Kicking one open flattens anyone standing behind it, and the door slam is the most satisfying kill in the game once you learn to listen for footsteps on the other side.

The Masks and What They Change

Before most chapters you pick a mask. There are 26 in total, unlocked mostly by scoring well, and they change how a run plays instead of just how you look. A few worth chasing:

• Richard (Rooster): the default mask, no ability at all. Some players stick with it on purpose.
• Rasmus (Owl): highlights hidden puzzle pieces and unlockable masks inside levels.
• Tony (Tiger): your punches kill. No weapon needed, but you have to get close.
• Don Juan (Horse): door slams become lethal, which turns hallways into traps.
• Dennis (Wolf): starts you with a knife, so the first room is never a coin flip.
• Aubrey (Pig): hands you a double barrel shotgun at the start of the level.
• Graham (Rabbit): makes you move faster.
• Nigel (Bat): reverses your movement controls. It’s a reward, technically.

Chaining kills without pausing builds your score, and score is what unlocks the rest. So the game quietly pushes you to stop hiding and keep moving, which is also the fastest way to die.

You can play Hotline Miami in your browser here with no download. It’s built around a keyboard and a mouse, so a physical setup will treat you better than a touch screen.

Game Controls

• WASD to move
• Mouse to aim
• Left click to attack or shoot
• Right click to pick up or throw a weapon
• Middle mouse to lock onto a target
• Space to execute a downed enemy

FAQ

How many levels are there? The game runs 19 chapters, and each one is split across floors of a building.

Is there a sequel? Yes. Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number came out in 2015 from the same team. Get Hotline Miami 2 on Steam.

Do I need to unlock masks to finish it? No. Richard has no ability and every chapter can be beaten with him.

As always, remember to have fun!