Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number Review

Brief information about the game.
Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number is the brutal conclusion to the Hotline Miami saga, set against a backdrop of escalating violence and retribution over spilled blood in the original game. Follow the paths of several distinct factions – each with their own questionable methods and uncertain motivations – as unforeseen consequences intersect and reality once again slips back into a brilliant haze of neon and bloodshed.

Blistering combat against punishing opposition will require intense focus as new variables, weapons, and methods of execution are introduced throughout the struggle. Let the striking colors of an unmistakable visual style wash over as you meticulously cut down those that would stand between you and the ultimate meaning behind the massacre. This is the finale, this is the unquestionable end.

Price: £14.99
Developer: Dennaton Games
Publisher: Devolver Digital
Platforms: PC, PS4, PS3, Vita
Version Reviewed: PC

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The original game, Hotline Miami. It seemed to be very much like a Willy Wonka Factory. Just with blood and gore instead of sweets and chocolate.  A brightly colored and violent game entirely in the moment. Dennarion Games created a world of Pre exhilaration . The different between life and death exists within your finger tips and the constant momentum regardless of what enemies and objects are in your way. Hotline Miami just kept going strong, even when the eighties reality is presented began to fray around the edges, giving the story a much added X-Factor hinting that all was not as it seemed.

The first game left me thrilled, I was looking for more. Wanting more, praying for more. For the sequel though. I left at ease with myself. I was relieved in a sense. Not because it was bad. No Hotline Miami 2 was a long, story driven, and incomprehensible where the first one was short and sharp. Yes the core element is in Hotline Miami 2. The tooth and nail, memory game combat, just something about the deliverer it presents is nothing like as cohesive as the first.

The game starts out nicely. very promising in fact. Right away you are thrust into the world and straight into combat. We assume the role of a psychopath known as the Pig Butcher in the process of invading a home. The acts which open the game is just to get the player back into the groove of things. Such as combat. planning and reaction time when something doesn't quiet go to plan. After all that, the situation turns, when suddenly the music cuts to a halt and the director\ wraps up the scene. It turns out that you are in the middle of making a movie retelling the story of Hotline Miami original mask wearing, face beating. gun shouting man known as the Jacket.

At this point the scene changes again, switching to a group of thrill-seeking thugs emulating the actions of Jacket. "Aha, so this is where the story begins in earnest!" I thought. Except it doesn't, because the story isn't really about these hoodlums. Neither is it about the detective investigating Jacket's killings, or the journalist attempting to write a book about them, or the platoon of soldiers fighting a guerrilla war in Hawaii in a series of flashbacks set two years before the events of Wrong Number. In fact, Hotline Miami 2 doesn't appear to be about anything at all.

If you are thinking this is all it is. A recreation of Hotline Miami. This isn't the case. Hotline Miami 2 has a plot! Although sadly it s mothered by the narrative style which fells choppy. The endless flashbacks and flash forwards, and the use of twelve characters makes game seem disorienting. It is like a Tarantino movie reel through a crosscut shredder and glued back together.

The problem it seems comes forom the attempt to invert the structure of the narrative from the original. The first game became in the glitzy yet grotty reality of the criminal games in Miami being taken down by a blood hunger vigilante, and then led you to question that reality as the game went on. It left the plater feeling on the edge and understanding that events it presented, but always oulled the solution away at the very last minute. Hotline Miami 2 it seems to do a 180. It starts off in fregments and uncertainly, and then brings "tries to bring them together", only it never achieves this. It never establishes a rhythm or reason. Indeed it seems to delight in upsetting any rhythm that begins to emerge. Around the halfway point I was getting a tad bit confused and I wasn't sure if I was really suppose to know what the heck is going on.

If the creators of Hotline Miami 2 wanted to broaden the storytelling, then it was a failure. Although when playing individual levels then it seems to be a far more traditional sequel which after that bad story telling seems actually refreshing. Of course the mask make a return. Although there are fewer but sadly only a few levels seem to only let you choose your mask. Some characters you play as don't use mask at all. While you are playing the copycat gang levels you select one of four characters instead of picking  mask. These include Tony who wears a tiger mask and has lethal punches, but can't use any type of weapon. You have the duo of Alex and Ash, whoa re equipped with a pistol and chainsaw and are both controlled the same way.
 

 With a longer and bigger game of course there is a expanded narrative. Which in fact is over twice as much. Sadly, the game isn;t anywhere near varied enough to sustain itself over the coarse of the game, especially considering we seen most of this one trick pony before. Worse is the minor details added which sometimes work but otherwise than that just seems the same. The levels are fine with the exception of the Hawaii flashbacks. As they limit you from just using one weapon and knight, forcing you to pickup ammo crates for a tiny bit of ammo at certain points where it lets you. Such things fly right in the way of what made the first game so great. It also completely arbitrary. A street-thug can think to pick up weapons and use them at will where a soldier who has seem battle just wants to stick with just one weapon. Seems kind of off.

Let me just say that this sequel is not a bad game. Considering each and every one of the story threads has potential and I wish the game followed the tale of the copycats more closely, instead of chopping and changing the formula we are use too. Of course the best stages are the last few which involve the copycats, which you can switch between them at different points. Also the soundtrack is once again excellent!

As a sequel, however, Wrong Number is disappointing. It's even a little looser mechanically. Thugs tend to get stuck in doors, while there's a recurring bug which sees guard dogs spin around in a circle, as if they're endlessly chasing their tails. Another issue is that the size of some of the later levels makes it pretty easy to dispatch opponents from a distance without alerting other guards to your presence.
 

This latter point encapsulates Wrong Number's greatest flaw, which is that it stretches its concept to the point of collapse. There were certainly moments when I was as breathlessly excited as the original so often made me, such as after punching out half a building's worth of gangsters as Tony, or in the midst of barrelling through a police station, evading the gunfire of a small army of cops. But there were equally as many times when I felt hopelessly lost in its baffling stew of a story, and frankly I finished it more out of stubbornness than enjoyment. In the end, Wrong Number proves to be more apt a subtitle than I hoped.

 

The Order: 1886 Review

 

Cold Hard Truth 

Basic guidelines of what I experienced

-Took me 7 hours 30 minutes, exploring as well (the game is linear).

- The gameplay is fundamentally good, but doesn't do anything new. Some of the weapons are pretty fun.

- I really enjoyed the story, atmosphere and characters, although not a classic. The voice acting is exceptional

- IMO the game is not worth the full asking price as there is not enough content but it is certainly worth your time when it reaches a reasonable price IMO.

- Very good graphics, but black borders are never a good thing.

- Source of how I got it: Redbox!

The Order 1886... Worth Playing?

The Order: 1886 is a single-player third-person shooter video game developed by Ready at Dawn and SCE Santa Monica Studio and published by Sony Computer Entertainment which was announced at the 2013 Electronic Entertainment Expo event and was released exclusively for the PlayStation 4 on February 20, 2015.

Upon release, The Order: 1886 received mixed reviews from critics, with praise particularly directed to the game's production value, graphics and technical achievements, while receiving strong criticism regarding the game's length, story, gameplay, replay value and the player's involvement in the game.

Current Rankings from top reviewers: Gamespot: 5/10, Metacritic: 65%, Giant Bomb: 2/5

Is all that true? Even before the game was released this game was getting bashed hard. Hell I will even admit I had my fun poking at this game, especially when the dev of the company got pissed off and refused to answer any and all questions about the length of the game. So yes I guess I was kind of the problem when it comes to spreading the hate before the game comes out. The main reason I say this though is one question popped in my head right before I starting playing it and then right after. Why. As a collective mind (internet) we go on a riot somewhat when it comes to gaming. One little spark and caused a wild fire and the fact is that little to no one has played it, or anyone of note. 

I have seen the youtube playthrough before even playing this game and yes I admit it was kind of short but watching a game and playing a game are two different things. The enjoyment factor is completely different. Even more so if it is a person you follow or watch all the time.

In any case. Is The Order 1886 deserving of all the hate hype? Or is it actually worth playing, or atleast trying? My quick verdict. The game as a while is definitely; Without a doubt worth renting at the moment and buying when the game hits around 30 or so dollars (or if you can get it used).

The reasoning for this quite simple. The Order 1886 to me is by far the best looking game on the Playstation 4 at the moment, and making it one of the few titles that made the "visual leap" that fans of consoles have been waiting for since released of the current gen systems. So this game for me is the the very sort list of "Next-Gen Graphics" when it comes to games.

Ready at Dawn was so efficient at making the game cut scenes and gameplay seamless sometime it was difficult to tell which parts of the games were actually interactive.

Although with that said, this game has one major flaw and it is becoming a habit in gaming. The Order is rift with quick time events! (QTEs) Something the developer seemed to think we needed to keep us engaged in what was going on. Personally I rather of just watched a cinematic. 

The Meat and Potatos! 

First and foremost this game will turn a lot of people off just for one reason.... The game so no co-op or online multplayer of any kind. So if you wanted to play this game with your friend. The best you can do is sit on the same couch and watch one another play the game and give hints and tips.

Also I know most of you want to know this little fact over anything else I write or that you read. The game is indeed short. It took me a little over seven hours to complete and I started playing right after I got home from work (8am) and I played until about 3ish or so PM (eastern time of course) and I was nearly done with the game. So if you like longer types of games. This game is not for you at all, and yes those black bars you see in all the reviewers and trailers and whatnot are in the game are going to be there for the entire experience.

 I admit at first the letterbox style (Black bars) was very annoying. I hated, almost returned it right away. To me it didn't feel right. I wanted more of the screen, I wanted the game to use my whole t.v and not feel like I was playing a Playstation one game that can't adjust to my t.v. It felt frustrating. The one one question popped into my mind... WHY? WHY, WHY, WHY! Why give up and quarter of the screen to black nothingness! The worse part is this game is beautiful.

Of course with that said and common explanation can be brought it, because of the games graphics they used the bars as a quick fix to make the game run more smoothly. After all, The Order 1886 is one of the best looking games I have seen in a good long time, if not it is the best (In my eyes). Perhaps the game was indeed to much for the Playstation to handle and as the result of those black lines; The game resolution is 1920x800 instead of 1920x1080.

I am pretty sure whatever the case is, we will never know as Ready at Dawn will keep the reasoning underwraps; or they may just stick on what they said before. Its for a more cinematic approach. In retrospect it does make sense. Because of the wider aspect ratio, my vision was often stretched, making it difficult for me to focus on anything that wasn't right in front of me. And while I dislike the black bars after the first few hours I kind of forgot they existed.

Now we get to the issue of game length. This issue comes for the idea of what a game is worth. Would you rather be playing a five hour game for so much money that is engaging, entertaining and overall fun, or would you rather play X amount of dollars for a 40-50 hour game that is more boring in some parts, more grindy, yes with more stuff to do but at a slower more spread out pace. In the end it really matters on YOU. Personally I had my doubts about how much I would enjoy this game and one of the reasons was because of the length. To be honest though this game for me puts to rest that notion. I would play this game over a few longer games any day of the week! Although with that said. There is NO REAL REASON TO REPLAY THIS GAME AFTER IT IS COMPLETED! Considering the game is in fact full price (Buying the game new) that is a major deal breaker!

As I said before there is no multiplayer mode to further engage the player, it lacks a character development system and is a very... VERY linear experience! You want a idea of how linear it is. Think of a hallway, a straight hallway. Your object is to go from point A to point B. Yes you may have some objects or whatnot to climb over to work around, giving to false sense of exploration. But in the end it is still.. a straight line.  The Order 1886 will funnel you down that hallway, down a certain path with cut scenes and set pieces of break it up a little bit.

Of course what The Order lacks in exploration, and character development it makes up in atmosphere, game play and setting. If you enjoy games that you can beat in one session, have a good time in and not struggle with where to go, or how to do something then this game will be right up your alley!

Hand of Fate Review

Once in a blue moon a game comes along that completely dazzles you and blows you away, and that's what this little known game does. Hand of Fate coming from a kickstarter background, and all it is; is a collectable card game which has heavy roguelike elements, with some combat (in third person) which kind of hinting towards Dungeons and Dragons. It sounds like it wouldn't work right? Well oddly enough, it works very well.

With all these ideas and elements in this game. It's not easy, actually it is pretty difficult to describe Hand of Fate in a way that would make sense to others. How the game works is that there are two decks of cards, one made up of just weapons and armor that you can draw (with luck) to aid you in combat, and then you have the other deck which is made up of encounters which could be good or bad. All of these cards are placed on the table for you to explore. As you progress through the game you will unlock more cards both to aid or hurt you. So early one what you have in your deck is unimportant, but later one when it is needed you can tailor your deck more in your favor to help you later on in the game which will make encounters that you face a bit more easier.

Image the layout of the cards as a grid. The placement of the cards are in a random, yet per-determined layout. Each turn you can move to one card across or next from you; undiscovered cards will be face down and revealed and unlocked when you move onto them. The encounter cards that I spoke of earlier can range from simple combat with one enemy to a complex combat with multiple enemies, or if you are lucky the cards can be more into your favor with just a random event encounter such as a goblin who gives you free stuff, a maze which if you complete you get supplies. Just take note that each time you die, even if you get the same layout all cards will be in a different location so two runs will never be the same. So as you would image getting a good run of encounter cards could be the the success or failure on later stages and even more so when you start playing the endless mode which is very addictive. More often that not you will hit a sting of unavoidable combat encounters, and purely bad luck that will leave you in very sticky situations.

 

The thing that will make you keep coming back is the roguelike elements. Quite a few times I wanted to rage quit and more then a few times I did rage quit simply because the luck wasn't in my favor or I made a stupid mistake, but the though that I was in line for a good run made me turn the game back on or replay the stage I just lost made me want to jump right back on the saddle again and ride the luck pony. The game is all about dice rolls, so in case you were wondering you can get the strongest weapon in your deck within the first few turns but that doesn't make the game any easier, well maybe just slightly easier when it comes to comeback. Also nothing is better than picking out a few success and highly success cards which continues to gives you that boost to continue on. Everything you get is based on dice rolls. Which you see by selecting one of the four cards that can be either a success or a failure, High Success or High Failure. So if you are use to D&D this type of luck is not much different then rolling a perfect D20 to take out a unbeatable foe.

With multiple paths you can make through many dungeons, it would make sense to seek out the exit or final boss as quickly as you can as you can quickly run out of food. Oh yeah I forgot to mention. There is food in this game which is used on every movement. Yes you can buy food and earn it by random encounters but you can die to starvation so that is the reasoning you would want to find the exit and the dungeon leader as quickly as you can. With that said that the addition of tokens that could grant you extra cards could offer you an incentive for exploring and taking that risk as a reward. Tokens are earned from certain encounters if you complete them in a certain way, and will grant cards to that you would have unlocked so you can place them in your deck. The more tokens you receive and have, the better chances of getting stronger equipment, which is another small piece of bait that will make you keeping coming back from more.

Whenever you begin a combat encounter you enter a third person arena where melee combat is very similar to games like Batman (Arkham series), albeit a bit less smooth. The combat is serviceable at best and the AI enemies you fight are never up to much on their own. Multiple enemies can be a slight problem though as they fill the screen and attack you all directions, plus with enemies who have range can be a tad bit annoying. Even more so when you are underequipped, but the real challenges almost always is the final boss fight at the end of each story dungeon.

Strangely you are in 3rd person when you go into any type of ship, which personally feels slightly out of place and unnecessary and also when you enter a trap event. The Maze/Trap events I spoke of before you see your character in a area filled with traps such as spikes, dart traps, wall mounted flame throwers to avoid. The camera can be a problem when it comes to the trap themselves, as the frame rate could drop and make the game very unplayable at times and frustrating thus making the third person section quite unwelcoming. So, there is a patch needed to make combat and any and all third person sections improved and more playable. 

Framerate and load times issues are not the only bugs that you can come across. (I haven't tested on the PC, but the PS4), There is a audio bug where all sounds cuts in and out and it is rather annoying when it does. Usually happens during combat and doesn't kick back in until one or two board moves. I also experienced a game error where my save was wiped. So everything I earned (which wasn't much at the time due to me just starting the game) was gone. Lastly sometimes the game will randomly freeze up which could lead to a corrupted save.

Another little problem is that the combat encounters could become a bit stall and boring as the environments that you battle in could be rehashed over and over again. Same with the enemies. You have four types of enemies that you will be mainly be against. Humans, Lizards, Skeletons, and Rats. Sometimes you will be against mages, lava giants and minotaurs all which you have to unlock. The only thing that will keep you on your toes here is that everything could be mixed and matched up so you can go up against skeletons and humans in the same encounter. Lastly boss fights could be rehashed as normal encounters you could go up against a boss that you previous beaten.

Beyond those problems which only one is game breaking and like the game its based on luck if you get it. (How fitting right) Each little gripe could be easily overlooked as Hand of Fate presents a genre that is newer and fresh and could be explored. The game feels like nothing I have played before and it was exhilarating to discover what lies next in the next adventure. Unexpected encounters, brilliantly written situations and the ability to use your imagination to see the situations that are explained on screen makes the game enjoyable to play and not just for the D&D fans but casual fans as well.

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