Hotline Miami
Updated: 12/11/2025, 5:54:35 PM Wikipedia source
Hotline Miami is a 2012 top-down shooter game developed by Dennaton Games and published by Devolver Digital. Set in Miami in 1989, the game follows an unnamed silent protagonist—dubbed Jacket by fans—as he commits massacres against the local Russian mafia. In each level, the player must defeat every enemy through any means necessary, with wearable animal masks providing the player with unique abilities. The plot follows Jacket as he slowly loses his grip on reality and is interrogated for his actions. It advocates a pacifist message by making the player feel regret for their in-game actions. The game was developed over the course of nine months as the first commercial release of Dennaton Games, a duo composed of developers Jonatan Söderström and Dennis Wedin. Söderström programmed the game and wrote the narrative, while Wedin designed the graphics. Several artists contributed to the soundtrack, which combines many music genres like electronic, techno, vaporwave, and synthwave. Hotline Miami was released in October 2012 for Windows, followed by versions for OS X, Linux, PlayStation 3, and PlayStation Vita in 2013, and a PlayStation 4 port in 2014. Hotline Miami has been frequently considered one of the greatest video games, as well as one of the most influential indie games. Initial reviews highlighted its gameplay, soundtrack, and atmosphere, though some criticized its controls. The themes and storytelling were also praised. It was nominated for several awards and sold 1.5 million copies by May 2015. The game inspired multiple developers and contributed to a rise in indie game releases throughout the 2010s; it also contributed to the success of its publisher and the popularity of synthwave. A sequel, Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number, was released in March 2015. The series went on to spawn two compilations of both games on platforms like the Nintendo Switch, a comic book spinoff, and several fan games.
Infobox
Developer
Dennaton Games[a]
Publisher
Devolver Digital
Programmer
Jonatan Söderström
Artist
Dennis Wedin
Engine
GameMaker
Platforms
mw- Windows OS X PlayStation 3 PlayStation Vita Linux PlayStation 4 Nintendo Switch Xbox One Stadia PlayStation 5 Xbox Series X/S
Release
23 October 2012 Windows WW: 23 October 2012 OS XWW: 18 March 2013 PS3, VitaNA: 25 June 2013EU: 26 June 2013 LinuxWW: 9 September 2013 PS4NA: 19 August 2014 SwitchWW: 19 August 2019 Xbox OneWW: 7 April 2020 StadiaWW: 22 September 2020 PS5, Xbox Series X/SWW: 23 October 2023
Genre
Top-down shooter
Mode
Single-player
Tables
Aggregate score
Metacritic
Metacritic
Aggregator
Metacritic
Score
(PC) 85/100(PS3) 87/100(Vita) 85/100
| Aggregator | Score |
| Metacritic | (PC) 85/100(PS3) 87/100(Vita) 85/100 |
Review scores
Eurogamer
Eurogamer
Publication
Eurogamer
Score
10/10
Game Informer
Game Informer
Publication
Game Informer
Score
7.75/10
GameSpot
GameSpot
Publication
GameSpot
Score
8.5/10
GamesRadar+
GamesRadar+
Publication
GamesRadar+
Score
4/5
IGN
IGN
Publication
IGN
Score
8.8/10
PC Gamer (US)
PC Gamer (US)
Publication
PC Gamer (US)
Score
86/100
Polygon
Polygon
Publication
Polygon
Score
8.5/10
VideoGamer.com
VideoGamer.com
Publication
VideoGamer.com
Score
9/10
PopMatters
PopMatters
Publication
PopMatters
Score
9/10
| Publication | Score |
| Eurogamer | 10/10 |
| Game Informer | 7.75/10 |
| GameSpot | 8.5/10 |
| GamesRadar+ | 4/5 |
| IGN | 8.8/10 |
| PC Gamer (US) | 86/100 |
| Polygon | 8.5/10 |
| VideoGamer.com | 9/10 |
| PopMatters | 9/10 |
References
- Abstraction Games developed the console ports.
- Jacket is a fan-assigned name to an otherwise unnamed protagonist. It was later adopted by Dennaton.
- Similarly to Jacket, Beard goes unnamed in the game. In Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number, the character is known as The Sol
- Jacket and the Biker fight each other twice at different points in the story, with both times having a different outcome
- While the player has the choice to either kill or spare Richter, he is seen alive in the game's sequel.
- Attributed to several sources
- Attributed to several sources
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.polygon.com/2013/2/19/4004726/hotline-miami-ps3-vita
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.gameinformer.com/games/hotline_miami/b/pc/archive/2012/11/05/hotline-miami-review.aspx
- Hotline Miamihttp://www.gamesradar.com/hotline-miami-review/
- Papale & Fazio 2018, p. 271.
- Hotline Miami 2https://www.pcgamer.com/the-making-of-hotline-miami-2/
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.gamespot.com/reviews/hotline-miami-review/1900-6399020/
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.polygon.com/2012/10/25/3555478/hotline-miami-review
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.gamedeveloper.com/design/why-hotline-miami-is-an-important-game
- GamesRadar+https://www.gamesradar.com/hotline-miamis-cleverest-surprise-is-that-its-not-a-shooter-its-a-puzzle-game/
- Hotline Miamihttp://www.pcgamer.com/hotline-miami-1/
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.eurogamer.net/hotline-miami-ps3-and-vita-impressions
- Brey, Clarke & Wang 2020, p. 34.
- Vujanov 2021, p. 3.
- Hotline Miamihttp://www.ign.com/articles/2012/10/27/hotline-miami-review
- Hotline Miamihttp://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-10-23-hotline-miami-review
- Hotline Miami 2https://www.vice.com/en/article/the-ghost-wolf-legacy-hotline-miami-2s-story-explained-251/
- Hotline Miami
- Vujanov 2021, p. 5.
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.destructoid.com/hotline-miami-from-super-carnage-to-indie-success-story/
- Noclip 2022, 7:10.
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.theverge.com/2012/10/1/3437500/hotline-miami-dennaton-interview
- Independent Games Festivalhttp://www.igf.com/2010finalistswinners.html
- Hotline Miamihttps://web.archive.org/web/20141026170012/http://www.edge-online.com/features/the-making-of-hotline-miami/
- Noclip 2022, 5:00.
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/behind-the-sounds-hotline-miami-and-ftl
- Cactussquid.com // GAME DESIGNhttps://cactusquid.blogspot.com/2012/06/quick-update.html
- Hotline Miamihttps://cactusquid.blogspot.com/2012/07/hotline-miami-announcement-trailer.html
- Noclip 2022, 12:10.
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.pcgamesn.com/indie/cactus-hotline-miami-im-pretty-tired-crappy-games-dont-really-want-do-anything-special
- Noclip 2022, 5:30.
- Engadgethttps://www.engadget.com/2018-04-04-mental-illness-indie-take-this-kate-edwards-mike-wilson.html
- Noclip 2022, 7:35.
- Noclip 2022, 9:02.
- Noclip 2022, 9:20.
- Noclip 2022, 9:48.
- Noclip 2022, 13:12.
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.gamedeveloper.com/design/we-ask-indies-cactus-creator-of-hotline-miami-and-tons-of-other-weird-titles
- Hotline Miamihttps://web.archive.org/web/20240408000331/https://www.kotaku.com.au/2017/06/hotline-miamicover-artist-on-his-distinct-visual-style-music-and-beard/
- Polygonhttps://www.polygon.com/features/2015/8/27/9207581/video-game-box-art
- Vujanov 2021, p. 7.
- Noclip 2022, 7:12.
- Noclip 2022, 6:53.
- Noclip 2022, 5:20.
- Hotline Miamihttps://pitchfork.com/thepitch/hotline-miami-and-the-rise-of-techno-in-ultra-violent-video-games/
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.pcgamer.com/hotline-miami-interview-dennaton-games-on-creating-carnage-to-delight-and-disgust/
- NMEhttps://www.nme.com/features/hotline-miami-rock-the-spacebar-3220211
- Engadgethttps://www.engadget.com/2016-03-13-hotline-miami-soundtrack-vinyl-do-you-like-hurting-other-people.html
- Rolling Stone Australiahttps://au.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-lists/the-25-best-video-game-soundtracks-of-all-time-60671/hotline-miami-60692/
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.eurogamer.net/rezzed-2012-eurogamers-game-of-the-show
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.destructoid.com/hotline-miami-checks-its-voicemail/
- Hotline Miamihttps://web.archive.org/web/20121009232815/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/10/08/hotline-miami-makes-housecalls-october-23/
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.polygon.com/2013/3/19/4124150/hotline-miami-released-for-mac
- steamcommunity.comhttps://steamcommunity.com/app/219150/discussions/0/846963711038357675/
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.ign.com/articles/2012/11/05/hotline-miami-gets-controller-support
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.eurogamer.net/hotline-miami-creator-helps-pirates-play-his-game
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.pcgamer.com/hotline-miami-soundtrack-now-on-steam-plus-the-game-is-half-price/
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.digitalspy.com/videogames/a492247/hotline-miami-launching-on-psn-next-week-exclusive-content-revealed/
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.ign.com/articles/2014/03/24/hotline-miami-headed-to-ps4-with-cross-buy-support
- Hotline Miamihttps://blog.playstation.com/2014/08/11/hotline-miami-hits-ps4-august-19th/
- Famitsuhttp://www.famitsu.com/news/201503/17074091.html
- Hotline Miami Collectionhttps://www.polygon.com/2019/8/19/20811993/hotline-miami-collection-nintendo-switch-release-date
- Hotline Miami Collectionhttps://www.gematsu.com/2020/04/hotline-miami-collection-now-available-for-xbox-one
- Hotline Miamihttps://community.stadia.com/t5/Stadia-Community-Blog/Take-back-the-town-with-Hotline-Miami-arriving-Sept-22-on-Stadia/ba-p/29993
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/the-hotline-miami-games-have-been-released-for-ps5-and-xbox-series/
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.metacritic.com/game/hotline-miami/
- Hotline Miamihttps://web.archive.org/web/20130917221931/http://www.videogamer.com/reviews/hotline_miami_review.html
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.popmatters.com/review/174163-hotline-miami-ps3/
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.eurogamer.net/the-hotline-miami-sales-story-and-more
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.digitaltrends.com/gaming/hotline-miami-slaughters-its-way-onto-sonys-ps-vita-and-playstation-3/
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.digitalspy.com/videogames/a496985/hotline-miami-rockets-to-top-of-ps-vita-june-chart/
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2015/05/07/the-story-behind-hotline-miami-is-one-of-no-pants-and-countless-deaths.aspx
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.polygon.com/gaming/2012/9/25/3407646/hotline-miami-wins-most-fantastic-award-during-fantastic-arcade-2012
- IGNhttp://www.ign.com/wikis/best-of-2012/Best_PC_Sound
- IGNhttp://www.ign.com/wikis/best-of-2012/Best_PC_Action_Game
- IGNhttp://www.ign.com/wikis/best-of-2012/Best_Overall_Game
- IGNhttp://www.ign.com/wikis/best-of-2012/Best_PC_Story
- IGNhttp://www.ign.com/wikis/best-of-2012/Best_PC_Game
- IGNhttp://www.ign.com/wikis/best-of-2012/Best_Overall_Action_Game
- IGNhttp://www.ign.com/wikis/best-of-2012/Best_Overall_Music
- Hotline Miamihttp://www.pcgamer.com/the-best-music-of-the-year-2012-hotline-miami/
- Kotakuhttps://kotaku.com/dont-like-the-winners-from-the-2012-vgas-get-a-second-5966970
- Halo 4https://www.polygon.com/2012/12/9/3746440/inside-gaming-awards-winners-include-halo-4-fez
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.vg247.com/hotline-miami-cart-life-little-inferno-headline-igf-award-finalists
- Kill Screenhttps://killscreen.com/previously/articles/kill-screens-top-ten-games-2012/
- Pastehttps://www.pastemagazine.com/games/the-30-best-videogames-of-2012
- Ars Technicahttps://arstechnica.com/gaming/2012/12/ars-technicas-2012-games-of-the-year/
- Wiredhttps://www.wired.com/2012/12/the-10-best-games-of-2012/
- The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/technology/gamesblog/2012/dec/19/top-25-games-of-2012
- VentureBeathttps://venturebeat.com/games/the-best-games-of-2012-gamesbeat-staff-picks/
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.vice.com/en/article/hotline-miami-showed-the-futility-of-ultra-violence-as-critique/
- Vujanov 2021, p. 6.
- Caracciolo 2014, p. 13.
- Papale & Fazio 2018, p. 270.
- Papale & Fazio 2018, p. 273.
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.theverge.com/2022/10/26/23422597/hotline-miami-10-year-anniversary
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.theringer.com/video-games/2022/10/25/23421962/hotline-miami-10-year-anniversary-devolver-digital
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.techradar.com/features/its-been-over-ten-years-but-indie-games-can-still-learn-a-lot-from-hotline-miami
- PC Gamerhttps://www.pcgamer.com/how-synthwave-music-inspired-games-to-explore-a-past-that-never-existed/
- Hotline Miamihttps://bloody-disgusting.com/editorials/3703742/hotline-miami-celebrating-a-decade-of-the-masterful-murder-simulator/
- Eurogamerhttps://www.eurogamer.net/the-eurogamer-100
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.eurogamer.net/games-of-the-decade-hotline-miami-filth-fetish-and-the-only-video-game-parable
- GamesRadar+https://web.archive.org/web/20150319223433/http://www.gamesradar.com/best-games-ever/
- Slanthttps://web.archive.org/web/20150712044110/http://www.slantmagazine.com/features/article/100-greatest-video-games-of-all-time/P10
- Slanthttps://www.slantmagazine.com/features/article/the-100-greatest-video-games-of-all-time/
- Slanthttps://www.slantmagazine.com/games/the-100-best-video-games-of-all-time/
- Hardcore Gaming 101http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/books/hg101-presents-the-200-best-video-games-of-all-time/
- Stuff.tvhttps://www.stuff.tv/my/features/best-games-ever-20-greatest-games-all-time
- Popular Mechanicshttps://web.archive.org/web/20161202235359/http://www.popularmechanics.com/culture/gaming/g134/the-100-greatest-video-games-of-all-time/
- GamesTM
- GamesTM
- USA Todayhttps://ftw.usatoday.com/lists/best-video-games
- Sports Illustratedhttps://videogames.si.com/guides/best-games
- Rock, Paper, Shotgunhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-rps-100-2021-part-two
- PC Gamerhttps://www.pcgamer.com/games/the-top-100-pc-games-2024/
- Digital Trendshttps://www.digitaltrends.com/gaming/best-ps-vita-games/
- GamesRadar+https://www.gamesradar.com/best-ps-vita-games/
- 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die
- Pastehttps://www.pastemagazine.com/games/game-music/best-game-soundtracks-of-all-time
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.eurogamer.net/the-creators-of-hotline-miami-on-inspiration-storytelling-and-upcoming-dlc
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.eurogamer.net/hotline-miami-sequel-announced
- Hotline Miami 2https://www.gamespot.com/articles/hotline-miami-2-release-date-confirmed-for-ps4-vit/1100-6425540/
- Noclip 2022, 20:30.
- Cult of the Lambhttps://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/devolvers-financials-show-cult-of-the-lamb-is-its-best-seller-earning-more-than-usd90-million-with-dlc-a-significant-factor-gamers-are-spending-more-time-on-known-ips/
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.digitaltrends.com/gaming/hotline-miami-wildlife/
- Devolver Bootleghttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/devolver-bootleg-review
- Payday 2https://www.vg247.com/payday-2-masks-hotline-miami-2
- Dead Cellshttps://www.pcgamer.com/dead-cells-adds-the-hotline-miami-chicken-dude-who-crits-stunned-enemies-with-a-bat/
- Half-Lifehttps://www.gamespot.com/articles/half-life-meets-hotline-miami-in-this-fan-game-mas/1100-6428351/
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/this-free-fangame-blends-hotline-miami-with-team-fortress-2
- Hotline Miamihttps://www.eurogamer.net/the-messy-story-behind-the-hotline-miami-mod-that-never-was