Hotline Miami is the kind of risque, crazy and dangerous game that the developers at Rockstar believe that they’ve been making since Grand Theft Auto 3, but in comparison they’ve been releasing the Disney Channel equivalent. That is not hyperbole, that is just cold, hard facts. Hotline Miami takes on some really heavy and cerebral subjects, the kind that would give Ted Kaczynski nightmares and keep him up at night, while the Grand Theft Auto games have been focused on taking your clingy cousin bowling and changing up your outfits.
Of course, it is being done with sprites and via a top down view, not unlike the original two Grand Theft Auto titles (three if you count GTA: London). Since the game has been announced it has without a doubt made waves for its strong subject matter, the styling, the tension and the overall execution. To pull off a game like this with the gravity such as they are doing, it takes some incredibly hard work and attention to detail. Well, it isn’t just the nerds on the internet who are drooling over this game, as at Fantastic Arcade 2012 Hotline Miami took home the coveted critic’s choice award — the “Most Fantastic” award.
This means that out of all of the games at Fantastic Arcade 2012, Hotline Miami was seen as the hands-down best title. Dennaton Games and Devolver actually had a playable version of the game up at Fantastic Arcade 2012 in Austin, Texas, of course in a customized arcade cabinet to fit in at the show. This included a custom map of the Highball — the venue for Fantastic Arcade 2012 — just to make it all that more special.
This isn’t the first time when Hotline Miami has been showered with awards this year, as at the Rezzed expo they took home the Eurogamer and Rock, Paper, Shotguns’ game of the show awards.
