Zero Punctuation: Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number & Ori And the Blind Forest

[Yahtzee Croshaw]

Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number & Ori And the Blind Forest

This week, Zero Punctuation reviews Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number & Ori And the Blind Forest.

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[JCAll]

Once we start quoting the Rocky Horror Picture Show, we've officially hit rock bottom.

 

[crimson5pheonix]

I'm glad I watched that spoiler, that is one of the most annoying plot turns that can happen.

 

[Aptspire]

I watched that spoiler and saved 20$!
Thanks, Yahtzee!

Seriously, way to undo your emotional buildup.

Shame about HM2:WN not being as good, however.

 

[EvilRoy]

I watched that spoiler and saved 20$!
Thanks, Yahtzee!

Seriously, way to undo your emotional buildup.

Shame about HM2:WN not being as good, however.

Even though I agree with Yahtzee for the most part on HM2, if you want Hotline Miami except more with new music then it's probably worth a shot. When it came to the first one I basically checked the fuck out of the story after the first two cutscenes so I wasn't especially bothered by the issues with the sequel - I just checked out again.

I will say that I didn't appreciate being restricted to certain weapons for parts of HM2 (as in, you can't seem to even pick up new ones), and he wasn't kidding about the enemies getting hung up really bad on doors. Worst part is, if you have a melee weapon there is basically no way to guarantee you will be able kill the dude before he gets you while bugging all over hell, and sometimes even ranged weapons will just phase through wasting all your ammo.

 

[tzimize]

I'm glad I watched that spoiler, that is one of the most annoying plot turns that can happen.

While I agree, I must say that the story was very meh before that as well. Fortunately, there isnt much story. Its mostly game. And while the game in no way screams innovation its just sooooooooooooooooooooooooooo well made. It is absolutely GORGEOUS to start, there really is quite far between the games I repeatedly just stop playing to drool over the environment.

It also plays EXTREMELY well imo, and while it starts a bit dull, once you get double/triple jumps, not to mention the fantastic catapulting ability...the game is just GREAT. The escape sequences are hard, stressing and enormously fun. Will it stick with me for long? Probably not, but it was VERY MUCH worth the price tag for me. The art alone is enough to justify that, but the game itself is just very fun as well. I highly recommend it for fans of the platforming genre

 

[Silentpony_v1legacy]

Aww! I was kinda hoping Ori would be like Limbo, as in it had some depth to it. But no, sounds like its a Disney version of Limbo.

 

[Ken Martinez]

I never thought I'd live to see the day where Yahtzee was more unkind to Steam games than AAA games, but excellent return to form.

 

[Adultism]

Yeah I was a bit underwhelmed by hm:2. I mean I loved the first one I bought like 15 copies and did a giveaway on my old server. Two felt like they were trying too hard, but I still do enjoy it it's just...it's the same and not the same.

 

[loa]

I did not expect that kind of ending from something that tortures a cute glowy rabbit thingy to death in its opening sequence.
Well what can you expect if jabba the hut narrates a story. Guy is so traumatized from getting strangled by that chick, he needs his happy endings.
Doesn't make the game any less of a well made platformer tho. It beats the hell out of dust.

 

[Parama]

I mean yeah you could spend most of the segment focusing on Ori's story which is pretty throwaway and meh, I'll agree, but that carries the risk of pretty much ignoring the gameplay entirely. Which is the real draw of the game. It's not especially innovative but it's certainly plenty of fun and pretty creative and varied with its levels.
At least he wasn't whining about it being "too hard" like the majority of people disliking the game :V

 

[StorkV]

I enjoyed Hotline Miami 2 -_-''

 

[webkilla]

A sweet metroidvestite from metroidsexual metroidvania

I need to see a cover of that Rocky Horror song done with this twist on it

 

[Carbo]

Hotline Miami 2 is one of those games that didn't get better for me until I actually sat down and thought about it in more detail.

Much of the first Hotline set itself up as an interesting story that served as critique on why we play games, and it used the most game play driven setup imaginable to sell that tale. I'd like to think Hotline 2 was made for the people who were invested in that vague narrative thread to begin with, and it's the fallout of Jacket's actions as a whole that makes, at least to me, a lot of the story interesting in the new one, as well as the characters kind of interesting to actually analyze. There's already page long deconstructions about characters like the Pig Butcher and whether or not he's actually "in a movie" as the game tries to imply. The presentation is miles above the original with an even better selection of music and fantastic setup. The Death Wish and Release chapters are two of the best things Hotline Miami's ever provided.

The game play left me a bit lukewarm at first but that's because I overestimated how much I thought I "knew" of the game going into it. Replaying the game has yielded me straight A+ rankings. Granted, I beat the game in a day so I had enough time to quickly dive back into it. It's only around then I manage to pick up all the nice details, including the bonus level, and the subtle nuances that can be found by exploring more of the set dressing. The Soldier's levels were relatively bothering at first until I unlocked the flamethrower. My favorite stages had to be The Writer's stages because it somehow made the idea of non-lethal Hotline Miami actually more fun than the regular setup. The "unload gun to keep combo" mechanic was mind blowing.

I don't think it's as pure as the first one but Hotline Miami 2 kind of felt like a game that, even if overestimating itself, managed to reach the highest highs despite also hitting the lowest lows. It was a game consciously made to put an end to the franchise and I think the whole Natural Born Killers / Pulp Fiction / Killer7 style narrative is incredibly engrossing. The big finish was incredible.

 

[Nachtmahr]

The way I took it was that Ori's mother never died at all, being a spirit of the forest and all. When that spidery dude used the glowing orb on her she was just reinvigorated. I mean, I'm pretty sure the spirit tree reinvigorated Ori in the same manner in the beginning of the game. The spirit wells you heal at seem to confirm that. The owls were not spirit creatures of the forest, so they can't just come back to life with some energy. Even if not, it seems a bit silly to complain about the plot of a game like Ori and the Blind Forest. It was a cute game with great gameplay.

 

[Evonisia]

That Rocky Horror Picture Show reference was all I needed. Now let's go make Metroidsexual an actual thing, for I want to see the results of it.

Shame about those two games, I suppose, but it does remind me that I should probably give Hotline Miami 1 a go some day.

 

[ZexionSephiroth]

I don't think resurrection always undermines the emotional stuff, depending on how its handled. And I know of two approaches to it that can be played off of.

One is the ways is making it so that resurrection comes at a cost, either literally in terms of an organization you have to pay off, in terms of effort, or in terms of the person doing the resurrection having to use a fraction of their own life to do so meaning they need to spend a few days recovering before they resurrect another person.

The other way is the "Protect the White Mage" dynamic. Where only a limited number of people can resurrect others, so the moment they die, suddenly you're mourning both their death and the death of those already dead.

I actually like the idea of resurrection being only limited by the fact only a few can do it. When literally one person on your planet can resurrect people, and they along with a lot of your friends get killed by alien warriors... It's a very good reason to go to space and find another... No matter how long it takes... Which is going to be like... Forever, almost.

 

[Neurotic Void Melody]

Oi...lay off the glowy colour blobs, Nayahtzee! What have they ever done to you? It's a visual medium and maybe people want to gorge themselves on the finest high definition prettiness. I know my eyes certainly do!

After watching that spoiler, i'm still going to get Ori. Most games have some disappointing nitpick, that usually is the ending for me. It isn't a deal breaker, I guess most game developers/writers cannot find the best way to create a satisfactory ending. Usually it's too happy and/or uninspired, boss too easy or none at all, the story just peters off. I dunno, it's just something i find with a lot of good games and films and i'm trying to think of an equation for what makes a good ending in this over-saturated entertainment industry.
But yeah, basically, this has not put me off The Blind Forest. Plus the developers look like they have a lot of love for their work, i wish to support that, if at the very least to see what future projects they bring.

Hmm, time to try Hotline Miami...

 

[Charli]

Awww come on, the Big old tree in Ori kind of establishes himself as some omnipotent god-thing in the very intro by recounting everything that happened, so I bought it. Restore life to the tree restore life to

Spoiler

mostly everything that died

I enjoyed Ori for what it was worth the platforming was rigorous enough to make me feel like I deserved a big heaping pile of schmultz for my ending!

Plus the soundtrack. BOY LET ME TELL YOU ORI'S SOUNDTRACK IS MY JAM.

 

[LoneWolf83]

Yatzee gave Ori a bad review but the way he described it (except for the ending) made me want to buy it. The ending might not be good but there are certainly much worse endings out there, such as Aquaria. Too bad I don't have 15 or 20 bucks to spend.