Games that force players to go around shooting people’s heads off often provide a premise that explains why all this killing needs to happen. If we have a reason to kill--whether it's because of war, gangsters, or zombies--players are free from the burden of further thinking about the consequences. But what happens when a game doesn’t grant us that privilege and, instead, forces us to constantly question our actions and morals? The answer to that question lies in Hotline Miami, a game that is as much ✤an introspective journey into the violence of video games as it is thought-provoking to play.

Your trip begins with a tutorial that asks you, and not your character, if you like hurting others. Let’s hope you’re prepared for it, because what follows is nineteen chapters (or about five hours) that all begin with a strange phone call asking you pay a visit to different venues and kill anyone you run into. Each chapꦿter follows this sam🎶e pattern, and includes the occasional cutscene that raises more questions than it does answer them. It’s a daring narrative style that works in Hotline Miami’s favor, grabbing your attention and never letting go.

While its premise plays with your senses, Hotline’s levels plays with your reflexes. Using the keyboard to move and the mouse to look around and attack, you’ll be sneaking up on your foes with ease and slashing them from behind or shooting them from across th🐼e room. Doors can also be used to slam into enemies, knocking them unconscious and letting you jump on them to brutally finish them off. Your protagonist spares no mercy and ruthlessly cuts limbs off, beats people’s heads in, and even rips their guts out. It’s all quite ruthless, but so are the game’s environments.

One hit is all it takes to kill you, so each level requires a measure of planning to make it out alive. While it plays like a stealth title, the game’s AI isn't sharp, so it's easy to sneak up on someone and finish him off. Enemies react when they hear you using noisy fireaꦕrms, but they fail to react even after you've thrown a knife at their buddy standing beside them. It’s a strange design choice, but one that works in your favor. Hotline Miami soon becomes a game of trial-and-error as you begin to explore its gameplay quirks, like the fact that enemies can see through windows or that dogs can’t be punched. Combat is formatted to keep you guessing, but never ends up being a frustrating experience.