Hotline Miami Is Hiding Behind A Mask
Hotline Miami sure is a game. A game that's going to kill you. And in the game. It's out in only three days, so I grabbed the chance to speak to publisher Devolver Digital's Chief Financial Officer and all round PR expert - Fork Parker - for a hard-hitting interview.
RPS: What first attracted Devolver and you, Fork, to Hotline Miami?
Fork Parker: Actually, our partners at Vlambeer that we're working on Luftrausers with connected us with Dennaton's Jonatan Soderstrom. Up until now he's released all of his amazing games free to the public but wanted to make something commercial and more substantial and was looking for a partner to make it happen. The team at Devolver Digital took a look at the prototype and played it until our fingers bled so we knew it would be a perfect project to partner on. At face value it's a brutal, fast-paced game unlike anything we'd play before but once we got into the story and twists and turns that Dennaton Games dreamt up we were sold.
RPS: Can you briefly explain just how much Devolver are screwing over Dennaton Games in publishing this game?
Fork Parker: Those sons of bitches at Dennaton Games are smarter than they look so they maintained full creative control on the game and the marketing despite my best efforts to screw them over like a publisher should.
That said, the contract they signed for Hotline Miami 2: Miami Slice mandates that it be a F2P kart racing game with microstransactions that automatically posts to your friends' Facebook walls so in the end we got them good.
RPS: How do you respond to accusations that this game just glorifies violence and encourages errant behaviour in our nations' youths?
Fork Parker: Not sure how to respond as these accusations are entirely true and ideally the game will lead to the downfall of society as we know it. Every time someone preorders Hotline Miami Western civilization creeps closer and closer to a pure state of anarchy.
RPS: Which game is better - Serious Sam 3 or Hotline Miami?
Fork Parker: Whichever gets me closer to buying a velvet-covered jet ski.
