Gameplay Journal Entry#3

For this week I wanted to touch on a game where has been acclaimed as an excellent top-down adventure shooter, Hotline Miami. This game is know for its high-octane tactical shooting, ruthless murder, and abundant synth soundtrack. The game, written in the engine GameMaker, was modified by a developer called Albatr to synthesize the core mechanic of the game Superhot with Hotline Miami. This led to the development of the game SuperHot Miami, which takes the mechanic of time moving when the player moves and combines with the game engine, UI, and art style of Hotline Miami.

In regards to Anne-Marie Schleiner’s concept of the parasite from her book The Player’s Power to Change the Game: Ludic Mutation, I see Albatr’s mod as parasite in a similar way Counter Strike was for Half Life (55). It fed off from the engine and style of Hotline Miami, but returned something new into the game’s core. SuperHot Miami brings the core mechanic of SuperHot into the world of Hotline Miami. It was so popular, an updated version of the game was produced as a standalone title, SHOOTOUT Inc., which is available on itch.io. I believe it is this synthesis which makes the modification so distinct. This phenomenon is apparent in other titles such as Counter Strike which grew popular by introducing distinct mechanics and objectives upon the base of the Half Life.

YouTube Video: https://youtu.be/wp6ZHdj3v8E

Works Cited
“Game Modding: Cross-Over Mutation and Unwelcome Gifts.” The Player’s Power to Change the Game: Ludic Mutation, by Anne-Marie Schleiner, Amsterdam University Press, 2018, p. 55.