Thanks for saying I've been convincing, but I don't mean to act like I have the truth in my hands here. Death of the author and all that, it's just one possible interpretation. Maybe your initial gut instinct was right after all, and I'm just leading you astray.

I know there's people who talk about the game being a little anti-violence, the blend of colors and swaying environments are supposed to make you a little nauseous with it all. They also have a bit of a critique on American hyper-violence in particular, the devs are swedish and like I mentioned the password to find the truth was "Born in the USA", and it reveals the organization behind it is some kind of nationalist militia.

It's just that these aren't the things I picked up on playing the game, so I'm not good at arguing in their favor, but you could definitely read it in a whole different light. WBGhiro for one is someone who is a lot more invested in the lore and plot than I was, if he stops by again I'm sure he could counter-argue me and sing its praises.

I don't think the second one's gameplay is necessarily crippled by sequelitis. Some levels could use a little trim, but I think that only counts if you're a topscore hunter, then they get annoying. But if you just want to see what the game has to offer I liked the bigger levels.

How come you think it's a timeline before the events of the first game? Helmet is obviously traumatized by something, lost his cockyness and let himself go to shit. So I've assumed it's obviously after what happened in the first game

The Writer tries to explain how something like Jacket did even happen in the first place, so I think Jacket's story is already over at this point.

I have no idea why I thought that. Clearly I was remembering it wrong.

I should stop listening to my long-haired hippie friend from the video store.

So what's everyone's favourite song?

From the first one Hydrogen is the one I remember best, the Main Menu Theme comes damn close though.

2nd one I'll have to go with The Way Home.

From the first it's Inner Animal.

From the second it's Roller Mobster.

So, as for Hotline Miami, I liked the game a lot. It had style but I didn't like one particular thing about it and that was its "true" ending. The one that you reveal after collecting all the leters and figuring out the password.

To sum this complete ending up, I'd say it was severely retarded to say the least.
Throughout the whole game you get absolutely nothing except the game giving you hints on the dudes you murder being mainly criminals and then the game gets more and more trippy and that's it. It's weirdly surreal and it has this creepy appeal.

When you reach the end of the game without the letters and the password, the two main dudes behind this whole scheme tell you basically "we did it for lulz and because we could, that's it, there is no big revelation and you're just a nobody that murdered a whole lot of people" and then basically question your grip on reality and morality or rather the lack of it. And when you ask them why do they even do this sick shit, they answer with a bit of a jab at violent videogaming by claiming that they didn't murder anyone and you did, kinda like "yeah we came up with this game, but you were the one playing it, noone forced you to play sick games like Manhunt or whatnot, it was your decision to horribly murder videogame people and you obviously liked it because here you are at the end of it all".
It was very bleak, cynical and trippy, just like the whole game before this point, and that's why I thought it was rather good.

And then came the "real" ending with the password and some wacky explanation/backstory about some nonsense political agenda and trying to present itself like a serious story. It made no sense and completely defeated the trippy weird style of the game by trying to be serious with a complete bollocks that didn't fit anything in the game. Not even the idea with killing mobsters because the "incomplete" ending doesn't need to explain why is it mobsters because originally the dudes claim your victims are nobody important and a scum of society and therefore no harm is done by killing them in their sick game, and also targeting mobsters is their way to provide some challenge because gangsters can be expected to be armed and quickly resorting to violence and therefore attacking them provides more challenge, carnage, and entertainment then beating a bum to death in the back alley (like it happened by the start of the game).

So my point is that the secret ending sucked, made no sense, and the game would be much better off without it. Too bad that apparently the second game revolves entirely about this political rightwing extremist conspiracy whatever story and even tries to take itself seriously. I haven't played it yet though so I can't really be sure.