History YMMV / HotlineMiami

** Richter's mask gives you a Silenced Uzi as a starting weapon; which can be quite effective on the smaller levels in repeat playthroughs. Nevermind its nature as a silenced weapon making it ideal for surprise attacks.

* BreatherLevel: The third segment of Chapter 11. Compared to the fairly challenging segment before it, this area is very simple with you only having to focus on one or two enemies at a time. This segment also comes just before an ambush by the third boss.

** The Carl mask gives you a drill as a starting weapon. It's a melee weapon that can't kill anyone directly, but finishing a stunned enemy off with it (by drilling into their skull) grants you a ''ton'' of bonus points. Completing the level using only the drill will guarantee a perfect rank.

** "Get A Life" requires you to get an A+ rank on all levels. [[NintendoHard This is easier said than done...]] (unless you're using the Carl mask, that is). The achievements for getting kills using specific weapons (Guns for Show, Knives for a Pro, and Pitcher) are also a pain to get as it requires the player to remember which weapons were used, since there's no way to keep track in-game.

** "Get A Life" requires you to get an A+ rank on all levels. [[NintendoHard This is easier said than done.]] The achievements for getting kills using specific weapons (Guns for Show, Knives for a Pro, and Pitcher) are also a pain to get as it requires the player to remember which weapons were used, since there's no way to keep track in-game.
** "[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Plain Luck]]". You need to kill (not just hit) three enemies with one thrown brick.

** The Tony mask turns Jacket into [[Webcomic/OnePunchMan Saitama]], but unlike the version in the sequel, still allows him to carry weapons in addition to having the benefit of killing punches. And the best part is that it's one of the masks Jacket starts with, making it a very potent DiskOneNuke the more you get used to it.

* FriendlyFandoms: While it's a minor case, there are numerous fans of ''Hotline Miami'' who are also into ''WesternAnimation/TheLoudHouse'', drawing characters from the latter show with masks and weapons from the games and writing crossover fanfics between the two series. Lola and Lana in particular have been portrayed as Alex and Ash (respectively, and ''always'' that way) due to the twin dynamic between both duos.

** The Brandon mask basically turns Jacket into a FragileSpeedster; though the game runs on OneHitPointWonder, if you make good use of its movement speed and with enough perseverance, you'll be racking up the points quick as you almost instantaneously empty rooms in a heartbeat.

* GoodBadBugs: Hugging a wall sometimes allows you to perform a standing execution on an enemy on the other side. Killing enemies through walls obviously makes some rooms much easier.

* MemeticMutation: [[YouBastard "Do you like hurting other people?"]]

* DoNotDoThisCoolThing: One of the {{Central Theme}}s of both games is the self-destructive nature of violence and the amorality of enjoying it. However, they also appear to make sure that violence looks, feels and plays very good (if it's not NauseaFuel to you, as explained in its entry below). Granted, the creators did say in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcgmmBEEHsk&t=1525s this interview]] that they only went for such theme so as to avoid risk of people trying to imitate the games in real life (like incidents related to other games/series like ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto'').

* DoNotDoThisCoolThing: One of the {{Central Theme}}s of both games is the self-destructive nature of violence and the amorality of enjoying it. However, they also appear to make sure that violence looks, feels and plays very good. Granted, the creators did say in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcgmmBEEHsk&t=1525s this interview]] that they only went for such theme so as to avoid risk of people trying to imitate the games in real life (like incidents related to other games/series like ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto'').

* DoNotDoThisCoolThing: One of the {{Central Theme}}s of both games is the self-destructive nature of violence and the amorality of enjoying it. However, they also appear to make sure that violence looks, feels and plays very good. Granted, the creators did say in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcgmmBEEHsk&t=1525s this interview]] that they only went for such theme so as to avoid risk of people trying to imitate the games in real life (much like incidents related to other games/series like ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto'').

* DoNotDoThisCoolThing: One of the {{Central Theme}}s of both games is the self-destructive nature of violence and the amorality of enjoying it. However, they also appear to make sure that violence looks, feels and plays very good. Granted, the creators did say in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcgmmBEEHsk&t=1525s this interview]] that they only went for such theme so as to avoid risk of people trying to imitate the games in real life (much like incidents related to other games/series like ''Franchise/GrandTheftAuto'').

* DoNotDoThisCoolThing: The CentralTheme of both games is the self-destructive nature of violence and the amorality of enjoying it. However, they also appear to make sure that violence looks, feels and plays very good.