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in: Features, Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number, Level Editor

Level Editor

Revision as of 21:31, 13 May 2018 by YossarianAssyrian (talk | contribs) (→‎Sprites: Moved the face sprite dump by Gunch_Punch to Raw Assets and Tools.)
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StarrySkies

The Starry Sky selection screen of the editor. The blue lit buildings of the Miami skyline ebb and flow like waves.

The Level Editor is a feature in Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number.

The level editor allows for the creation of custom levels and campaigns using assets from the main game. These levels are shareable though Steam Workshop with the caveat that they be completable. Level Editor files have limited mod support and any 'mods' files bundled in them can also be shared through Steam Workshop.

The Beta started on December 10th, 2015, and received its first public update on December 23rd. A second public update was released on March 1st, 2016 with a hotfix on March 10th, 2016. On May 3rd, another public update incorporated Steam Workshop support, allowing players to upload and download new levels through Steam.

Steam users running Windows are able to access the latest release of the level editor by opting in to the editor_beta patch in the game's Steam properties box.

There is no guarantee that beta-created content will work in the final build, so users should be wary of the very real possibility that new updates will render their work obsolete.

Level Settings

In the Level Settings the playable character can be selected as well as the music that will play on the level. It is also possible to set cosmetic effects to the level, such as rain and the background effect. The level boarders may also be set to prevent the player from going outside the playable area. Finally it is possible to add additional floors, adding floors requires placing a floor transition.

Characters

The Level Editor features the following characters:

Jacket

Biker

The Butcher

The Fans (Corey, Tony, Alex, Ash and Mark all collectively count as the character 'The Fans')

The Cop

The Cobra

The Writer

The Henchman

The Soldier

The Rat

The Son

The Hammer

Each character can only use weapons and fight enemies that they have sprites for (for example The Cop can only fight Gang Members, Colombians and Policemen). Some characters have the ability to select something affecting gameplay at the start of the level (usually a mask), the characters with this ability are:

Jacket (can select all Hotline Miami masks).

The Cobra (can select the following masks: Jake, Irvin and Dallas).

The Fans (can select any of the playable characters within the fans).

The Soldier (can select the following weapons: M16, Shotgun, Heavy Machine Gun, Sniper Rifle and Flamethrower).

The Son (can select the following playstyles: Bodyguard, Dirty Hands and Bloodline).

When selecting a playable character with this ability, by default the player will be able to pick the playstyle, however it is possible to force the player to use a specific playstyle by manually placing down the character on the map with the desired playstyle.

Each character has their own vehicle, this must be placed on the map so the player can end the level after completing it.

Enemies

Main article: Enemy Behaviour
Enemy Behaviour

Enemy Behaviour options in the level editor.

Various types of enemies and their behaviours can be selected in the Level Editor, enemies can have the following behaviours:

Static: Stands still until the player is within their line of sight, not alerted by gunfire.

Patrol: Makes a 90 degree turn left when their path is obstructed.

Random: Walks around randomly, occasionally stopping.

Idle: Stands still until the player is within their line of sight, not alerted by gunfire.

Dog: Always patrols, moves along walls if possible.

Thug: Always patrols.

Dodger: Stands still until alerted by the player, unlike other static enemies they can be alerted by gunfire.

Bosses are not available in the Level Editor.

Enemy Factions

Various factions of enemies are also available in the Level Editor, playable characters can only fight enemies that they have sprites for. The Mafia, Gang, Colombian, Police, Soldiers, and Guards factions are available by default in the Level Editor. Currently, the Prisoner and Hallucinatory Demon factions are not available in the Level Editor.

Level Design

The Level Editor allows level designers to place various objects to design levels, the types of objects available are:

Floors: Floor tiles are purely decorative, although it looks very amateurish to not use them, there are many different Floor tiles available to use.

Walls: Walls are used to block movement, projectiles and enemy line of sight, like floors these are used in almost every level.

Door: Doors block projectiles and enemy line of sight if closed, but they can be walked through which will open them, hitting enemies with doors will knock them over.

Glass: Glass blocks movement but not projectiles and enemy line of sight, glass is often used to allow enemies to see the player from another room.

Items: Items are decorative assets that are usually used to make levels look more realistic, while most do not have any effect on gameplay, some do block movement.

Weapons: Called 'Misc' in the editor, weapons can be placed around the level for the player to use, only weapons the player character has sprites for can be placed.

Community Content

Content Dumps

Levels and Custom Assets (by Character)

Sprites

- Enemy Reskins:

--1. Mafia Mods

--2. Gang Mods

--3. Police Mods

--4. Colombian Mods

--5. Guard Mods

--6. Soldier Mods

--7. Misc. Faction Mods

- Faces:

VHS Covers

Weapons

Music

-1. General Music Mods

-2. Campaign Soundtracks

Miscellaneous

-1. Blood and Effects

-2. Walls and Tiles

-3. Weapons

-4. Cars and Other Vehicles

-5. Items, NPCs, and Large Compilations

Raw Assets and Tools:

Alpha Features

NOTE: The alpha version of the editor is incomplete. As such, it is no longer updated and lacks features and bug fixes the beta editor has. Use at your own risk.

  • Selecting Manny Pardo, Jake, Evan, and sometimes The Fans will result in the level complete crashing.
  • A lot of items aren't finished.
  • Many Items will crash the game, when selected.
  • Many Walls from the games are not available. (ie, white brick walls, or indestructible mirrors/windows)
  • Corner wall textures for the Sewer Walls, Wood Walls, and Movie Set Walls will not be placed.
  • If too many walls are added, it will crash.
  • Many tiles from both games are also not available.
  • The guns tab does not have any weapons that can be placed.
  • Triggers can not be made. (For example, the elevator explosion in Casualties, or the "Get the Girl" objective scene in Final Cut)
  • Lethal knife throws will automatically turn the sprite into a mobster.
  • No outro/intro/sprite editors.
  • No cutscene editor.
  • No campaign editor.
  • If you use The Pig Butcher, Richter or The Soldier, you won't be able to finish the level.
  • Saves made in the alpha build will not carry over to the full version.
  • The floor tiles tend to disappear while using the Rewind function and while renaming the level.
  • Some songs are unlisted, such as iamthekidyouknowhatimean's Run. Other songs are incorrectly labeled; for example, selecting Jasper Byrne's Voyager will instead play Carpenter Brut's Le Perv, and Scattle's Bloodline is listed as Pursuit.
  • If the player lowers the volume while in a level, the game will crash.
  • Adding doors will occasionally result in a crash.
  • If player replays the level the floor tiles will disappear, leaving only walls, items and enemies.

Beta Features

  • Create new scenes/levels for the game including furniture, enemies, weapons, and NPCs.
  • Custom intros, outros, and cut-scenes for levels.
  • Custom campaigns.
  • Custom VHS covers for levels.
  • A maximum of 7 floors/areas per level.
  • Unlocked floor transitions. (No longer locked by location; can spawn the character anywhere within the map when transitioning)
  • Locational weapon spawns. (Weapons spawn in the environment, rather than being limited to an enemy)
  • Character Implementation:
    • Biker: Has the ability to kill Thugs.
    • Jacket: Ability to use all his masks from the original game. (It's possible to restrict his mask usage to one or none)
    • H.M. Hammarin: The only character with full sprites for every enemy type.
  • Re-addition of the Drill, Pot, Silenced Uzi, Cleaver, and Throwing Knives as usable weapons - only usable by Jacket (first two) and Biker (last two)
  • Environmental Effect Filters:
    • Rain
    • Darkness
    • Daylight
    • Sunset
  • Dynamic backgrounds:
    • Standard (Red-Aqua-Fuchsia)
    • Jungle (Lime colored trees)
    • Storm (Maroon, Black, with thunder)
    • Waves (Purple-Aqua-Fuchsia waves, as seen in Dead Ahead)
  • Custom level borders.
  • Third-party mod support using the HLM2 Wad Explorer.

Accessing the Alpha Level Editor

The developers left the old alpha version of the editor in the retail version of HLM2 and it can be accessed via exploits. A modded .exe containing the alpha build must be downloaded, and put it in the game directory. (Works for both Steam and GOG edition)

ALPHA EDITOR .EXE DOWNLOAD

Transferring Alpha Levels to the Updated Editor

If you're like everyone else that's made a level in the alpha editor and want to port your level over to the official build of HM2, follow the steps below. Please note that this method hasn't been extensively tested yet, and may produce unstable results. It's highly recommended that you make a back up of your level if you haven't already done so.

  1. Launch the game and access the editor.
  2. Create a new level without renaming anything.
    • During creation, set the beta level's character to match the character selected in your alpha level. The music you selected for either of the levels doesn't matter.
  3. Save and exit the level editor. Whether you keep the game open or shut it down is optional.
  4. Navigate to \Documents\My Games\HotlineMiami2\Levels\single. You should see a single folder with a bunch of random numbers, letters, and dashes.
  5. Open this folder and copy over everything from your alpha level into the beta level folder.
    • Don't copy over your alpha .hlm file to the folder. (If you did it right, then you should have something like this.)
  6. Next, rename your files to replace the currently existing files. Once done, access the editor and load up your game.
    • Please note that the creator name won't be yours upon loading up the level in the beta editor. This can be changed manually in the level selection menu. If your level name is still the original 'untitled', it can be changed without affecting your level's layout.

Adding Covers for Levels

  1. Navigate to \Documents\My Games\HotlineMiami2. If the folder covers doesn't exist, create it in the directory.
  2. Add whatever covers you would like to use in this folder.
    • Please note that each cover has a size constraint of 34 pixels x 57 pixels and must be saved in PNG format.

Trivia

  • During the beta editor's 3rd update, there was a bug that prevented furniture from being placed rotated; any furniture that appeared rotated once placed in the editor would revert permanently to its original rotation upon the level's next playthrough. This bug stuck around for the 4th update and was soon pruned in a hotfix following said update.
Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted.
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