In October 2012 independent video game developers Jonathan Söderström and Dennis Wedin dropped Hotline Miami, a surreal and violent 2D PC game inspired by iconic filmmaker and weirdo David Lynch and the 2011 film Drive. In just a few months it became the surprise hit of 2012 and earning widespread critical acclaim. It would go on to release on Linux, OS X, and several Playstation platforms and spawn a sequel released in March—and, to date the game has sold more than three million units. All of this despite, or maybe because of, how damn difficult the killing missions could be.

We spoke to the creators of Hotline Miami and industry insiders to get the inside story about the game's unexpected success. Watch The Hotline Miami Story above.