Jacket Appreciation Post
Hello Heisters!
Do you like hurting other people? Well sure I do, because it's time to appreciate one hell of a crossover, the enigmatic sociopathic cassette-speaker, Jacket, Hotline Miami's protagonist!
Lore
"Jacket" is an american man, presumably named "Richard" after his rooster mask (in Hotline Miami, every mask is named after his owner) from Miami. Despite not speaking a single word, Jacket is well-known for wiping out the entire Russian Mafia in Miami on his own. To comunicate with his fellow heisters, Jacket uses a tape recorder, playing back bits and pieces of language learning tapes, PAs and documentary narrations
Relationships with other heisters
Jacket... well, despite his "communication problems", manages to "show his opinion" on the rest of the Payday Gang using his tapes:
Dallas: Jacket seems to recognise and accept Dallas' role as the leader of the gang, referencing him in his tape as "a fuel source for the economy".
Wolf: In his tape, Jacket refers to wolves as "apex predators", mainly referencing both his recklessness and efectiveness. Wolf is also most likely the one who introduced Jacket, as he's seen in his trailer, and well, both have "similar tendencies".
Chains: In his tape, Jacket mentions safety tips when handling guns, referencing Chains' role in the gang, as well as his military past.
Houston: (Goddamit Jacket why) In Houston's tape, explains the concept of idenity theft and it's concecuencies, obviously mocking the best character in the game's Houston's situation.
Hoxton: This one is... weird: "Hoxton shoreditch, borrough of Hackney, London. First recorded in the Domesday book. Please consider a visit to Hoxton market." I guess he aknowledges Hoxton's existance and british origins...?
John Wick: Jacket seems to like Wick's past as a hitman, calling him "angel of death".
Clover: "Clover, Trifolium, four leaves for luck, five leaves uncommon, live in clover, thank you." Yeah...
Dragan: Jacket reminds Dragan of his past as a cop, and how he became a criminal, probably to mock him.
Bonnie: Bonnie's a gambler and Jacket says that best players always cheat, I guess refering both Bonnie's gambling problem and past as a black widow.
Sokol: This one is... friendlier than I expected, considering Jacket's relationship with russians, he reminds Sokol of his ice hockey player past and welcomes him to America...? Sokol however is annoyed by Jacket's way of communicating, wanting to steal his tape recorder to force him to speak.
Jiro: Jacket seems to encourage him about finding his son, surprisingly. (That didn't aged well Jacket.)
Bodhi: This tape is simply various U.S presidents' names, referencing Point Break, Bodhi's origin, which is a film series about bank heists by small groups wearing masks resembling past U.S. presidents.
Jimmy: Jimmy can transfer his conciousness to another clone of him when he dies, so, in the tape, Jacket references his ability of "being whoever he wants".
Sydney: Jacket references the dingos, obviously remarking Sydney's australian origins and his previous gang, "The Dingos". Sydney seems to like "Jacket's style".
Rust: Jacket seems to admire Rust's way of living as a biker, and also referencing "Biker", a Hotline Miami protagonist.
Why is he cool?
Jacket on his own is a very, very unique heister, his way of speak is what makes him stand out so much, having amazing and interesting lines. Despite not showing much of his personality, Jacket is really fun to play as. If you played Hotline Miami, you WILL want to play as him. It's confirmed that every crossover character in Payday 2 is canon, which is curious because SPOILER FOR HOTLINE MIAMI 2 Jacket died obliterated by a nuke, alongside every person in Miami. Considering Hotline Miami takes place on the 80s, if Jacket is the protagonist of the game, he would be on his 50s or 60s, being only younger than Rust or maybe Jiro. However, he could also be just a fan of the game who wants to be like Jacket, it's a mistery. Back to Payday 2, if you like Wolf or Sydney, you'll probably like Jacket. His voice lines can be difficult to hear sometimes, due to the static of the recorder, which is the only thing that could stop players from maining him.
Some cool lines:
"The following presentation has been approved for mature audiences only."
"What a lovely day, right? Deberíamos haber contratado a un portugués." (We should've hired a portuguese guy.)
"Je déteste les cigarettes mouillées" (I hate wet cigarettes.)
"We're expecting visitors. Ya vienen los putos cerdos." (The fucking pigs are coming.)
"Una testa di cazzo in meno." (One dickhead less.)
"Más rápido, imbécil." (Faster, moron.)
"Comed esto, gilipollas." (Eat this, douchebags.)
"Espero que se ahoguen con mierda.'' (I hope you drown in on shit.)
"Se non vuoi fare una brutta fine, vedi di salvarmi." (If you don't want to end up hurt, you'd better save me.)
"Exercise caution when aggravating my temper..."
"Jódanse, putos polis." (Fuck you, fucking cops.)
"Me estoy muriendo, coño." (I'm fucking dying.)
"Du siehst aus wie ein scheiss Autounfall." (You look like a fucking car crash.)
My opinion:
I love Jacket. I love playing as him, I love Hotline Miami, I love his lines, I love everything about him. He's one of the most fitting crossover characters for Payday, and (in my opinion) the funniest heister. This is very personal for me, but I'm from Spain, so hearing him saying spainsh bad words such as "gilipollas" or "coño" makes me laugh so much every time. I remember playing Hotline Miami and discovering that Jacket was a DLC for Payday 2 if you buy Hotline Miami 2 special edition. I bought it instantly and played only Jacket for two weeks or so with the different Hotline Miami animal masks. He's my favourite crossover character overall, and the ONLY thing that bothers me is that sometimes he is really dificult to understand, which can be pretty annoying. His outfit is pretty unique, instead of going for a classy suit, he remains in his original clothes from his game, and despite having his classical "Richard Returns" mask, you can use him with every animal mask and you'll feel like the complete Hotline Miami experience. He's also bundled in a pretty clever way, only buying him if you are a fan of Hotline Miami not as a DLC for Payday 2, so, I think almost everyone that has him is because loves the game. If you like violent sociopathic characters, funny and great lines, and hurting people, Jacket may be for you!
Could Jacket fit in Payday 3?
Absolutly, he's one of the crossover characters that could easily return in Payday 3, even if I doubt he will. Hotline Miami 2 is the last game of the series, so including him in Payday 3 would be due to fan requesting other than promoting. If he's not in, they could also bring another character from Hotline Miami, like Biker, even tho I think everyone prefers Jacket. Dennis Wedin and Jonatan Söderström seem like really cool guys, so I doubt they would pevent another crossover. Overall, bring him back with a new communicaing set and he's ready to destroy the everyone!
How about you? What are your thoughts on Jacket? Would you like to see him included in Payday 3? Feel free to say your opinion and do you know what time it is?