While the industry tends to eventually settle on a brand-neutral standard, many critics initially resort to comparing games to the most popular example of their genre, coining terms like “ Souls-like” and “ Doom-clone” to describe gameplay.

In the world of videogames, we see this a lot in terms of defining new genres. From “Aspirin” to “Ziploc” bags, this process is usually only achieved once a company has completely cornered a market, with some brand names often outlasting the companies that created them. Genericization is what happens when a trademarked brand name becomes so ubiquitous that folks start using the name as an umbrella term for all similar products within its niche. Well, except for the killing and the gore part. You’ll have to use your slo-mo power to avoid bullets while also returning fire in some Matrix-esque (or is that Max Payne-esque?) scenes that could be described as beautiful. You apparently also don’t reload, since you’ll be grabbing your victim’s guns and using them in lieu of ammo pickups.Īnd yes, much like Hotline Miami, you’ll die in The Cleaner. As the Steam page says, there’s no cliché storyline, and no cutscenes. There’s really not much more to it than that. The story for The Cleaner is pretty simple: You are a cleaner that has the unique power of slowing down time (a la Superhot). As you can see from the trailer below, The Cleaner proudly touts that it’s a delightful mix of John Wick, Superhot and Hotline Miami. Well, thanks to Dystopia Corp, you’ll get your chance later this week when their “die ‘n’ retry” FPS The Cleaner releases on Steam. Let’s be honest: Being John Wick would be awesome.