‘The curse of MIXED is broken:’ Suda51 & Swery65’s Hotel Barcelona claws its way to ‘Mostly Positive’ on Steam after Hail Mary patch and scrubbing AI assets
Hotel Barcelona, a 2.5D action platformer and slasher film parody developed by White Owls Inc., has achieved a significant turnaround on Steam by climbing from “Mixed” to “Mostly Positive” reviews. The game is a notable collaboration between acclaimed Japanese game designers Suda51 (No More Heroes, Killer7) and Swery65 (Deadly Premonition).
The improvement followed the “Under New Management” update deployed in March 2026, which brought substantial changes to address player concerns. A key component of the update involved cleaning up and removing controversial generative AI assets that had become a point of contention within the community.
Director Swery65 publicly celebrated the milestone on social media, crediting the collective effort of both the development team and player support in reversing the game’s reception trajectory. He described the achievement as breaking “the curse of MIXED,” framing the turnaround as a redemption arc for what was envisioned as a dream collaboration between two eccentric and highly-respected game auteurs. The story demonstrates how post-launch updates that directly address player concerns—particularly regarding controversial technologies like generative AI—can meaningfully reshape a game’s reputation and user sentiment on digital storefronts.