SuperMassive Games has done a pretty strong job over the last two gaming generations of establishing itself as the go-to developer for horror-based interactive dramas that used to be known as “walking simulators”. After setting a high standard with the Playstation 4 exclusive “Until Dawn”, the developer followed up with the first of eventually four smaller offerings compared to “Until Dawn” under the umbrella of “The Dark Pictures Anthology”. With a reduced budget, but wider release offerings in terms of hardware, the “Anthology” series progressed from a gameplay perspective with each iteration having something of a roller coaster experience in terms of each games’ most important aspect: the story.
To cap off the first season of this apparent on-going series, SuperMassive focused on reality rather than the paranormal with this presentation. Having enjoyed all of the recent SuperMassive games of the eighth and ninth generation offerings to varying degrees with “The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes” and “The Quarry” being the most recent standouts, I came into this one excited to see how they handled the terror of being stuck in a maze like a rat being chased by the original Triple H.
Did I Complete “The Dark Pictures Anthology: The Devil in Me”?
Like its predecessors, “The Devil in Me” gives gamers the ability to control five different characters during various sequences. Instead of being in the depths of the Middle East during the Iraq War’s formative years like in “House of Ashes”, the Lonnit Entertainment film crew consisting of director Charlie Lonnit (Paul Kaye), on-screen star & reporter Kate Wilder (Jessie Buckley), cameraman and Kate’s former boyfriend Mark Nestor (Fehinti Balogun), lighting technician Jamie Tiergan (Gloria Obianyo), and intern/gopher Erin Keenan (Nikki Patel) present a television series focusing on famous murders & murderers of America. Covering H.H. Holmes and the hotel he crafted to become America’s documented first serial killer, the crew are offered the chance to get a first-hand experience of the torment Holmes put his victims through while proclaiming the devil possessed him during the 19th century.
It doesn’t take long before a majority of the game’s mechanics are introduced from character movement, to object interaction, to performing quick-time events and story-defining choices with the latter providing pathways to the game’s various endings including who lives or dies.
During my first playthrough solo on the normal difficulty (a returning implementation where quick-time events are actually made more difficult or easier to complete), I was able to, surprisingly, get everyone out of their potential grave alive while picking up several trophies not including the glitched trophy for completing the story by myself – something that has never happened in any of SuperMassive’s other games – after a little over six hours.
The biggest stumbling block for completing “The Devil in Me” if someone didn’t pre-order the game is “Curator’s Cut” mode being locked behind a pre-order paywall. The additional mode usually reserved for subsequent playthroughs for players to see moments from the perspective of other characters doesn’t unlock because someone finished the story like it has in previous iterations if they didn’t pre-order the game. To get all of the collectibles and a few trophies, “Curator’s” mode is a must and something gamers on the outside of the pre-order circle will have to wait until it either becomes available for free in four to six months or find someone who did pre-order “The Devil in Me” to use “Shared Play” for an online playthrough while gaining everything needed for the platinum trophy.
What Makes “The Dark Pictures Anthology: The Devil in Me” Unique?
SuperMassive Games has created a formula in regards to its games’ presentation and is sticking to it while wisely adjusting the control scheme and player-friendliness in regards to character movement. One of the biggest gameplay additions is the overall movement advancements including the much-needed “Jog” button that also allows a character to shimmy between walls or across narrow passages, crouch to move through a low hole, and climb up predesignated ledges, as well as move around a lot faster.
Being able to hide during certain moments via the left trigger on consoles adds a nice sense of dread while watching the reason for the protagonist’s fear moving around them in a small space. Though the protagonist’s robotic nature will cause odd moments especially when someone is trying to turn around and focus on a particular object. These gameplay additions that would’ve made sense being used in “House of Ashes” due to the environment almost instantly makes “The Devil in Me” a much better playing experience than any other SuperMassive offering thus far.
The camera is fully controllable with 360 degrees of movement just like in “House of Ashes”; making it easier to see pathways and identify collectibles. In the previous “Dark Pictures” game every character had a flashlight. This time, every protagonist sports a small, ever-changing inventory including flashlights in various forms, found tools like a screwdriver to wedge open hidden passages, and objects that may actually prevent a death during a non-interactive cutscene.
“House of Ashes’” gameplay influences are, thankfully, more profound here including quick warnings when a QTE is about to happen, switching between active characters during those more hectic quick-time events, and the heart monitor QTE that, if the player fails, will most likely alert the enemy of a cowering character’s whereabouts. The previously utilized “Head” or “Heart” choices also dictate the personality trait changes of every character including Mark going from “practical” to “immature” when lamenting about Charlie to Kate. Unfortunately like the games before it, certain choices seem significant in “The Devil in Me”, but really aren’t; while other moments can actually result in a character’s death when it seems that decision shouldn’t prove so dramatic. Players have to be on their toes at all times and using a backup save may be for the best case due to an incredibly fast quick save system that automatically saves after any major choice.
Though the gameplay changes are mostly welcomed modifications, the story beats and over-usage of jump scares and camera angles to emphasize that the killer posing as Holmes is always watching felt like major misses compared to “House of Ashes”. The new cast of main characters struggle to match the same presence and consistency as the cast from “House of Ashes”. Instead of alluding to some horror, supernatural elements, “The Devil in Me” embraces absurd reality in the same vein of a “Saw” film to make players shriek, shake their heads in disbelief, and, hopefully, do another playthrough.
Sadly, one of the game’s biggest draws fails to live up to the hype as the house itself is nothing more than a bunch of pre-determined corridors that limits the player’s intrigue. The building’s various doors are intentionally locked for no reason other than shuttling the player into the section they are supposed to go instead of leaning into the idea that multiple paths are available for success or, most likely, death; leading to unique playthroughs for every player.
This lack of embracing exploration beyond attaining the various collectibles including a currency for gallery purchases is only matched by general technical issues and short comings. The first couple of hours are rough in various ways be it the bland characters & their presentations, unpolished textures, finicky lip synching, and dead-eye stares where people standing in front of each other while having a conversation are looking past the body they’re talking to just inches away from them. Around the second act, things pick up as it becomes more about a murder mystery while unveiling the truth behind this killer. Depending on the amount of protagonists alive, the last act is either extensive & action-packed or woefully hasty; though the antagonist becomes more like Jason Vorhees than a jacked-up Jigsaw by the finale fifteen minutes or so.
The co-op options from the previous “Dark Pictures” games return here. Having quick discussions or arguments over potential terrible choices made can make for a memorable experience during “Movie Night” mode where local players pass the controller back and forth. “Shared Story” mode actually adds to the story when playing online with a friend as certain moments are actually solely connected to “Shared Story”. Not only that, but “Shared Story” mode hides the decisions of the other player that could too change the fate of an entire playthrough. Sadly, players have struggled to start online games with friends weeks following the game’s release – a problem that, hopefully, will be patched sooner than later.
Technical issues beyond the aforementioned “Shared Story” inabilities are sound & graphical glitches usually reserved for the early hours including flickering & teleporting characters, QTE icons appearing unusually fast after finishing the previous one, and the in-game timer forcing story-progressive scenes when someone may be wandering around to investigate for those aforementioned collectibles. When the sound isn’t having problems in presentation, the noises made when moving throughout including creaking floorboards and the haunting screams of spirits trapped after horrific demises over a century ago can occur at any time and provides the best feeling of dread the game offers in terms of atmosphere.
“The Devil in Me” is a testament of learning from one’s mistakes while creating different problems or failing to reach new heights when attempting to implement those learned practices. For all the gameplay improvements, an inconsistent narrative pacing, characters that feel too bland and/or annoying initially, and a setting that could’ve been the most unique in any SuperMassive experience thus far really hinders “The Devil in Me” from creating a new highpoint in the franchise like “House of Ashes” did last year.
Should You Play “The Dark Pictures Anthology: The Devil in Me”?
SuperMassive Games must be commended for not going to the well too many times in terms of what type of story they want to present. Thanks to the gameplay additions & modifications, “The Devil in Me” is the best playing SuperMassive experience yet. Unfortunately, the story and its setting may leave something to be desired mostly due to how little the hotel actually challenges the player to stay on a path that doesn’t result in death; relying on jump scares and the player unknowingly making the wrong decision.
Though “The Devil in Me” doesn’t reach the heights of “House of Ashes”, let alone “The Quarry”, it’s still a strong enough experience for those who love these type of games; but only after the “Curator’s Cut” is widely available and some patches clean up various technical issues. Gamers who didn’t enjoy the previous entries or the genre as a whole won’t find much worth enjoying here. But other gamers looking for a solid fright with the intent of replaying the game a few times either by oneself or with a friend won’t be disappointed like a boss hearing their employees talk trash about him or discovering that one of those creepy mannequins is a lot more life-like than expected.
