After playing The Chant and The Quarry you could say that I am on a bit of an interactive drama hype when it comes to my games recently. Which is why I couldn’t let The Devil in Me slip through my fingers. When I first saw a trailer for this game I was instantly hooked and it immediately earned a place on my must-play games of this year. The Dark Pictures Anthology series has been around since 2019 with the first instalment being Man of Medan but at the time interactive dramas weren’t on my radar as much as they are now and this is one of the reasons I didn’t want to miss out on this game. Luckily you can just jump into this one if you haven’t played the previous ones as each tells its own story, I did my research and found out that this game was based around Serial Killers and a Murder Castle and straight off these two pieces of information I knew that if done right this game could be fantastic. So, with a good amount of expectation, I started the first Dark Pictures Anthology game to see what is in store for our five characters.
This will be my first time playing The Dark Pictures Anthology game, though not my first Interactive drama, survival horror. The Devil in Me features a group of documentary filmmakers who by chance receive a phone call from someone offering them a chance to film at a modern-day replica of serial killer H.H. Holmes ‘Murder Castle. With the group falling on bad times they thought this could be their big break and accepted the invitation. Sadly, for them, it wasn’t a five-star experience and while filming some scenes for their show, they slowly realise something isn’t right and there is something far more sinister happening. Me and my partner love murder mysteries and Serial Killer documentaries, which is why I wanted to make The Devil in Me a must-play this year. The story follows five characters and it falls upon you to determine their fate.
Like all interactive dramas, you follow the story and at selected points get to make decisions and play through scenarios that ultimately affect how the story plays out. All five characters are playable in this game and your decisions help progress the story on a multilinear narrative that always kept me guessing. There were new features introduced in this instalment these being character inventory, tool-based puzzles, and new movement capabilities such as running, jumping, and climbing. Seeing as this is the first Dark Pictures game, I have played I can’t compare it to previous titles but it sounds as though you get a lot more freedom when it comes to movement also, I liked the idea of each character having their own inventory and unique skill, for example, Charlie can pick certain locks and Erin has asthma so you need to keep an eye on her to make sure she doesn’t suffer from an asthma attack. These added features help build more character development and certain collectables are only accessible using certain characters.
There are plenty of quick-time events and decisions for the player to make which helps keep you engaged and always thinking. There were a few times when we got caught off guard with a good old-fashioned jump scare which proves that if they are done right are perfect additions to any horror game. There wasn’t a time where I felt like I wasn’t enjoying the story and with every clue, I found I was getting more and more invested in the story and trying to figure out who the killer was. There wasn’t a character that I feel 100% for but I did have my favourites which sadly in my first play through I killed by accident, which was very sad but still helped my path unfold.
There are certain pictures that you come across that give you a little snippet into the future and if you like play out a possible scenery. You can use these to give you a heads up on what could happen if a certain scenery plays out but it also can be used in your favour to try and avoid the outcome. Most of the time it was foreshadowing someone’s death and you could use this to try and avoid that.
When it comes to interactive drama, and survival horror games sound and graphics play a huge part in the success of the game. The Dark Pictures Anthology’s fourth entry has some moments of wonder but an unhealthy amount of facial animation problems and graphical bugs. A times characters can be seen glitching or disappearing and reappearing which can get in the way of building tension or setting the sense. It doesn’t happen too often which is a positive but it still can be frustrating at times, the facial animation is good, not saying it is terrible just looks fake and unpleasing when trying to show certain emotions. It feels robotic rather than smooth and flowing. Again not all the time but when it happens it can ruin the atmosphere, for example, if someone is about to get killed but they just look robotic it doesn’t give off the same emotion and end product. The “Murder Castle” however steals the show as this is one hotel that I would be giving a negative review to on trip advisor. Its design helps build tension and suspense and getting to see all the different areas, traps and locations helps flesh out the story and get a feel for what the characters of the story are going through. Voice acting in The Devil in Me is good, some recognisable cast members are featured in the game but at times it does feel like they could put a bit more into the acting and emotion behind some of the scenes.
The Devil in Me has a lot of replay value due to the number of decisions the game offers while you are playing. You can enjoy one play-through by picking the decisions you want then replay the game or selected scenes to see where the other options will lead you. I love these types of games due to everyone’s play-throughs being unique to them as you’re the one in the driver’s seat when it comes to saving characters or watching them die. The power is in your hands, literally. There are also achievements for them achievement hunters out there and due to the number of hidden endings, secrets and collectables if you are looking to 100% the game it will take some doing unless you cheat and look online but that removes all the fun.
Conclusion
The Devil in Me’s ‘Murder Castle’ location was the perfect setting for any horror masterpiece but sadly fell flat at times with buggy animations and glitches. The story kept me guessing and hooked from start to finish and I felt like the voice actors/actress did a good enough job not to make it a horrible experience. The Serial killer element and a nod to H.H. Holmes (American’s first serial killer) were the foundation that kept this whole game alive and thriving and in typical Michal Myers fashion just didn’t want to stay down. This game has made me want to go and check out the previous instalments as well as follow future games that get released, without spoiling anything the next game certainly looks like an interesting concept. The Devil in Me played host to a fantastic setting and storyline but needs some finishing touches to make it truly spectacular which is why I’m giving it a solid 8 out of 10.
Grab your copy here https://www.xbox.com/en-GB/games/store/the-dark-pictures-anthology-the-devil-in-me/9P7KK8SN99VB
Developer: Supermassive Games
Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Series S, Microsoft Windows
Publishers: BNE Entertainment, Namco Bandai Games America Inc.
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