Personally, The Devil in Me was the installment I have been looking forward to the most. While I can’t turn down any horror game, there is something about a group of people killed off by a masked killer that just hits the right note so to speak. While this Dark Pictures anthology entry is by no means perfect, I feel like some reviews have been a tad harsh on it. Anyway, let’s check it out, shall we? 

Plot

A film crew – director Charlie, his assistant Erin, cameraman Mark, technician Jamie, and Kate, the face of the show – receive an offer to visit a model house of H. H. Holmes. The team has just completed filming an episode dedicated to the notorious serial killer but is struggling budget-wise. Wary but in need of a big break, the group accepts and travels to the location, a remote island they can only access by ferry. It’s not long before they are separated and picked off by their host.

One thing I would note is that the plot doesn’t seem as branched out as some of the previous games. There are certain characters who have plot armor and some decisions are set in stone no matter what choices the player makes. In true horror slasher fashion, even if some/all characters make it out, the threat still looms, and the cycle continues. It’s debatable how much excitement it takes out of playing as some could argue even Until Dawn and The Quarry ended up having a pretty linear narrative trajectory.

Characters

In my opinion, this is where The Devil in Me falls a tad short. On one hand, it works, as slasher horror is known to have characters that fit into specific archetypes and are mainly there to get, well, slashed. On the other hand, for a game that thrives on character dynamics, they are not the most developed. 

While Jamie and Kate’s rivalry is its own bearing, it does not hold that much merit as they are quite quick to bury the hatchet. Erin and Jamie’s budding romance is cute but on shaky grounds based on some gameplay decisions. In addition, I never bought Kate and Mark as exes, as while their dialogue was well written for a broken-up couple, they didn’t seem to have much chemistry (although I have to give props to Jessie Buckley as she really put it all into her voice acting). 

While all of this sounds a bit harsh, I still find the group entertaining to watch in this setting and who knows, perhaps I haven’t unlocked specific interactions just yet. 

Gameplay

This section of the feature has probably received the most divisive feedback. Developers made some changes to gameplay, such as letting the characters jog and adding inventories. Some people have remarked that these things take away from the game rather than add to it as it makes The Devil in Me more of an RPG experience and not an interactive movie that the company is known for. 

For me, these changes did not affect the playthrough, although I do see where those people are coming from. It might’ve been better to save the changes for season two to show the progress the team has been making. One thing I should mention is the intro scene – while I loved the concept of it, the animation was noticeably worse than the rest of the game and should’ve been patched up in the final stages. 

Final thoughts

Even with some drawbacks, I consider The Devil in Me my personal favorite out of the four installments of season one. The atmosphere and jump scares were especially effective for me and unlike a couple of others, I genuinely found this game scary, which is the whole point (although I know what people find scary is entirely subjective). I am very much looking forward to what Supermassive Games has to offer next.  (4.5 / 5)