The Dark Pictures Anthology: The Devil Inside Me Review – A thoughtful but clumsy study of serial killer fascination

The Devil in Me is the fourth installment of Supermassive Games’ The Dark Pictures Anthology and the finale to the first season of the anthology. Then you’d expect some sort of explosion from the devil in me, right? Sadly, this underwhelming ending let itself down with performance issues, a severe lack of quality, and limited immersion (which is often essential to the series’ appeal).

The inner demon follows the crew of Lonnit Entertainment as they receive an invitation they can’t refuse. As the creators of the true crime series, the gang is looking for a season finale that will hopefully guarantee them more airtime. The theme of their last episode? America’s most prolific serial killer, HH Sherlock Holmes. However, this crew has no foothold. That is, until a mysterious phone call kicks off.

Granthem Du’Met, the relative of a serial killer who managed to faithfully replicate H. H Holmes’ World’s Fair Hotel, invited Lonnit Entertainment to take a personal tour of this quirky landmark steeped in brutal history. So, off they go, following Du’Met’s strict, bizarre rules, hoping to end their show on a climax.

The Devil in Me has a unique premise and it absolutely hooked me. It’s hard not to hear about the horrific legacy that real-life criminal HH Holmes left behind him. It’s hard to ignore the various references to him in popular media (Robert Bloch’s American Gothic, Eric Larson’s The Devil in the White City, American Horror Story, etc.), and those Compliments his real life persona for some reason or other.

With that in mind, I have reservations about the devil in me, and whether it risks glorifying such a man and the heinous crimes he committed. Just look at Netflix’s Dahmer, and the controversy it’s caused over the past few months. When I finished The Devil Within and found out that the opposite was true, I was relieved. Without spoiling, there’s a lot of talk in the game about Holmes and how some people turned serial killers into celebrities. There’s also talk of the devotion to the spectacle of death, which again speaks against glorifying this horrific crime, and leads to some very interesting discussions on the matter.

As something I’m very passionate about (thanks to Jordan Peele’s recent horror movie Nope), it’s nice to see a game tackling such a sensitive subject. What it actually is and how it raises questions among players – why everyone is so obsessed with the most horrific crimes, and why we’re so keen to immortalize them – is admirable. There’s a lot to think about, and who knows, maybe The Dark Pictures Anthology will talk about it more in future episodes. That’s something I’d certainly like to see, and it’s something the series can deliver. The Devil Inside Me provides fertile ground for a more thoughtful future of the Supermassive franchise.

When I walk into a World’s Fair Hotel (or replica, whatever), my inner demon is beautiful. The hotel itself is a myriad of corridors and secret doors, and as a result, you’ll often lose your way. As expected, I hope. Great attention has been paid to detail, and the hotel itself is heavily influenced by North American period design, with an atmosphere reminiscent of Kubrick’s version of The Prospect Hotel (The Shining). If you appreciate your cult horror films, The Devil in Me is certainly a feast of direct references and discrete nods throughout–they’re all thoughtful, intricate, purposeful, and referential.

The Devil in Me definitely tries to be bigger and better than its predecessors. With a runtime of up to 10 hours if you play it right and the inclusion of new mechanics, this should be the game that made The Dark Pictures Anthology famous. It’s a compelling story that’s very well told–a staple of Supermassive at this point–but various bugs and sloppy animations keep the game from repeatedly failing. From a third-person perspective of a character I’m playing, why am I experiencing random cutscenes that are sometimes choppy and stop-starting? This is clearly not intentional, and I have no idea why this is happening. But as a result, I often found myself dodging and sneaking around while playing the game.

I don’t expect the most raw animation from The Dark Pictures Anthology, and I even find joy in the awkward facial expressions the characters pull between cutscenes. That said, the lack of quality is a detriment to my demons this time around, and I think it’s bolstered by new gameplay elements. For example, there’s more to gameplay now than just walking around–whether it’s interacting with items or making decisions. You can finally run, but also crouch, crawl, jump, swing, and balance. Each character has an inventory so they can equip torches and key items that are vital to their survival.

While I welcome running with open arms – even taking an inventory – is the rest really necessary? When interrupted dialogue, awkward scene transitions, or general stuttering don’t break your immersion, the parts that involve climbing will. Yes, in some areas these actions feel appropriate, but in many places it all feels redundant. It feels like Supermassive is showing off what it’s capable of, and while it’s nice to see the team step out of their comfort zone, it’s arguable that The Devil in Me needs a little more time in the oven. Maybe after a few updates the game will live up to its potential.

These games thrive on their narratives and high-quality, straightforward gameplay. When your flashlight doesn’t work at the exact moment you need it, or your subtitles make a mistake during an important piece of dialogue – it destroys your immersion. When a game needs to be as powerful as possible, to actually scare you, and to deliver its message about serial killers and murderer fetishes, technical issues like these can spoil everything.

While The Devil Within didn’t live up to expectations, I think it’s important to remember that the game was trying to do something new for the series. Sometimes new mechanics don’t always work out as planned, and I believe this game would indeed be one of Supermassive Games’ best titles if it were of higher quality and more carefully incorporated into its new movement mechanics.

I would still recommend The Dark Pictures Anthology: The Devil in Me release if you can work out the current technical issues. If Supermassive Games manages to implement some updates and fix performance issues, then I might even recommend it – highly recommended! – For seasoned horror fans. Despite its flaws, “The Devil Within” tells the compelling story of a terrifying killer in a thoughtful way, opens up important discussions about humanity’s obsession with the sacred spectacles, and shows the franchise’s great potential for the future. It’s just… a shame for everything else.