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Sunday 11 October 2015

THE DEVIL INSIDE


Let's face it, most reality TV sucks. If there's one thing that would interest me in likes of Big Brother, it would be a mass load of rampaging zombies (and we have that thanks to a TV show called Dead Set). Add in a large dose of The Running Man and you get Cryo's 2000 action game The Devil Inside.

I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with Cryo Interactive. Their games are often impressive to look at with interesting premises but for every great game they release, there's more that are close to unplayable. The Devil Inside is thankfully not one of them, perhaps in part to sharing some creative talent that was behind Alone in the Dark. It is a very fun third-person shooter with a B-movie sensibility and tonnes of pixelated gore.

You are Dave, demon hunter and star of the "hippest reality show on the entire west coast". An evil mass-murderer who was executed the year before has escaped from hell, taking many cursed souls with him. He's taken refuge in a Hollywood mansion with a spooky reputation named Shadow Gate, which just so happens to be perfect for your ratings. Send them all back to hell in the most entertaining of ways to keep the show on the air.

You're not alone in your quest to entertain. Back in the safety of the studio is the host, Jack T. Ripper, who will keep you updated with how satiated the crowd is. A cameraman will stick close to you to capture everything, no matter the danger. At certain moments you can even summon the game's namesake, Deva. She is a powerful devil residing inside of you (see what they did there) whose magic abilities cause extra devastation. She's also a massive crowd-pleaser.

The first thing you'd want to do when you boot the game up is change the controls. The default keyboard config is awkward as all hell with movement and strafing being at opposite ends. Factor in the use of a mouse and this setup requires three hands to use effectively. I simply changed it to the modern standard of WASD movement and most issues disappeared.

I say 'most' for a reason. If there is one major negative that cannot be fixed it's in the aiming of your gun. I found the mouse to be a little too twitchy, even at the lowest sensitivity settings. It's not so bad as to break the game, but it does invite some frustrating moments. There is a red laser to see where you're aiming, but finding it in the first place is difficult particularly in the outside sections. Not all weapons require the pointer though. There are several close-range weapons such as a buzz-saw which unleashes some beautifully gory kills.

Enemies are re-used often throughout the game, but what is there is great. They range from your basic shuffling zombie, a crawling deadite severed at the waist to a little old lady hunched over a walking stick. All of them react differently depending on where you hit them. You can shoot off limbs, heads or even blast massive holes in their torsos. Once they're dispatched they burst into flames which is harmful to both you and other enemies. It's a useful tactic to target one enemy and lure the rest into the flames to conserve ammo.

Sometimes the police will help out but they're not exactly LAPD's finest. You're not penalised if one of them bites the dust. The biggest assistance you'll receive is from the devil inside of you, mainly because you control her directly. She also has the ability to collect the souls from her dispatched foes in a similar way to the Soul Reaver games. She is working in direct cahoots with Beelzebub himself who's a little angry that so many souls have escaped his domain.

As is standard for most Cryo games, the graphics are pretty good. The odd use of sprites for plantation prove its age, but this is most noticeable in the exteriors. Go inside the mansion and everything still looks pretty stunning. The support for high resolutions not too common at the time helps.

The Devil Inside is simply a fun experience. It's not too deep but the dark satire and extreme zombie gore (not to mention the occasional nudity) make for a show that I'd definitely tune into.


To download the game, follow the link below. This is a custom installer exclusive to The Collection Chamber uses DxWind to run on modern systems (thank to ModsMonthly @relicanyobro & BZPlasma for the help). nGlide 3D Wrapper (included) must be installed. Manual included. Tested on Windows 10.
  19.05.2018 - Version 2 -  Uses DxWind to fix the CD error in Windows 10.
                                         Added compressed CD audio compatible with DxWind

File Size: 328 Mb.  Install Size: 363 Mb.  Need help? Consult the Collection Chamber FAQ

Download


The Devil Inside is © Cryo Interactive
Review, Cover Design and Installer created by me

Like this? Try These...

The Guardian of Darkness  Silent Hill: Arcade  Time Gate: Knight's Chase

59 comments:

  1. Hello again. I never heard back from you after your initial response to the first email I sent you, so I thought I'd try here. I'm guessing my emails to you never got through. I just wanted to let you know that one of them has a Google drive link with the Windows 10 fix for this game, if you're still interested.

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    1. Ooh! I am! My computer buggered up a bit after the latest Windows update so that's been taking up my time along with life and work. (Note: do not install the April update!). I'm going to write my next post review before I work on this.

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    2. That sucks to hear. I've heard so many people complain about their PCs getting messed up after installing one of those notorious Windows 10 updates. I might be one of the only lucky ones to have never had any issues after installing every update so far. Anyway, let me know if you need the file link again. I sent a few messages to your gmail with links to it, so if they're not there, I can send another message with the link again. Let me know whenever you can. Good thing I'm a PC repair tech, so I'm use to PC problems :)

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    3. Yes, I have the download saved so I should be good. Apparently the April update screwed up because of an SSD drive, which then corrupted some user data when I reverted back. Got very frustrating chatting with them so I just did a fresh install. Had to reinstall all my programs and lost a couple of save games which weren't backed up but other than a week of my life, that's about it.

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    4. Just gave the fix a go, I have heard of DXWind before though I've not really spent much time with it. While the game does run smoothly, I'm having trouble with mouse and input issues which I can't seem to resolve. The cursor is too sensitive which makes the game unplayable for me. That being said it is a good program which I could utilise in future. I do think it's perhaps much more dependand on each individual system configuration (it might need different settings for different machines or not work at all).

      Worth a try though, and I might put my tinkered config in there as a separate download for those who want it.

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    5. Slept on it, got it working. Ver.2 coming soon.

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    6. Awesome to hear. Glad it worked. I'll give your new version a test on a future stream of mine in the next couple of weeks. I'm definitely excited to try it out. I always use a gaming mouse with custom dpi buttons on it, so I never have issues with sensitivity. I'll let you know what day I stream it and you can stop by to check it out if you're interested to see version 2 in action. I'll be playing through the whole thing. It may not be a perfect fix, but at least it works on Windows 10 now. Copy protection on modern OSes are such a pain.

      PS: It's "nGlide" not "bGlide" :P DxWnd is also included in the whole thing as well. I basically copied it to the main game directory and created a shortcut to run it.

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    7. I'll definitely check the stream out out. The installer also includes some notes I made on the features I checked in DxWind to get it working. I've only touched the surface of the program so I'm not entirely confident it'll run the same on different systems but it's probably close enough.

      Also time for an edit :P.

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    8. Awesome. I'm planning on streaming a few of your custom build games. X-Files, 101 Dalmations, Aliens Trilogy, Aliens: A Comic Book Adventure and Nocturne to name a few. I'll even plug your site to my viewers while I stream them, so you can get more recognition for your hard work. It's really great that you're trying to keep these great retro classics alive on modern OSes. I'm a hardcore retro fan. Might I ask a favor? If you have free time, I'd love if you could take a look at Toy Story Action Game for PC. I've been wanting to play it again since 1999, but the game won't run on any OS after Win 98. PC version has superior CDDA redbook audio compared to the compressed midi of the console versions. I'd love to be able to finally stream it after all these years!

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  2. I wanted to let you know that I tried out your V2 of Devil Inside, but found it to be as if it were running sub 40 FPS. It just didn't feel smooth and the FPS felt like it was stuttering. I tested to see if dgVoodoo2 would improve it by copying D3D8.dll, D3DImm.dll, DDraw.dll, dgVoodoo.conf and dgVoodooCpl.exe into the base folder where the original Devil Inside.exe file is located. After that, I started dgVoodooCpl.exe and modified some settings in the DirectX tab and the game ran at a smooth 60FPS at all times. It also looked much better. I think not needing nGlide and just having those files above already pre-placed and setup into the main game folder will be much better for your installer. Just wanted to let you know that.

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    1. Thanks for the info. I'll make a note of it for future installs. I tend not to look for further fixes if it runs well for my setup - which this one did - so feedback like this is much appreciated.

      Delete
  3. Hello. I am new here and after trying both versions on Win8.1 I ran into some problems. The original version set my volume to 100% automatically, then crashed. V2 has a frozen cursor that will not move, keyboard does nothing and I cannot find any option to modify the settings. The only way out was the Task Manager.. I admit that I am a complete and utter novice to any programs mentioned on here, but I am willing to follow any direction you are willing to share with me. Thank you very much for even providing a game I adored so many years back.

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    1. Hello and sorry for late reply.

      Version 1 will do that. See and Update post a few years back for more info.

      The issue you're having with Version 2 is a simple one. For some reason running a game with DxWnd via batch file or shortcut doesn't select said window. Simply Alt-TAB into the game screen (or press Windows key and select it from the taskbar) to select it and the controls will now work. Read the FAQ for more info.

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    2. I fixed the crash. You just need to run the game using the D3DWindower. Use this program and open the .exe, then continue the game. Any doubts, email me at:
      10mmbrasil@gmail.com

      Delete
  4. Something a little odd is happening to me. I installed both versions, V1 kept asking for a disc, after it crashed is would allow me to get back into the game menu, would just freeze. V2 just shows a black screen then crashes. any idea?

    p.s. I did installed the N Glide Wrapper

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    Replies
    1. Hello. The NoCD patch I used in Version 1 no longer worked when upgrading to Windows 10. There's an Update post detailing it when I first came across it. I've not encountered the Black Screen crash, but have you read the ChamberNotes that came with it. It details the issues I encountered and what options I used in DxWnd to resolve them. Perhaps that will hold some clues.

      Delete
    2. I fixed the crash. You just need to run the game using the D3DWindower. Use this program and open the .exe, then continue the game. Any doubts, email me at:
      10mmbrasil@gmail.com

      Delete
  5. Hi, I really want to thank you for this game, always wanted to finish it back then when it was released but had terrible PC (it was before I got RivaTNT2) but then was swarmed by other games and forgot it until now.

    Played both V1 and V2, both runs pretty well but both share same weird bug - I can't control Dave after pressing Action in some places in Attic part. Like putting Fuse to activate elevator, both actions freeze mouse and my character. Can't do anything except pressing Esc or switching cameras.

    Tried to run in compatibility mode, run as administrator or fiddle with DXWind settings, nothing worked.
    The only solution so far is to switch character, to Deva, and do all these actions mentioned before. Then everything works and I can proceed, I'm just affraid that situation might happen somewhere at the end of the game when my alter ego Deva is kidnapped.

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    1. Thanks for letting me know. I'm going to have to look at this when I have the time.

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    2. Sorry for asking but I managed to deal with the problem (had to start New Game). No idea what caused that bug.
      I have two suspects - bullet time (F11 key) then saving game (game have speed issues after some actions like using buttons or slow-mo kills).
      Second option might be some bugged ammo box on the Attic, it's near the TV save point and Deva/Dave shaping stone. I managed to collect ~1280 ammo for pistiols with that one and then saved.
      Hope there will be no more nasty surprises.

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    3. No probs. While searching online for info, I found why V1 kept asking for the CD in Windows 10. Apparantly, it would only run if it was installed in C: or D:. At least V2 eliminates this issue.

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  6. Just a heads up: the Mega link here goes to your installer for Sweet Home, not The Devil Inside.

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    1. Thanks! I knew there was gonna be a few mistakes when I transferred all to Mega.

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    2. Perfect, thanks. Keep up the good work, sir.

      Delete
  7. Hi, I have a problem with installing this game - every time installation freezes at 13% and error pops up:

    File corrupt or unreadable:
    DxWnd\DIN\Datas\videos\usintro.hnm


    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello. That's usually because you don't have file 2 in the same folder when you begin the install. Check out the FAQ for more info.

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  8. For anyone having problems with the mouse. Managed to fix it by editing the DxWnd config:

    Input tab -> Direct input -> Hook dinput (check) + Enable mouse relative movement (check) + Scale mouse relative movement (check).

    Cheers.

    ReplyDelete
  9. You can make the game assembly with the original CD audio (without compressing)?

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    1. Not portably. I believe you can run the CD audio by having the disk in the drive and turning off the Virtual CD option in the Audio tab in DxWnd.

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  10. Hello. I have downloaded this game from you and it works perfect. I wanted to add polish dub from my old CD of Devil Inside to your fixed version but game doesn't work when I do that. Can you tell me what should I do to get this to work? Thanks.

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    1. Hey, did You finish all game? My game crash, when try out from lift to go celler.
      Ive polish copy too. Big shame, we cant run original copy to modern PC :(

      Delete
    2. When I wrote this comment, I didn't really check the whole game, I just went through the first section of the park. Maybe because after a few days of searching for a solution, I was delighted that someone was able to launch this game. Unfortunately, I noticed that the save files are not working for some strange reason for me. It is a pity that the old games do not work on WIN 10. I wanted to install the Polish version because I liked dub very much.

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    3. It also crashes for me when i enter the celler

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    4. same dude ! so i hope someone fix that game !

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    5. I fixed the crash. You just need to run the game using the D3DWindower. Use this program and open the .exe, then continue the game. Any doubts, email me at:
      10mmbrasil@gmail.com

      Delete
  11. hi i got a problem

    after the two cutscenes the game crash and it's impossible to play, im on W7

    Thanks

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I fixed the crash. You just need to run the game using the D3DWindower. Use this program and open the .exe, then continue the game. Any doubts, email me at:
      10mmbrasil@gmail.com

      Delete
  12. Actually this version seems to be bugged, some events didn't trigger for me, and my save is blocked in the Attic - after killing the sofa floating machinegun guy and the devil the cameraman doesn't get out and fuses are nowhere to be found :(

    ReplyDelete
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    1. happened to me too, restarting this section again seemed to fix it. (i didnt have an old enough save so had to restart game).

      fortunately this seems to be the the only instance of a key item not appearing in the game.

      Delete
  13. Thank you very much for your great work. I love this game. I just do not understand what nGlide is used for because it is a DirectX 7 game and not a glide one? I hope that someone will answer me... =)

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    1. This was one of my earliest attempts at using DxWnd (the previous version was a straight native rip) and I think I got it into my head that the program required it. It doesn't, but there's no harm in having it there anyway. This installer is 4 years old now, so is probably due an update now anyway.

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    2. Hey Biffman, thank you for your fast reply. I see. An updated installer including dgVoodoo2 would be great. I enjoy your work so much. =)

      Delete
  14. Hey Guys i played the half the game 50% then i got received that type of error ! ( Runtime error abnormal program termination) How to fix it ? Is anyone know that ! playing on win 10 core 2 quad with hd 6670 !

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  15. i stuck on basement mission when i go to the outside the house and go to the basement door it crash :( and then i received that type of error it includes also DWN( Runtime error abnormal program termination)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I fixed the crash. You just need to run the game using the D3DWindower. Use this program and open the .exe, then continue the game. Any doubts, email me at:
      10mmbrasil@gmail.com

      Delete
  16. Game boots but shuts itself down at menu screen.

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    1. I will be going back to this one at some point. It was one of the first times I used DxWnd and I've learned a lot in the 4 years since version 2. I'm only one man, though, so I can't give a timeline.

      Delete
  17. mouse stuck and dont work

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  18. Hi I just grabbed this as i have been wanting to play it through for many years now.

    I seem to have a really odd issue with this game where the games speed is so fast that it is unplayable.

    I have tried changing hundreds of settings in nglide / dgvoodoo / ini settings / nvidia settings, but the game just runs way to fast.

    example : the speed when running forwards is like dave has taken the powers of sonic the hedgehog.

    I seem to have found a really bad horrible horrible workaround so that the game is at least playable... it is so far from ideal though.

    basically I tried limiting the fps 60fps seems to be running the game at 4 x speed

    30fps was double speed

    15fps seems to be the sweetspot... but as you can imagine its very offputting and is not nice to look at (although im now half way through the game and have gotten used to it)

    has anyone else had this speed issue?

    im almost certain its either a windows 10 issue or a ryzen cpu compatability issue.

    ReplyDelete
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    1. I have a ryzen cpu and windows 10 and I haven't experienced the movement speed issue you're having. The only problem I have is when I finish the attic level and am on my way down to the cellar, opening the inventory screen crashes the game. I have the original cd and the re-release from take two (which seems to not give me issue on win7 thankfully), I've tried tinkering with the files to no avail. I really wish there was some way for me to make this game run on modern system.

      Delete
    2. I fixed the crash. You just need to run the game using the D3DWindower. Use this program and open the .exe, then continue the game. Any doubts, email me at:
      10mmbrasil@gmail.com

      Delete
  19. Game is broken. When trying to go to the cellar of the house. After going down the lift opening menu F4 crashes the game and an attempt to save the game on a different floor results in a crash as well as corrupt save "abnormal program termination" error. I spent hours playing this now I can't continue.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I fixed the crash. You just need to run the game using the D3DWindower. Use this program and open the .exe, then continue the game. Any doubts, email me at:
      10mmbrasil@gmail.com

      Delete
  20. I fixed the crash. You just need to run the game using the D3DWindower. Use this program and open the .exe, then continue the game. Any doubts, email me at:
    10mmbrasil@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  21. Greetings! First i want to say a HUGE THANK YOU for this game! This is a big part of my childhood!

    But seems like i have some issues. When i launch the game from the desktop, it launches, opens the menu, says the main title "The Devil inside" then freezes and crahes.

    When i launch the game from DXWnd directly, the game opens fine, but the game does not register any input from my keyboard or mouse. I have to press the windows button, to close the game.

    I try to modify some settings to see if i can fix it somehow, but if you have any ideas, i would try them gladly.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Happy to report, that i have found a solution! Video -> Bottom right corner "Screen Resolution" -> disable/uncheck "Initial Resolution"

      Game runs fine, and after a click inside the game window, and now it works as it should be.

      Tried to re-enable the Initial Resolution option, and the problem returned.

      Delete
  22. The game runs well most of the time, but depending on the movement I make with the mouse, the game has a drop in FPS. Another issue is about the game not filling the entire screen, it has black borders on each side of the screen, as if it ran at a resolution below the one I set it to. But thanks for being the only one who has the game file working.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Hi, I'm having a problem with the game, at a certain point when we leave the mansion and go underground, at the basement door you need a key, but every time I open the inventory the game just comes out

    ReplyDelete