Demons

We each have our own demons. They are ours and ours alone...

This article is about The Dark Pictures Anthology's second installment, Little Hope .

“

We each have our own demons. They are ours and ours alone, and they are often born out of regret.

”

Demons are the main antagonistic forces in The Dark Pictures Anthology's second installment, Little Hope. They are the resurrected corpses of the protagonists' doppelgangers from 1692. The demons are ultimately revealed to be a creation of Anthony Clarke's imagination, representing his psychological trauma over the death of his family during the house fire as he wanders through Little Hope following the bus crash.

Overview[]

Initially, the demons make no attempt to attack the group, instead following and observing them from shadows. It is only after the double is executed in the past does the demon begins to pursue its modern counterpart with the intention of killing them.

Although they are mindless monsters, the demons are incredibly persistent and ready to follow the target through entire Little Hope. Each of the demons has unique appearance, physiology and abilities based on execution style. Additionally, protagonists have a special bond with demons, whose presence negatively affects their corresponding double's health. Once a demon has killed its target, it stops chasing the rest of the group and disappears in the fog.

Characteristics[]

Drowned Demon[]

The Drowned Demon is the first to chase the protagonists, specifically Angela. It is based on Amy, who was chained and drowned in a river, and is ultimately revealed as a manifestation of the death of Anne, Anthony's mother, who suffocated with smoke while locked in the bathroom.

Having been underwater for a long time, the demon's skin had turned pale blue with swollen dark blue veins, its hair darkened and hung in curls from its half bald head. The entire body except for the right arm is tightly chained, with multiple rusted chains covered in moss and small shreds of Amy's white dress. The left arm was tied close to the face, deforming the left side of the face as they merged.

Though naturally able to swim quickly in the water, on land the Drowned Demon is forced to move by dragging itself with its free right arm. To compensate for this disadvantage, it has the ability to manipulate chains, which the demon uses to catch and immobilize its victims. Should it catch Angela, the Drowned Demon will chain her and vomit black ooze into her mouth, effectively drowning Angela.

Hanged Demon[]

The Hanged Demon is the second to chase the protagonists, specifically Taylor, and can replace the Burned Demon. She is based on Tabitha, who can be hung from a tree, and is ultimately revealed as a manifestation of the death of Tanya, Anthony's sister, who can accidentally hang herself by a scarf in an attempt to get out of the balcony.

The demon resembles a desiccated corpse, having pale gray skin, gray hair, and strongly protruding bones. In contrast to its emaciated body, it has a very long, bloated tongue covered in black mucus. The demon still wears Tabitha's ragged white dress, its hands and feet are tied with ropes, and the ropes on the legs are cut. As the name implies, the demon hangs from a long noose stretching high up.

Due to its nature, the Hanged Demon does not walk on the ground. Instead, it always levitates, with feet barely touching the ground, though if necessary the demon can rise higher. To attack, the demon wields its strong tongue, which it uses as a snare to catch and strangle the victim. Should it catch Taylor, the Hanged Demon will swiftly snap her neck.

Burned Demon[]

The Burned Demon is the second to chase the protagonists, specifically Taylor, and can replace the Hanged Demon. She is based on Tabitha, who can be burned at the stake, and is ultimately revealed as a manifestation of the death of Tanya, Anthony's sister, who can be burned to death in an attempt to get out of the balcony.

It is hard to recognize Tabitha in the demon, as it is completely charred, with pieces of light tissue and muscle visible all over the body. It is completely bald and has no lips, exposing the jaw. The stake, on which Tabitha was executed, merged with the demon's back and left arm, forcing it to carry the stake on itself. Some fingers and toes also merged, forming one limb.

Because of its nature, the Burned Demon possesses pyrokinesis and is able to burn with a single touch. It also tend to use the stake as a battering ram weapon. Should it catch Taylor, the Burned Demon will ignite, burning Taylor instantly, or scorch her back and pierce her spine.

Impaled Demon[]

The Impaled Demon is the third to chase the protagonists, specifically Daniel. It is based on David, who was thrown from a bell tower onto a spear fence, and is ultimately revealed as a manifestation of the death of Dennis, Anthony's brother, who accidentally got impaled on a spear fence while trying to come down from the roof.

The demon vaguely resembles the undead, having pale rotten skin, an open mouth full of rotten teeth, and disheveled black hair. It wears a piece of cloth that used to be David's pants. The demon's body is tied with wire in some places and completely pierced by many rusty fence spikes and rods of different sizes that have already fused with the body. One of the big spears damaged the demon's left leg, forcing it to drag the spear along. The other spear, the longest one, goes over the left shoulder and is mostly used as a cane.

The Impaled Demon uses the long spear as his main and only weapon of attack. The great length of the spear also allows it to be used to attack from behind. Should it catch Daniel, the Impaled Demon will pierce him through the chest and finish off with a spear to Daniel's eye.

Crushed Demon[]

The Crushed Demon is the fourth and last to chase the protagonists, specifically John. He is based on Joseph, who was crushed by stones, and is ultimately revealed as a manifestation of the death of James, Anthony's father, who was crushed by falling ceiling debris.

The demon has pale and gray skin and dirty disheveled black hair. Its body is significantly damaged, displaying broken limbs that are always in an unnatural position, a bashed-in face without a nose and with a bared jaw, an open wound on the left side of the forehead and a exposed chest with broken ribs. The demon also can be seen wearing scraps of Joseph's pants.

Unlike other demons, the Crushed Demon is fast and mobile. Broken limbs make the demon very flexible and allow it to immobilize a target, which it then crushes with extreme force. Should it catch John, the Crushed Demon will crush his body as well as fracture his jaw.

Chapter Appearances[]

Chapter	Drowned Demon	Hanged/Burned Demon	Impaled Demon	Crushed Demon
Diversion	Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent
Family	Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent
Darkest Dreaming	Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent
Reunion	Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent
No Escape	Absent	Absent	Cameo	Absent
Vince	Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent
Playing Tricks	Absent	Cameo	Absent	Absent
Confrontation	Cameo	Absent	Absent	Absent
Off Track	Absent	Absent	Cameo	Absent
Another Way	Absent	Absent	Absent	Cameo
The Crossing	Debut	Absent	Absent	Absent
Lost	Determinant	Absent	Cameo	Cameo
Troubled History	Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent
Pursued	Absent	Debut	Cameo	Absent
Surrounded	Mentioned (Determinant)	Appears	Debut	Absent
Low Point	Determinant	Determinant	Determinant	Absent
Reflections	Absent	Determinant	Absent	Absent
Ruined	Absent	Mentioned (Determinant)	Determinant	Absent
Heavy Burden	Determinant	Absent	Determinant (Cameo)	Debut
Full Circle	Determinant	Determinant	Determinant	Determinant
The End	Absent	Absent	Absent	Absent

Little Hope[]

Trying to cross the collapsed bridge, John and Andrew witness Amy's execution. When Angela catches up with them and the trio descends to the ground beneath the bridge, they are attacked by the Drowned Demon, resulting in Angela's escape or death. Though the trio manages to escape the demon, it catches up with them and attacks Angela again when she falls behind the boys, killing her or continuing to chase her in the sewers. Either way, Andrew and John will assume Angela is dead.

Following the others, Daniel and Taylor reach the execution site, where they watch Tabitha die. As the two continue their journey, they are pursued by the Hanged/Burned Demon, escaping from which they catch up with Andrew and John. The four hide in a church, where Daniel and Andrew watch David's execution followed with the Impaled Demon's attack. Fleeing into the woods, the group confront both demons, resulting Daniel and Taylor escaping safely or one of them is killed.

If Angela is alive and is shot by Andrew, the Drowned Demon will briefly appear to take her body while the others flee. If both Daniel and Taylor are alive, the group will be attacked again by the Impaled and the Hanged/Burned Demons, with Daniel and/or Taylor escaping/killed. While resting near a derelict building, Taylor is ambushed by her demon, against which she can be heroic or fearful. A little later, Daniel is also attacked by her demon in the depths of the factory, against which the former can be heroic or fearful as well.

Upon reaching the ruined house, the group witnesses Joseph's execution. Afterwards, John and Angela are attacked by the Crushed and the Drowned Demons and can die trying to hide in the house. During the confrontation, Angela can act reassuring or resentful, while John can act heroic or fearful. As the group explores the house, the demons can be seen approaching the house. If any protagonists except Andrew still has their locked trait or Mary was executed, they will be ambushed and killed by their demon. Otherwise, the demons will disappear and the survivors will leave Little Hope.

In the end, it is revealed that the demons like everything else shown in the game are actually Anthony's hallucinations.

Switchback VR[]

All the demons appear in the Little Hope themed levels, Abandon All Hope and Burning Trials. The Impaled Demon, the Crushed Demon and the Burned Demon serve as enemies, with the latter acting as the boss, while the Hanged Demon and the Drowned Demon appear as an obstacle and jumpscare, respectively.

Killed Victims[]

Main articles: Victims of Amy, Victims of David, Victims of Joseph, Victims of Tabitha

Trivia[]

Although demons chase the entire cast throughout the game, none of them ever attack Andrew. This is a subtle hint that Anthony did not die in the house fire nor did the double, Abraham.
- Still, Andrew can be pushed away by the Impaled Demon and hit in the face by the Crushed Demon if he interferes with their attempts to kill Daniel and John.
All demons have their left eye closed for different reasons. When killing protagonists, their left eye is also affected in some way:
- The Drowned Demon's left eye is closed due to the deformed left side of its face; in Angela's death, her left eye is covered by a chain.
- The Hanged/Burned Demon's left eye is covered in black slime/closed due to burns; in Taylor's death, her left eye turns bloody (happens with the Hanged Demon only).
- The Impaled Demon's left eye is pierced by an iron rod; in Daniel's death, he is pierced through his left eye.
- The Crushed Demon's left eye is closed due to a bruise; in John's death, the left lens of his glasses is cracked.
The demons are very similar to the hallucinations from Man of Medan, with them both being imaginary and unique to each protagonist.
The demons have their own special feature in the game, being Designing the Demons.
Andrew is the only protagonist who has no demon while Taylor, on the contrary, is the only protagonist who has more than one demon.
While working on the design for the Drowned Demon, the team studied sea creatures and autopsies as references to understand what happens to the skin upon prolonged exposure to water.^[1]
In early concept art, the Hanged Demon was supposed to wear a black dress and had a long twisted neck. Also, the demon had a tear, which represented the last remnant of Tabitha's soul.^[1]
The animation for the Crushed Demon was done by hand, as it was not possible through motion capture.^[1]
While working in Supermassive Games, the employees feel immune to the horrors they've created, but when designing the demons, they admitted that it was distressing and horrifying.^[1]
Every time the demons attack in the game, the music in the background is the same Gregorian choir that played in the prologue during the fire, representing the trauma of losing loved ones that Anthony is once again forced to endure.
According to the storyboards, demons were planned to drag killed protagonists into a portal to hell instead of the fog.^[2]

Gallery[]

References[]

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 ^1.3 Little Hope, Special Feature #2 - Designing the Demons
↑ Neil Maguire Little Hope storyboard

Navigation[]

[Ref1-1] 1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 ^1.3 Little Hope, Special Feature #2 - Designing the Demons

[2] Neil Maguire Little Hope storyboard

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