WARNING: If you are buying this game mainly to play with friends beware of a huge bug about 75% into the story. The game gets into an infinite loading screen and there is no way to get past that. You'll have to start over. There is a patch for the game that says this issue was resolved in december of last year, but as of end of mars 2021 it still hasn't been resolved. And since the bug shows up 75% into the game you are past the 2 hours of gameplay and can not get a refund because of that. So be prepared to have to replay the story to avoid the storyline with the bug. Try to buy the game when it's on sale, 29,99€ is expensive when the game still has such a huge bug 2+ years after release.

If you are mainly interested in this game to play in singleplayer mode, the game is absolutely amazing and entertaining. ✨___✨ So if you have played Until Dawn and liked it, you will most likely enjoy this one too.

Good game but can we please get Until Dawn on Steam.
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This is a cautious recommend, that will be brief as I can't really say much without going into spoilers.

It's an interactive horror story, by the makers of the ps4 game 'Until Dawn'. If you are familiar with that, and liked it, this is not quite as good, but is still entertaining and has plenty of jumpy moments.

If you aren't familiar: it's a walking simulator, with some QTEs adding a modicum of gaming tension, and has very cinematic presentation. Its appeal rests on one of two things. Do you (a) like to be scared by every type of jump scare ever invented? or (b) like a choose your own adventure, where you're never quite sure of the outcome and will go with the flow of the story?

Because there's nothing here for you if you don't fall into either of those. It's short, very short. At around 5 hours to finish this might be more appealing if you're the type to replay it and see how your other choices affect the narrative. It is scary in places, though it gets a bit silly after a while, as they leave no stone unturned setting up shocks left, right and center. It also tails off a bit towards the end as an inevitable consequence of the story.

The production values are very high, and it is well produced. But is it worth full price, for a not particularly long experience? I got this bundled, and at a price I can live with. Compared to 'Until Dawn' this is cheaper, yet a fair bit shorter in length, and it doesn't quite hit the highs that game did.

A moot point on pc, but one I still feel has to be made. Whereas the ps4 game had a gyroscopic controller to add some tricky bits where you had to hold very still, or make sweeping movements / aim with the pad, they cannot do that here. Consequently the in control parts are more straightforward QTE's than before.

Comparing the stories: UD was exactly what it seemed, this is....not. It's good, but the ending lessens it a little.

The well written dialogue, "cinematography", branching narrative, actor performances, and some effective jump scares, are worth a playthrough. So it gets a recommended, but you'll have to decide for yourself if its a price reasonable for that 5 hour time to complete .

If you found this review helpful I have a curator page that might lead you to some unknown gems, or save you from an absolute stinker, or perhaps leave you frothing at the mouth as I diss a game you like. Gosh! Some of them are even funny...on rare occasions...very rare....

https://store.steampowered.com/curator/34777177-The-dull-games-reviewer/

NOTICE!: Do not assume you can buy this game and it comes with a free friend pass. The friend pass does NOT work. It's an old promotion that is no longer available. Your friend you play with will also need to purchase the game.

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To be honest, unfortunately I didn't play Until Dawn. So I can't say whether that's absolutely important or necessary for The Dark Pictures Anthology. But I would have been interested because of the comparisons that are always written about. Well, it is how it is and maybe it's a good thing because that way I don't get tempted to use phrases I don't like like "but the other one was better" and the like.

I'll try to reveal as little as possible about the plot, but I'll briefly touch on the little story that introduces the game.

The game begins with a US Navy freighter docked in a port in Northeast China. The two soldiers Joe and Charlie went ashore and of course they drank too much.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2822836100
When they return, Joe is summarily knocked out by a superior and taken to the infirmary and Charlie has to go to the ship's brig. Strange things happen on the ship during this time and after escaping the infirmary and the holding cell, the two stumble across corpses all over the ship whose faces you can still see the fear...

First thriller then horror and from satisfying to brilliant

Man of Medan is all about a small group of five young people who want to take a little vacation on the high seas to get away from it all for a while and spend time with their friends, a few beers and illegal diving after a sunken plane wreck.
Of course everything that can go wrong goes wrong and the group quickly finds itself on a spooky trip. The group experiences the first critical situation in the form of pirates (fishermen) who sneak onto the group's boat at night. Even here there are one or the other situation to be mastered and if you are not careful you will soon have the first victims to mourn. But the real excitement and horror comes when the ghost ship suddenly appears and the pirates decide to go on board with the group and...

The oppressive atmosphere and the narrow corridors, paired with a mixture of exploration, "dramatic" reaction tests during escape or fight scenes, as well as the hide-and-seek game in which you have to control your pulse by "rhythmically" pressing a button, bring the game across relatively well and the challenges are great sometimes quite crisp and you also have to have fast reflexes.

Decisions, some of which only become noticeable in the course of the game, are displayed in a course direction and depending on how you decide, the course changes. The pictures that you will find throughout the game and that show you forebodings, i.e. insights into upcoming scenes, can be helpful. If you pay close attention here, you can later make “the right choice”, which can sometimes decide whether a character lives or dies. You can find insights into what happened on the ship in the form of documents or notes.

The curator, who plays a special role in the game, comments on your decisions in single player mode and also forms the link for the other parts. He usually appears before decisive experiences, can also give you hints if you wish, but does not influence what is happening.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2822836143
From a technical point of view, the game is unfortunately not entirely flawless. Controlling the characters can sometimes be a bit sluggish and walking seems a bit stiff. I would recommend playing the game in English if you can. At least I thought the German soundtrack was ok but not great, especially since things were said that weren't right or weren't said. Sometimes the audio track doesn't fit or there are no lip movements or there is a delay.

Achievements and Multiplayer
All achievements worked perfectly for me and some of them can also be obtained in the story or single player mode. But these are partly dependent on your decisions.
With this, and also with the various options to play the game, the replay value should be boosted a bit. That's actually okay for me, but it could be a bit tedious for achievement hunters, since you have to play through the game in multiple runs with a wide variety of options.

The game offers you a multiplayer mode in two options. You can play the game as movie night, which means you can relax on the couch with 4 other friends enjoying the game and everyone making their own decisions. Unfortunately, in this mode there is only one controller that has to be passed back and forth between the players and those who are not in turn can only watch.

The other option is the online co-op mode, where you play online as usual with a friend who controls the second character. If you have the game in the library you will be shown the Friend Pass and when you start the game a key. Sounds great, but unfortunately there is a catch. The Friend Pass or the key that you can give a friend entitles him to play. However, this is only a trial mode, which has probably caused some resentment. In principle, that's actually ok because the other person has the opportunity to look at the game first, unfortunately, as far as I know, this isn't clearly mentioned anywhere.
So if you want to play online for two, the purchase is essential for both players.

But why doesn't Man of Medan work quite as well for me or let's say as I hoped?

On the one hand, the characters are rather boring stereotypes whose personalities remain quite unformed, so that somehow you don't really want to "close your heart" to any of the protagonists. On the other hand, they all seem somehow unsympathetic and throughout the whole time the characters of the five remain so flat that I almost don't care if and who dies when. An outburst of clichéd characters who surpass themselves at the risk of their lives would have been desirable or, in my opinion, would have done the game a lot better. I somehow had the feeling that the characters were deliberately made unsympathetic so that the changes caused by the various decisions that you make during the course of the game stand out better and the partially superimposed dialogues supported this impression. Unfortunately, the twist was transparent to me quite quickly and one or the other may know that. If you have already seen a lot of movies and series or played games, then it can happen that you are no longer so surprised, can foresee what will happen and maybe even "dull" a little as far as the horror or the jump scares are concerned.

Nevertheless:
If you look at Man of Medan as a short story, the game is pretty solid overall and the length also fits well with the arc of suspense and even if I think that Man of Medan is not the super hit, it was a nice spooky adventure for one At times you can get excited because the decisions can also have unforeseen consequences.

A clear recommendation on my part, if you want to play the game, is to make the room as dark as possible and turn up the surround system to the max.

See you in Little Hope

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MY PROS AND CONS:

✅ good graphics
✅ atmospheric sound
✅ cinematic staging
✅ rewarding co-op
✅ entertaining story
✅ Decisions affect the course of the story
✅ Detailed locations
✅ mysterious curator
✅ Bonus material
✅ multiple endings
✅ alternate history
✅ increasing level of difficulty
✅ good tutorial

❌relatively short
❌minor technical defects
❌pale characters
❌Cracky animations
❌Waiting times in co-op mode
❌too little horror (for my taste)
❌Predictable jump scares
❌sometimes confusing camera
❌strange cuts
❌abrupt and unspectacular ending

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PLAYED WITH: 🎮 📺

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⮩ VISIT ME IN MY LITTLE WORLD

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https://store.steampowered.com/app/939850/

I am going to recommend this game, but it is not without some flaws.

The atmosphere is great, the soundscape is great, the lighting effects are great.
The camera angles and character movement remind me of old school horror survival games like original res evil 1 and original silent hill. This is due to static camera angles. To me, this creates an eerie vibe. Not being able to see whats around the corner, or all of the potential places that would be in view leaves you wanting to explore and question what is next or if you can be truly safe. Narrow hallways create a claustrophobic experience which adds to the horror element. The winding hallways and multiple rooms during exploration periods make it feel like you are lost in a bit of a maze.

The overall story is interesting. The part that broke down for me is when returning to 'Where you left off' with one characters scene, is where it feels awkward and lacks continuity. There is something just off about them at times. Characters were walking one minute and when we return to them now they are running for no reason. It is not all the time and it is subtle, but noticeable This could be due to the multiple branching scenarios. The dialogue in scenes are okay, but there was one situation where a character flipped out with a sense of urgency when none was to be found.

Character development has a short build up you're either going to find something to latch onto quickly or not. I didn't really have strong attachments to the characters personally. It became more of a game to see if I could just keep them all alive which was my attachment. I was more invested in my own actions on a gaming aspect hoping that it would not lead to a characters death.

The horror aspect, it does it well enough. However, a point to those who develop horror cinematic games. Jump scares, while effective at times, are cheap. It is the equivalent of a comedian suggesting they are funny but the only trick up their sleeve is to tickle you so you laugh. This proves they couldn't land a joke and had to result to tickling to entice laughter. Same goes with horror.

Quick time events were okay, but sometimes hitting the correct button in time still resulted in a miss. There were also times where the QTE almost had no time to push the button, especially during key quick time events. Some key QTE's seem to trigger a good or bad ending it feels a bit cheap when you want a better ending. However, this is based off of one solo play completed and 3/4ths of a co op play through. Still need to try shared movie night.

There were too many QTE deaths at least for my play through. I would have loved to see a more balanced, choice vs QTE deaths.

Also, I think the revealing of a certain aspect of the game was a bit too early. There are major plot spoilers along with clues peppered through the game that lead up to this situation. When you still have game left to play, the horror falls short when you figure it out. it would be nice to see the horror last a bit more closer to the end and then have a resolution or a spoiler too soon.

I would have also loved a bit more creepier / weird scenes where your mind knows something is off. They did that well with one character in this game. I would love to see that psychological creep factor play out a bit more instead of using jump scares to get the horror across.

The game is definitely re-playable. If it is your first time playing and you have the luxury of finding someone to co-op with. I suggest this mode first. The game feels better when playing with someone. I also suggest not to play with voice chat due to spoiling the experience. However, if that is your style and you don't like surprises or mystery then voice chat away. I would also suggest to turn down any offers of hints to have a more organic experience but again, that choice is up to you.

Accessibility mode, hats off to the developers for thinking of this, it was nice to see. Gamers without disability may feel it is a "cheat mode", but for those who do have disabilities will find it inclusive as you can turn off QTE's. You will still need to press the correct button to be successful but the urgency to do it in time is not there. I think this only works in single player mode, if it branched out to shared movie night, that would be better.

How long one play through of the game? I would say, if you explore everything and actually read the notebook journals and not just skim through them or by pass everything, then it is about 3.5 to 4 hours. I had to play in two sittings If you are impatient and hate reading and just want to "get to the good bits" then probably 2.5 hours.

I think this games hour length is perfect for a play through. Especially if you are planning a "shared movie night" if the game ran any longer, I don't think people would want to sit through a full 8 hour game, especially if their character dies almost immediately.

Where my biggest gripe about this game was, the game suggests you can play on windows 7, but it didn't ((at least for me)). The intro scenes and premonition system scenes failed to load. They were black screens. I did reach out to Bandai support, but due to confusion, I just opted for the easier route. I upgraded to windows 10 in order for the game to work properly. Luckily I was able to work around and still get the free windows upgrade to do it, but it was a hassle.

Also there are minor bugs, for example when picking up a note book, your flashlight is at an angle when you put the notebook down the flashlight snaps directly to the side of it, and then you pick up the flashlight.

So, yes, I do recommend it and if you are on the fence, just wait for a sale. There will be more of these coming out.

REMOVE! any symbols on your steam nickname and you should be good to play with your friends. I have the same problem and fixed it. Great game!

Man of Medan is an interactive horror game that plunges you into a mysterious story of five young people who find themselves trapped aboard a derelict World War II military ship. What starts as a casual diving trip quickly turns into a nightmare filled with dark secrets, hallucinations, ghosts of the past — and an unknown evil lurking in the shadows.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3347257915


The story unfolds through cinematic scenes and branching choices where every decision can lead to a character's survival or death. The atmosphere is a thick blend of maritime isolation, old legends, and the creeping feeling of losing your grip on reality.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3379717520


What stands out:
- Intriguing, layered plot with unexpected twists.
- Constant tension and unease: you never know what's real.
- Strong psychological horror without relying on cheap jump scares.
- Excellent visual design of the ship: narrow hallways, fog, rust — everything breathes fear.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3386011202


If you're into dark sea-bound mysteries and games where your choices shape the fate of the characters, Man of Medan offers a powerful experience. Best played at night, with headphones — and maybe not alone.

It is not great as Until Dawn is, but this game was made on a smaller budget, and as a part of a bigger plan. That is why you see the price halved comparing to classic AAA games.

BUT. I played it through 2 times, and I had pretty much different experiences, and I'm not talking only about the ending. Nice amount of scenes in the first playthrough were not in the 2nd and the characters in the scenes were more often than not different than the previous run. The consequences of your choices will really affect the gameplay.

Their plan for Dark Pictures Anthology is to get closer to the Twilight Zone, which would be much more mystery game than a horror one. Plus, you have a great curator (and you can only guess who he is), leading you through this "dark picture".

Gameplay consist of classic exploration, QTA and dialogues, but the graphical level of this game is way higher than their competition (and still lower than Until Dawn). Voice acting can be hit or miss, depending on the character, and don't expect some life changing dialogues (somewhere on the standard horror movie level). Those people are there to save their lives (or you to save theirs), not to give you emotional drama depth.

I really liked almost everything that I experienced in Man of Medan, and some smaller annoyances like camera or exploration control can be fixed in the next installment of the Dark Pictures Anthology.

VERY SOLID FIRST STEP! Can't wait for A Little Hope.

p.s. As for people judging the game on the amount of hours: Quality over quantity always!