The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan

 PlayStation 4
User Score
5.8

Mixed or average reviews- based on 516 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 139 out of 516
  2. Mixed: 233 out of 516
  3. Negative: 144 out of 516
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  1. KoverSamolet
    Oct 28, 2022
    8
    Do sincerely suggest.
    I very much enjoyed Until Dawn, even more i did with Detroit: Become Human. Then i got to Man of Medan. I just wish the game would be a few more hours longer, it finishes too fast in my opinion. Also it felt easier than Until Dawn - wish it was more challenging gameplay wise - it felt like input windows were longer here.
    Nevertheless I had really great time playing,    Do sincerely suggest.
    I very much enjoyed Until Dawn, even more i did with Detroit: Become Human. Then i got to Man of Medan. I just wish the game would be a few more hours longer, it finishes too fast in my opinion. Also it felt easier than Until Dawn - wish it was more challenging gameplay wise - it felt like input windows were longer here.
    Nevertheless I had really great time playing, living through Man of medan. Mindgame was great, but once again, when it felt like everything just has started spinning suddenly you see credits - it is shorter than Until Dawn. Will def see further into this anthology.    … Expand
  2. DrSargeX
    Sep 21, 2022
    8
    Game itself resembles until dawn, Story driven title with alot of different fates depends how you play and progress through the game.
    Totally different genre that most of gamers didn't like but definitely a decent pick for some one looking for a story rich game to play
  3. wesker2012
    Sep 15, 2019
    8
    I'm a huge fan of Until Dawn and Until Dawn: Rush of Blood. When I read all the bad critic and user scores, I was pretty bummed out and set my expectations super low. To my surprise, I actually really enjoyed the game! More than Until Dawn actually. For me shorter length does not automatically mean worse quality. I felt the length was fine. I really enjoyed the setting, atmosphere,I'm a huge fan of Until Dawn and Until Dawn: Rush of Blood. When I read all the bad critic and user scores, I was pretty bummed out and set my expectations super low. To my surprise, I actually really enjoyed the game! More than Until Dawn actually. For me shorter length does not automatically mean worse quality. I felt the length was fine. I really enjoyed the setting, atmosphere, theme, characters, and character banter. I like how they kept the overall structure of Until Dawn the same, but didn't just strictly stay to the formula, and added some new features like online co op play which to my surprise, majorly elevates the experience. It's a blast to play with a friend and I hope this new interactive movie/game concept catches on because the online co op choose your own adventure gameplay is a breath of fresh air in the gaming industry and has so much potential. I would love to play other genres of games like this besides horror. The production values are top notch and the graphics/atmosphere look even better than Until Dawn. It really felt like I was watching/playing a cinematic horror movie. The ship was really creepy and the jump scares were really good and startled me several times. I also love the fact that the game was made to be replayed several times to see potentially new outcomes, etc. It seems the game is best played with different online partners/friends to see how their choices affect the plot. In conclusion, I'm really impressed that Supermassive Games retained a strong identity of their Until Dawn hit game but also added a good amount of freshness to the gameplay, so it doesn't just feel like the same old thing. Highly recommend to horror fans and Until Dawn fans! It seems most of the negative reviews come as a result of people not understanding how the developers intended people to play the game which is to play online with a friend and to play through multiple times to get the full experience!!!… Expand
  4. Fins1399
    Aug 30, 2019
    8
    Not bad! I'm not one for horror games at all. I played Until Dawn so thought, why not?! Having finished it in about 5 or so hours I can say I enjoyed it. The main issue I have is the ending. It seemed very abrupt and left many questions, but then again, maybe it was intended. If you enjoy a game with plenty of jumpscares you wont mind this game. Definitely worth checking it out for 30Not bad! I'm not one for horror games at all. I played Until Dawn so thought, why not?! Having finished it in about 5 or so hours I can say I enjoyed it. The main issue I have is the ending. It seemed very abrupt and left many questions, but then again, maybe it was intended. If you enjoy a game with plenty of jumpscares you wont mind this game. Definitely worth checking it out for 30 bucks. I'll run through it a few times to see what changes for sure!… Expand
  5. Sl3v1n
    Aug 30, 2019
    10
    Great horror game! It’s like a choose your own adventure book on acid. I highly recommend it to anyone who likes horror/suspense.
  6. niuxilanren
    Sep 1, 2019
    9
    Man of Medan, while not perfect, is an amazing game, especially for its price. Unfortunately the comparison to Until Dawn is inevitable with this game as Its gameplay, story and even some themes are very similar to those found in Until Dawn. I do believe, however, that there are some things that Man of Medan does better such as the impact of choices, deaths, and characters (in myMan of Medan, while not perfect, is an amazing game, especially for its price. Unfortunately the comparison to Until Dawn is inevitable with this game as Its gameplay, story and even some themes are very similar to those found in Until Dawn. I do believe, however, that there are some things that Man of Medan does better such as the impact of choices, deaths, and characters (in my opinion). What follows is a quick summary of the game's best traits and a brief note of its shortcomings.

    What i believe is the greatest part of the game is the effects of each choice and the impacts they have. While this sounds standard for many games, the length of Man of Medan allows for the consequences to be far larger than in most others. There are several different chapters that are determined by different actions each playthrough and the flow on effects are rather substantial such as different characters grouping up together, becoming armed, entering new areas and of course potentially dying. The differences between playthroughs is quite astonishing even down to small changes such as how a certain scary story is told.

    The next thing to mention is the deaths. While there is a large variety of ways to die, the game is actually rather easy to survive. Whenever i got a character killed off, i knew it was entirely my fault and that the outcome was predictable. I have only experienced 3 deaths in my 3 playthroughs and each time someone died, it was either due to my self doubt (resulting in ignoring warning) or simply my curiosity causing me to do something i knew was stupid. While i can't speak for every death in the game as i haven't experienced every situation, can say that keeping people alive is not very difficult and thinking things through can get you through the game as long as your are observant.

    The characters have rather good chemistry with each other and have some nice highlights such as Julie and Alex's relationship. It did endear them to me and made me genuinely want to keep the entire cast alive unlike until dawn where i was waiting for an opportunity to get rid of a third of them. I do recommend making them act nice on your first playthrough as it is the most interesting to experience.

    The replay value on this game is rather strange however. I recommend not taking any hints from the curator on your first playthrough due to experiencing the game for the first time being very different from subsequent playthroughs. The hints may spoil the game early (as they did on my first playthrough) and once you finish the game you essentially learn how to act in every situation to achieve what you want. This makes further runs really entertaining and trophy hunting rather fun but removes the mystery and horror that you can only experience once. playing through the story with friends is also rather fun and trying challenges like killing all guys, killing all girls, killing everyone or killing no one just adds to the replay value.

    It is important to note that this game isn't perfect however. There are a few too many jump-scares, the frame rate dips at times, the visions are not terribly helpful, the characters never quite make it out of the uncanny valley and there are a few bugs. While these are annoying, they aren't deal breakers and while i didn't really mind them too much overall, this wouldn't be a very balanced review without making mention of its shortcomings.

    Overall, The Dark Pictures: Man of Medan is a wonderful start to the series and is a worthy follow up to Until Dawn (in my opinion). I'm looking forward to their next one and trying out the curator cut.    … Expand
  7. Davrosdaleks1
    Sep 1, 2019
    8
    Man of Medan is the first in the Dark Pictures series, which is supposed to be a total of eight short interactive story, horror survival games. It is is also a spiritual successor to publisher Supermassive Games' Until Dawn. Though I can't say this game quite matches UD, I still enjoyed it.

    LOOK: Being a smaller game, this doesn't quite match the visual grandeur or the scope of the    Man of Medan is the first in the Dark Pictures series, which is supposed to be a total of eight short interactive story, horror survival games. It is is also a spiritual successor to publisher Supermassive Games' Until Dawn. Though I can't say this game quite matches UD, I still enjoyed it.

    LOOK:
    Being a smaller game, this doesn't quite match the visual grandeur or the scope of the settings of UD, which basically had a smorgasbord of spooky places. But this game is still entertainingly creepy. There are some pretty well-done scares and threats and the abandoned ship that this game mostly takes place in looks pretty good. I also really liked the opening credits.

    Unfortunately, the character graphics haven't really improved since UD and don't compare to other recent games. (With a new DP installment expected every six months or so, I'm not entirely surprised if this game was a bit rushed.) The hair rendering looks particularly bad in the sunlight. Some scene and screen change transitions are awkward. I also had an error take me out of the game, though it was at a save point, so I didn't have to backtrack.

    STORY:
    Being a shorter game, around five hours give or take, this game also doesn't offer as much story as UD, but I also felt this kind of helps the replay value in that your time isn't as stretched out. (Though there is a little too much hallway wandering and item searching than I'd prefer.)

    I liked the story pretty well. The characters encounter a series of interesting threats. For such a quick game, MoM does offer what appears to be a pretty varied number of endings, even mixing things up a bit more in comparison to UD's just-try-to-have-them-not-die-goals.

    The dialogue, much like UD can be clunky, especially at the beginning. However, also much like UD, the cast manages to elevate the script.

    The DP series has a host the Curator (mocap acted by Pip Torrens). Though he has some nice lines, the character didn't really work for me. You expect a horror host to have some presence, be they creepy, comical, or mysterious. Here the Curator is just kind of there.

    GAMEPLAY:
    This game fixes the hiding events from UD. In that game, in order to hide you had to keep the controller completely still. Unfortunately, the motion sensor was too picky. As a person with slightly shaky hands, I could never keep still enough. Here you have to press the buttons in line with the rhythm of your character's heartbeat. It gets pretty tricky, but at least it's fair.

    What this game doesn't fix from UD is the walking. It's still as slow as last time. Also like UD, the game tells you to press R2 to walk faster, but there is no noticeable effect. The fact that they didn't fix this is a wee bit infuriating.

    OVERALL:
    Despite some of the game's failings, this is still one of my favorite interactive story games. Man of Medan moves at a quick pace and kept me intrigued as to what would happen next.    … Expand
  8. Scarlett27
    Aug 30, 2019
    8
    Short, but fun. Not as thrilling as Until Dawn, but I can say I thoroughly enjoyed it. Looking forward to the next installment!
  9. Msmiley10
    Aug 30, 2019
    9
    Not sure why the audience score is so low. This is great fun and just as enjoyable as Until Dawn. Love it
  10. jackcarlin18
    Sep 1, 2019
    8
    One play-through won’t satisfy anyone, but there two or three times plus (playing with co-op and movie mode) fleshes the story out with vast improvement, adding new scenes and more gore which only makes Man of Medan a strong entry the more you delve into its devilishly delightful story.
  11. futureyesterday
    Sep 1, 2019
    8
    Man of Medan might not be as strong as Until Dawn but its still a great game. The negative review bombing made me write this review because I'm pretty sure that it's the result of toxic gamers that haven't actually played it (there's a lot of factually incorrect reviews) some of which I'll address below. The store ratings on each platform (where people actually bought it and rated it) areMan of Medan might not be as strong as Until Dawn but its still a great game. The negative review bombing made me write this review because I'm pretty sure that it's the result of toxic gamers that haven't actually played it (there's a lot of factually incorrect reviews) some of which I'll address below. The store ratings on each platform (where people actually bought it and rated it) are much higher than what the metacritic user rating suggests. No spoilers..

    Frame Rate/controls: I played on a ps4 pro. There was a day one patch (1.09) and I only had very minor frame rate drops that happened a handful of times in the entire game. Only once did it freeze for a second and it didn't affect the game. I expected it would perform horribly based on what I'd read but it was totally fine and the minor drops that did happen will no doubt be updated in another patch. Control of the characters is pretty clunky, but its exactly the same as how they controlled in Until Dawn.

    Quick Time Events: If you find quick time events awful or hard to manage - In the options menu you can disable the quicktime events timer. Hate button mashing? You can turn that off too, again in the options menu. So if you find them too difficult just change the settings.

    Characters/Story: The story has a couple of pacing issues but overall I thought it was pretty good, depending on what you 'reveal' during your play through will obviously affect your view on it. I did figure out the twist about half way through but I was ok with that. Just like in Until Dawn - you are stuck with any decisions you make. When you finish you can reload the story and select any chapters you want to replay, so if you really messed something up and you want to try a different outcome you can restart at that point. The story isn't as fun as Until Dawns (it tries to be more serious) but I liked it. Same goes for the Characters. I liked them all by the end - they have 'traits' you can unlock that take the character in different directions.

    Playtime/ending: Obviously this will vary but it took me about 4.5 hours and I got (I assume) the best ending since everyone survived, it had a decent finale and I had revealed the whole story. It has local & online multiplayer and an alternate 'curators cut' version of the game so I'll be going back.

    Overall I thought it was good and I'm looking forward to the next game in the anthology. If you like this style of game I'd say it's an easy recommendation.    … Expand
  12. DenisOff
    Sep 1, 2019
    9
    Игра шикарная, играл с девушкой и оба остались под впечатлением. Не знаю за что ее так не взлюбили. Давно я такого удовольствия от игры не получал. Атмосфера, звуки и картинка радуют на протяжении всей игры. Крайне рекомендую играть именно в компании с другом или подругой)Игра шикарная, играл с девушкой и оба остались под впечатлением. Не знаю за что ее так не взлюбили. Давно я такого удовольствия от игры не получал. Атмосфера, звуки и картинка радуют на протяжении всей игры. Крайне рекомендую играть именно в компании с другом или подругой)
  13. Pipe_9696
    Sep 3, 2019
    9
    Tremenda ambientación. Extrañaba estos tipos de juegos desde la nostalgia que dejó detroit.
  14. almostfamousguy
    Aug 31, 2019
    10
    Awesome game.
    Supermassive games do it again.
    Incredible ghost story.
    Motion capture perfect job.
    Why gamers so toxic?
    I'm waiting next chapter!!!
  15. Jrb9207
    Sep 1, 2019
    8
    I am enjoying this game and can’t wait for the next one! Does it have some issues yes, but every game does and these people who are Whining and CRYING about them need to realize that there is NO SUCH THING AS A FLAWLESS GAME!!! I think the story is good and I believe the studio will only get better with the future games
  16. Videojuego1234
    Aug 30, 2019
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Eh estado toda la noche y dia jugando el juego, lo recomiendo mucho, no me gusto traducindo en las voces pero en las voces originales si que lo recomiendo mas, gran historia y suspense del principio al final… Expand
  17. PaulMatt
    Sep 1, 2019
    8
    Evoluiu o que foi criado em Until Dawn, e renovaram com dois modos multiplayer totalmente diferentes, divertidos e sem deixar de ser assustadores.
    O primeiro game da franquia The dark pictures anthology, é obrigatório para fãs de games de terror, e um presente para os fãs de Until Dawn.
  18. Nadom
    Sep 1, 2019
    10
    Supermassive Games never disappoints. The first series of The Dark Pictures, Man Of Medan is the horror game I’ve been looking for in a long time. I’ve tried other horror games but nothing delivered a good scare like Man Of Medan. I highly recommend this game for anyone who is looking for a good scary and history.
  19. Boby33gold
    Aug 30, 2019
    10
    Foarte bun ,excelent bravo ,nu au dezamagit.Nici nu aveau cum ,ei au facut Until Dawn....
  20. Ararat
    Sep 4, 2019
    10
    Одна из лучших игр в жанре интерактивное кино. Интересная история и хорошая графика.
  21. Jozef
    Sep 4, 2019
    10
    Great game by Supermassive Games, as always. A must play if you like horror movies!
  22. DanPratama
    Oct 9, 2019
    8
    Despite of the rough transition, rushed plot and many downsided compared the Until Dawn, level design, sound, graphic and the actor did a amazing job. Man of Medan showing a promising new series of Horror. Co-op and Movie Night feature is amazing. Play it with your friend.
  23. Joe2539
    Jan 3, 2023
    10
    Very Good Good Good Good Good Good Good Good Good Good Good Good Good Good Good
  24. beckles1313
    Sep 9, 2019
    10
    This game is actually extremely engrossing and impressive. Fans of Quantic Dream releases and Until Dawn will love this. Great playing this game single player and multiplayer.
  25. Chickenph
    Dec 27, 2020
    8
    I’m not sure why other reviews are so negative. I had a lot of fun playing this game! It really feels cinematic, with cool camera angles and things like that. It seems like people wanted a game that has predictable consequences so you could easily get the best ending, but I enjoyed not knowing what would happen.

    Until Dawn was a horror movie in game form. This is more of a thriller with    I’m not sure why other reviews are so negative. I had a lot of fun playing this game! It really feels cinematic, with cool camera angles and things like that. It seems like people wanted a game that has predictable consequences so you could easily get the best ending, but I enjoyed not knowing what would happen.

    Until Dawn was a horror movie in game form. This is more of a thriller with horror elements, but also a better game overall. You can tell they wanted to improve on the formula. If you want a game that’s a fun, cinematic experience with jump scares that make you laugh at your own reaction, I recommend this.    … Expand
  26. leviathanarg
    Oct 27, 2019
    10
    Great game. Best graphics. Period. Enjoyed on an LG OLED.
    Story is also great. Full of horror.
    I had a lot of fun playing with my two kids. Paid 21 usd on sale at Ps store.
  27. MadBert91
    Sep 9, 2019
    9
    I liked the game very much. It is very short but I liked the story and visual effects, for the price it's worth it.
  28. Ofdoom
    Sep 8, 2019
    9
    Very unique game, extremely interesting to play online with a friend. Quite unlike anything else. Well worth playing through at least once or twice as many things can change each time.
  29. Carlospinell
    Nov 8, 2019
    8
    Es un juego bastante corto, unas 4h. La historia tarda en arrancar, aunque luego sea bastante intensa. Los personajes son muy planos y no empatizas con ellos. Tiene problemas de rendimiento, tirones y caidas de frames. Por otra parte, la historia me gustó. Repite los puntos positivos de su predecesor, ya que las deciciones realmente tienen consecuencias futuras, hay varios caminos y seEs un juego bastante corto, unas 4h. La historia tarda en arrancar, aunque luego sea bastante intensa. Los personajes son muy planos y no empatizas con ellos. Tiene problemas de rendimiento, tirones y caidas de frames. Por otra parte, la historia me gustó. Repite los puntos positivos de su predecesor, ya que las deciciones realmente tienen consecuencias futuras, hay varios caminos y se repiten las predicciones, sólo que en este caso el objeto en cuestión son unos cuadros que te vas encontrando. Tiene un apartado técnico excelente. Hago énfasis en el personaje que me parece más interesante del juego, El conservador. En lo único que me ha parecido mejor Man of Medan respecto a Until Dawn es en la atmósfera que se crea entre los personajes cuando estan juntos, ya que me da una mayor sensación de suspense e intriga.
    En conclusión: por su precio y duración, es un juego asequible y recomendable, sobretodo para jugarlo del tirón en una noche con amigos.    … Expand
  30. Huchik
    Oct 7, 2019
    10
    норм кинцо. жаль что убрали QTE не двигайся как в Until Dawn. Но в отличии от until dawn она не такая страшная
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Awards & Rankings

30
#30 Most Discussed PS4 Game of 2019

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
69

Mixed or average reviews - based on 70 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 29 out of 70
  2. Mixed: 38 out of 70
  3. Negative: 3 out of 70
  1. Carole Quintaine
    Jan 29, 2020
    75
    Even though Man of Medan is far less inspired than its studio predecessor Until Dawn, it offers an enjoyable horrific atmosphere, with good ideas and well thought out sequences. Unfortunately we would have appreciated more surprises and an extended lifespan, which would have given us the time to be really afraid. Everything is going too fast and we have the feeling that the story is sloppy. Too bad because this first chapter of The Dark Pictures has a good potential, but all it does is just scratch the surface.
    Read full review
  2. CD-Action
    Oct 25, 2019
    60
    Supermassive’s newest work is a step back from Until Dawn on every level – including visual design which, though solid, ends up monotonous in comparison. [12/2019, p.58]
  3. Gaming Nexus
    Oct 11, 2019
    70
    Man of Medan starts out well enough but just falls apart towards the end leading up to a pretty anti-climatic ending thanks to a twist that was given away at the very beginning of the story. It's not terrible but it's not nearly as good as Until Dawn. Still, as a fan of Until Dawn, I still enjoyed the story for what it was but I didn't really have a desire to go back and play through it again after finishing it the first time.
    Read full review
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