The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan

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Five people, one ghost ship, and every choice can kill.

Platforms: PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
Price: Paid
Rated: Mostly Positive on Steam (77% of 13,982 reviews); Metacritic 75 (PC)
Players: 1, 2 online (Shared Story), up to 5 on one screen (Movie Night)
Controls: Keyboard and mouse or a controller; quick-time events and timed choices.
Made by: Supermassive Games
Released: 2019

Get it on Steam PlayStation Store (PS4 and PS5)Xbox Nintendo Switch

What frightens Four young divers and their boat captain are taken aboard a rusting World War II freighter adrift in the South Pacific, where the dead crew still sit at their posts and something on board starts turning the friends against what they see; any of the five can die for good on one choice or a missed button press.
Content: violence, strong language, jumpscares, gore, alcohol use.

The first story in Supermassive's Dark Pictures Anthology. A diving trip in the South Pacific goes wrong when four friends and their captain end up aboard a long-lost World War II ship, and what they find there begins to hunt them. All five can live or die, and you can play it alone, with a friend online or with up to five on one couch.

About The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan

Man of Medan was made by Supermassive Games, the studio behind Until Dawn, and published by Bandai Namco in August 2019 for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Upgraded versions came to PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S in 2022 and a Switch port followed in May 2023. It opens The Dark Pictures Anthology, a series of standalone horror stories introduced by a mysterious narrator called the Curator.

You play in turns as five characters: brothers Alex and Brad, Alex's girlfriend Julia, her brother Conrad, and Fliss, the captain of their hired boat. A dive to an old wreck turns into a night aboard a rusting freighter that vanished in the war, its corridors full of corpses and its holds full of things that should not be moving. You walk, look and pick up clues, then answer dialogue choices and quick-time events, and the story bends to what you do.

The fear is the cinematic kind: tight dark corridors, faces looming out of the gloom, sudden shocks, and the steady knowledge that anyone can die and stay dead. Relationships and traits shift with each choice, so the same moment can end very differently on another play. Paintings hidden around the ship give brief glimpses of possible futures.

The updated version adds difficulty settings, warnings before quick-time events and a longer final chapter called Flooded. After finishing the story you can play the Curator's Cut, which shows scenes from the other characters' side. It suits players who liked Until Dawn or The Quarry, and it works best with friends making the calls together.

How to play The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan

Buy it on Steam, PlayStation, Xbox or Switch and choose a mode: Theatrical (alone), Shared Story (two players online) or Movie Night (up to five passing one controller).
In Movie Night, give each player the characters they will control before you start.
Explore each scene, look at objects and pick up secrets and premonition pictures.
Answer dialogue choices and react to quick-time events in time; a miss can cost a life.
Play to the end to see who survives, then try the Curator's Cut or a new run with other choices.

Screenshots

Man of Medan screenshot: a corpse in a soldier's helmet stands in the dark of the ship's galley

Man of Medan screenshot: the five friends and their captain sit on the boat at dusk with beers, listening to a story

Man of Medan screenshot: Alex holds a torch over a wooden crate as a corpse's hand reaches out beside him

Man of Medan screenshot: two divers with torches swim through a shoal of fish in green water

Man of Medan screenshot: the rusting ghost ship looms out of a storm at sea in heavy rain

Tips

Turn on QTE warnings in the settings if you want a moment to get ready before each prompt.
Search the corners of each room: the hidden pictures hint at deaths you can avoid.
In heartbeat moments, keep calm and press in rhythm rather than mashing.
Play with friends on one couch; arguing over each choice is half the fun.

Questions

Can you play Man of Medan with friends?

Yes. Shared Story is two players online, each controlling different characters, and Movie Night lets up to five people share one controller on one screen.

Is Man of Medan on Switch?

Yes. A Switch version came out in May 2023 with the same modes, running at 24 frames per second.

Can every character die in Man of Medan?

Yes. All five playable characters can live or die depending on your choices and quick-time events.

Do I need to play the other Dark Pictures games first?

No. Each game in the anthology is a standalone story; only the narrator, the Curator, links them.