Info about The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan:

Official game description:
**Experience the upgraded version of Man of Medan, available now.  
New to this upgrade: difficulty settings & QTE warnings, improved UI & interactions, updated bearing’s art & event triggers, increased walk speeds and wider accessibility options including subtitle sizing.  
Discover an extended playable chapter “Flooded”, introducing new deaths in this climatic ending to the game!**  
\*Free upgrade for owners of Man of Medan on PC.  
The Dark Pictures Anthology is a series of stand-alone, branching cinematic horror games featuring a multiplayer mode.  
In Man of Medan, five friends set sail on a holiday diving trip that soon changes into something much more sinister...  
Embark on a horrific journey aboard a ghost ship.  
Experience your terrifying story with a friend online or go for safety in numbers with up to five players offline  
All playable characters can live or die. The choices you make will decide their fate.  
Who will you save?  
Don't. Play. Alone.  
**The Curator's Cut**  
The Curator's cut features new scenes playable from the other characters' perspective with brand new choices and decisions to make.  
The Curator's cut is only available once you have completed the main story.

Release date: Aug 29, 2019

Categories: Psychological Horror, Choice-based Narrative, Cooperative Multiplayer, Interactive Fiction, Quick-Time Events, Atmospheric Horror, Branching Narrative, Multiplayer

Feature scans:
- Wiki: score 10; verdict: Needs Improvement; summary: The analysis of user feedback reveals significant issues with game mechanics and technical problems. The inability to select chapters until the game is fully completed and various technical glitches are major points of frustration. However, there is also positive feedback regarding the puzzle-solving experience without guides.
- Steam Deck: score 75; verdict: Tinkering Required; summary: The analysis of user feedback reveals significant issues with controls, persistent bugs, and technical problems such as black screens and loading issues. While some users report stable performance on the Steam Deck, the overall experience is marred by these recurring problems. Additionally, there are concerns about DRM and access issues, further complicating the user experience.

- Hardware Profile: No data
Feature extractions:
- Community Price:
  - Community fair range: $2.00 - $4.00
  - Reasoning: The evidence suggests that the community finds the game worth purchasing at a discounted price, typically around $2 to $4. Many reviews mention that the game is worth it when bought on sale, indicating that the fair price range is lower than the full price. The repeated mentions of the game being worth it at around $2 to $4 strongly support this price range.
- Playtime Metrics:
  - Game completion: 4.0h
  - Story completion: 4.0h
  - Session length: 3.0h
  - Endgame: 20.0h
  - Reasoning: The evidence suggests that the game can be completed in a few hours, with multiple playthroughs encouraged due to branching narratives and different endings. The story completion time is frequently mentioned as short, often around 4 hours. Session lengths can vary, but some players completed the game in a single session of about 3-4 hours. The endgame content includes exploring different endings and scenarios, which can add additional hours depending on the player's interest in replaying the game.
- Time-to-fun:
  - Summary: The game is most enjoyable in co-op mode, where the fun starts almost immediately due to the interactive and branching narrative. Technical issues and bugs can hinder the experience.
  - Stance: Fun immediately
  - Anchor: Starting co-op mode
  - Time to anchor: 0h 0m
  - Friction: Technical issues and bugs; Clunky controls and awkward animations; Pacing issues in the mid-game
  - Unlock drivers: Cooperative play; Interactive and branching narrative
  - Conditions: Playing with friends; Engaging in shared decision-making; Experiencing the story from different perspectives
- Player Archetypes:
  - Co-op Horror Enthusiast (sale)
    - Motivation: Social interaction and shared horror experience
    - Playstyle: Cooperative, enjoys multiplayer modes like 'Shared Story' and 'Movie Night'.
    - Experience: mixed
    - Purchase stance: sale
    - Labels: horror fan; co-op gamer
    - Reference games: Until Dawn; The Quarry
  - Critical Story Seeker (deep sale)
    - Motivation: Engaging and well-written story
    - Playstyle: Prefers deep, immersive narratives and is critical of technical flaws.
    - Experience: familiar
    - Purchase stance: deep sale
    - Labels: story-driven gamer; horror fan
    - Reference games: Until Dawn; Life is Strange
  - Story-Driven Co-op Player (sale)
    - Motivation: Engaging story and unique co-op experience
    - Playstyle: Enjoys choice-driven narratives and co-op gameplay.
    - Experience: familiar
    - Purchase stance: sale
    - Labels: story-driven gamer; co-op enthusiast
    - Reference games: Until Dawn; The Quarry; Life is Strange


Below are summaries of things people say about the game per category.
Each point is assigned a weight that represents how often it is mentioned across all reviews.
What players like:
- Enjoyable and engaging gameplay (weight 0.42): The gameplay is frequently described as enjoyable, fun, and engaging. Players appreciate the unique gameplay style, high replay value, and the convenience of the interface. The game is particularly enjoyable when played with friends, enhancing the overall experience.
- Well-implemented co-op mode (weight 0.42): The co-op mode is noted for being well-implemented and enjoyable. Players find the cooperative experience to be better and more fun when playing with friends. The game offers various co-op options, enhancing the gameplay experience.
- Immersive and atmospheric gameplay (weight 0.4): The game is noted for its immersive and atmospheric gameplay. The creepy and mysterious atmosphere, combined with the movie-like experience, creates a tense and engaging environment for players.
- Captivating and intriguing plot (weight 0.4): The plot is highlighted as one of the game's strong points. It is described as interesting, captivating, and full of suspense. The story is engaging with many plot twists and variations, keeping players on the edge of their seats.
- High-quality graphics and visuals (weight 0.37): The game's graphics are praised for being beautiful, clean, and visually impressive. The high-quality visuals contribute to the game's atmosphere and overall enjoyment. The graphics are often described as stunning and breathtaking.
- Interactive movie experience (weight 0.3): The game is praised for its interactive movie experience, appealing to fans of interactive cinema. The choice-driven gameplay and minimal interactivity provide a unique and engaging experience, evolving the interactive movie genre.
- Impactful choices (weight 0.23): Players appreciate the impactful choices that significantly affect the game's outcome. The choice mechanics are well-done, providing a sense of agency and consequence to player decisions.
- Multiple endings and replayability (weight 0.22): The game offers multiple endings based on player choices, adding significant replay value. Players appreciate the variability and different outcomes based on their actions, encouraging multiple playthroughs.
- Excellent sound design (weight 0.16): The game's sound design is praised for being well-developed and immersive. The superb voice acting and good music contribute to the overall atmosphere and enjoyment of the game.

Common complaints:
- Game is riddled with bugs (weight 0.36): Players have encountered numerous bugs and glitches throughout the game. These issues range from minor annoyances to significant problems that affect gameplay, indicating poor programming.
- Clunky controls and mechanics (weight 0.32): Many players have reported issues with the game's controls, describing them as clunky, uncomfortable, and non-standard. The camera angles and tank controls are particularly problematic, and the quick-time events (QTEs) are poorly implemented.
- Excessive and ineffective jump scares (weight 0.27): The game relies heavily on jump scares, which many players find predictable, uncomfortable, and ineffective. This overuse of jump scares detracts from the overall horror experience.
- Lack of depth in story and characters (weight 0.26): The game's story and characters lack depth and development. Players find the story logic issues and lack of character depth to be significant drawbacks.
- Predictable and clichéd story (weight 0.23): The story is criticized for being predictable, clichéd, and overly simple. Players find the plot lines and twists to be easily foreseeable, which diminishes the overall experience.
- Dialogue and dubbing issues (weight 0.19): Players have reported problems with dialogue, including awkward and atrocious lines, as well as issues with dubbing and dialogue cutting off.
- Short game duration (weight 0.17): Many players feel that the game is too short, with a brief playtime that leaves them wanting more content.
- Cutscene problems (weight 0.15): Players have encountered issues with cutscenes, including repeating, chopping, and being un-skippable, which can be frustrating and disrupt the flow of the game.
- Problems with QTEs (weight 0.14): The game's QTEs are criticized for being invisible, harsh, and unexpected. Players also report that QTEs show no button prompts for mouse and keyboard, leading to unfair deaths.
- Pacing and polish issues (weight 0.13): The game's pacing is inconsistent and can drag at times. Some parts are dull, and the game lacks polish, which affects the overall experience.
- Unsatisfactory and anticlimactic ending (weight 0.11): The game's ending is described as very boring, unsatisfactory, and anticlimactic. Players find it to be a weak conclusion to the story.
- Not recommended due to technical flaws (weight 0.1): Many players do not recommend the game due to its numerous technical flaws, including bugs, glitches, and poor horror execution.
- Friend Pass feature not working (weight 0.1): Players have reported that the Friend Pass feature is not functioning properly, with some even calling it a scam.
- Camera angle issues (weight 0.09): The game's camera angles are criticized for being confusing, annoying, and poorly implemented, which affects the overall gameplay experience.
- Co-op mode bugs (weight 0.09): The co-op mode is riddled with various bugs and glitches, making it difficult to enjoy the multiplayer experience.
- Poor controls for keyboard and mouse (weight 0.09): Players using keyboard and mouse have reported that the controls are poorly implemented, vague, and sometimes unplayable, making the game difficult to enjoy on PC.

Gameplay feedback:
- Choice-driven narrative gameplay (weight 0.77): The game features a choose-your-own-adventure style with branching narratives and multiple endings, driven by player choices and consequences.
- Cooperative gameplay modes (weight 0.38): Players can enjoy cooperative gameplay, including online co-op modes like Shared Story, allowing for shared decision-making and multiplayer experiences.
- Interactive cinematic experience (weight 0.33): The game offers an interactive cinematic experience, blending storytelling with player choices and consequences, creating a movie-like atmosphere.
- Horror elements and atmosphere (weight 0.22): The game incorporates various horror elements, including psychological and atmospheric horror, enhancing the overall tense and engaging setting.
- Significant consequences of decisions (weight 0.21): Player decisions have significant and unpredictable impacts on the story and character relationships, leading to multiple endings and branching paths.
- Quick Time Events (QTEs) (weight 0.16): The gameplay includes Quick Time Events, adding tension and requiring quick reactions from players during critical moments.
- Camera perspectives (weight 0.07): The game uses different camera angles, including third-person view and first-person dialogue, to enhance the cinematic experience.
- Comparison to Until Dawn (weight 0.07): Some players compare the game to Until Dawn, noting similarities and differences in impact and gameplay length.
- Specific gameplay tips (weight 0.06): Certain in-game actions, like obtaining specific items, can lead to different outcomes and endings, affecting the overall story.

Performance notes:
- Frequent bugs and glitches (weight 0.34): Players report a high number of bugs and glitches, ranging from minor visual issues to major technical problems that affect gameplay.
- Glitchy cutscenes and animations (weight 0.18): Cutscene transitions and character animations are reported as glitchy, with issues such as skipping, cutting off, and noticeable delays in facial animations.
- Camera and performance issues (weight 0.16): Players have encountered various camera issues and performance problems, including stuttering and random performance hiccups.
- Graphics and framerate issues (weight 0.15): There are mixed reviews on graphics quality, with some players experiencing choppy graphics, framerate drops, and occasional FPS drops.
- Texture loading problems (weight 0.14): There are reports of slow texture loading and issues with texture loading in general, affecting the visual quality of the game.
- Optimization and performance (weight 0.14): The game's optimization is a mixed bag, with some players reporting good performance on weak PCs and others experiencing various performance issues.
- Character and scene bugs (weight 0.13): Players have encountered bugs related to character movements, scene selection, and characters getting stuck or teleporting.
- Crashes and technical instability (weight 0.13): The game is reported to crash frequently, with some players experiencing severe bugs and technical instability.
- Connection and synchronization issues (weight 0.12): Players have reported initial connection issues and synchronization problems in co-op mode, affecting the multiplayer experience.
- Control and input problems (weight 0.12): There are issues with PC controls, including clunky controls during quick-time events and mouse movements not being detected.
- Loading times vary (weight 0.1): Loading times are inconsistent, with some players experiencing short loading times on SSD while others report long loading times.
- Sound and dialogue issues (weight 0.07): There are reports of sound duplication issues and dialogue cutting off, affecting the audio experience of the game.
- Minor localization issues (weight 0.05): There are minor localization issues, such as accidental translations and English speech slipping through in non-English versions.

Recommendations:
- Positive general recommendations (weight 0.35): Many players generally recommend the game for its enjoyable and cinematic horror experience.
- Recommended for fans (weight 0.26): The game is highly recommended for fans of interactive movies, horror genres, and story/decision-based games.
- Play with friends (weight 0.22): Players recommend experiencing the game with friends or in multiplayer for a more enjoyable and engaging experience.
- Replay for better endings (weight 0.06): Some players express an intention to replay the game to achieve better endings, indicating a desire to explore different outcomes.
- Try other games first (weight 0.05): Some players suggest checking out other games before this one for a better experience.
- Use a gamepad (weight 0.03): It is recommended to use a gamepad for a better gaming experience.
- Avoid if seeking comfort (weight 0.03): The game may not be suitable for those who value comfortable gameplay and deep character development.
- Do not buy this game (weight 0.02): A few players explicitly advise against purchasing the game.

Other player notes:
- Friend's Pass not working (weight 0.04): There are issues with the Friend's Pass feature, as it is no longer functional for some players.
- Short gameplay duration (weight 0.04): Players report that the game's lifespan is relatively short, lasting around 4 to 5 hours.

Emotions:
- Frustration (weight 0.21): Players are frustrated primarily due to a multitude of bugs and technical issues, including camera problems, visual glitches, and co-op synchronization issues. Additionally, the game's predictable plot, clunky controls, and excessive use of jump scares contribute to the frustration, along with difficulties in quick-time events and untranslated phrases.
- Enjoyment (weight 0.16): Players enjoy the game for its engaging story, atmospheric gameplay, and the ability to play cooperatively with friends. The multiple endings, different perspectives, and the overall cinematic experience also contribute to the enjoyment.
- Excitement (weight 0.14): The game's engaging and immersive storyline, along with its atmospheric gameplay and the ability to influence the plot, excites players. The tense and suspenseful moments, especially in co-op mode, add to the excitement.
- Disappointment (weight 0.14): Players feel disappointed due to the game's predictable story, lack of depth in characters, and various bugs. The short game length, underdeveloped characters, and the game not meeting expectations set by previous titles also contribute to this disappointment.
- Satisfaction (weight 0.05): Players are satisfied with the game's scary atmosphere, great cinematics, and fun cooperative gameplay experience. The engaging plot, high-quality graphics, and overall value for money also contribute to their satisfaction.
- Excited (weight 0.03): Players are excited about the game's captivating plot, tense quick-time events, and frequent jumpscares. The interactive story and suspenseful moments add to their excitement.
- Enthusiasm (weight 0.02): Players are enthusiastic about the game's engaging gameplay, unique mechanics, and multiple playthroughs with different endings. The positive comparison to other parts of the series and the game's cinematic nature also contribute to their enthusiasm.
- Surprise (weight 0.02): Players are surprised by the game's sudden scares, unexpected twists, and character deaths. The game's optimization and overall better-than-expected experience also contribute to their surprise.
- Disappointed (weight 0.02): Players feel disappointed due to the game's lackluster story, poor storyline, and short duration. The QTE mechanics and technical issues also contribute to their disappointment.
- Boredom (weight 0.02): Players experience boredom due to repetitive and uninteresting gameplay, as well as a clichéd story and characters. Some parts of the game, especially on the ship, are particularly boring.
- Disappointment (weight 0.02): Players feel разочарование due to the game's short duration, technical problems, and issues with QTE mechanics. The overall broken state of the game contributes to this feeling.
- Fear (weight 0.02): Players experience fear due to the game's extremely scary atmosphere, jumpscares, and atmospheric setting. The haunting sound design and overall horror elements contribute to this fear.
- Frustrated (weight 0.02): Players are frustrated with the constant desynchronization in multiplayer, repetitive screamers, and numerous bugs. The lack of narrative reactivity and uncomfortable controls also add to their frustration.
- Anger (weight 0.01): Players feel anger due to multiple technical issues, character balance problems, and constant bugs in the online co-op mode. Poor programming and key validity issues also contribute to their anger.
- Amusement (weight 0.01): Players find amusement in the game's character reactions, dialogue choices, and multiplayer mechanics. Playing the game as a silly horror attraction with a friend and experiencing humorous co-op interactions also contribute to their amusement.
- Gratitude (weight 0.01): Players feel gratitude for the overall experience of the game and for receiving it as a gift from a friend. The positive aspects of the game contribute to this feeling of gratitude.
- Confusion (weight 0.01): Players feel confusion due to choppy and unnatural scenes, as well as a confusing ending and missing third act. The unclear distinction between gameplay and scenes also contributes to their confusion.
- Anticipation (weight 0.01): Players feel anticipation for getting other games in the series and for the immersive setup and scary prologue. The positive experience with the current game contributes to their anticipation for future releases.
- Happy (weight 0.01): Players feel happy due to the overall positive experience with the game, despite some glitches. The fun and enjoyable aspects of the game contribute to their happiness.
- Joy (weight 0.01): Players experience joy from the game's high replayability and the overall experience of playing with friends. The fun and engaging aspects of the game contribute to their joy.}