Game: Man of Medan
Available Platforms: PS4, Xbox One, PC
Price: $29.99
Reviewed on: PC
Genre: Story rich Horror
Players: 1-2 (up to 4 on console)
Developer: Supermassive Games
Release date: Aug 29, 2019
Hello and welcome to Jay’s Game Reviews! Today I am reviewing Supermassive Games‘ entry into their “The Dark Pictures” horror trilogy Man of Medan
Man of Medan is an interactive horror story that allows players to control several characters and make choices that will decide their fate. The game is set as a multiplayer allowing for each player to control a different character (up to 2) and the console version offers a “Movie night mode” that allows up to 4 players to play.
Pros
Movie like. The game gives players very movie like cinematic scenes making it feel more like a horror film than a game. An interactive film, but still a film.- Music. The game is scored wonderfully, setting the tone for an epic horror story!
- Overall tone. The overall tone is creepy and fun, like a campfire ghost story, the game will catch unsuspecting players off guard. It is fun and a unique way to experience a story.
Cons
Voice Acting. The voice acting is done in a way that makes me feel like the actors really didn’t care for the project and had nothing invested in it. Specifically Joe and Charlie who sound like someone faking a cheap knock off southern accent and not really caring how it sounds. The character of Alex also fell very flat and disinterested to me.- Jump scares. If you have read my reviews or watched my videos before than you know that I detest cheap jump scares. There is SO MUCH opportunity to use the cramped claustrophobic setting of being on a freaking boat in the freaking ocean as a way to scare the hell out of the player but instead they decided to go with an image of (present day) Jeffery Epstein accompanied by a loud obnoxious noise to deliver the scares. Cheap.
- Predictability. I mean… You can kinda see how this is gonna go (or at least a good idea of it) from the very start.
- Cheap deaths. I missed a quick time event input. I am now dead. I told Alex that he is a dick. I am also now dead. Again, cheap.
This game had a crap-ton of potential to be great, but the developer relied on cheap jump scares and deaths to move the story. It is overly predictable and the actors (mostly) seemed like they would rather be anywhere else. That being said, I really enjoyed the interactivity of the game as a whole. The story, while predictable, was pretty solid. The game overall was pretty average, it has so much potential, it just feels like the developer dropped the ball.
Does this weeks game sound fun to you? You can pick up Man of Medan for yourself over on the Steam store and let the spooks begin!
I Rate this game 78 out of 100
Check out my first impressions video below:
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