Man of Medan centers on five friends on a diving trip hijacked by pirates and exposed to hallucinogenic gas aboard a ghost ship, with interpersonal dynamics including the established heterosexual romance between Alex and Julia plus optional flirtation between Conrad and boat captain Fliss. Little Hope follows college students and their professor trapped in a fog-shrouded town haunted by apparitions tied to 1692 witch trials and a protagonist's personal family trauma from a 1972 house fire.

Casting includes a mix of ethnicities (e.g., Black actors portraying Alex and Fliss in Medan) that fits the contemporary group settings without altering any pre-existing canon characters or clashing with lore. No gender-swaps, pronoun mechanics, queer focal romances, or identity-politics subplots appear. Developer statements emphasize gameplay refinements from player feedback on QTEs and pacing rather than representation mandates or social commentary.