Phasmophobia is a four-person co-op horror game that's enjoying some serious popularity, thanks in large part to its content - which is perfect for spooky season.
Phasmophobia is a ghost hunting game that requires you and three other players to use different tools of the ghost hunting trade to find some scary spirits. There's tension, there are jump scares, there's puzzle-solving while nearly pissing yourself. Kinetic Games, a one-person studio based in the UK, is behind this cult hit, launching it back in September on Steam Early Access.
Phasmophobia is on PC with VR support (that's a big "no thank you" for me), which certainly adds to the appeal for Twitch viewers. But part of Phasmophobia's popularity seems to lie in its communication format, which is location and direction-based. That means you can only hear things around you and have to communicate with your teammates via a radio. Oh, and you can talk to the ghosts (some mad streamers even taunt them).
@kruzadar Idk what's worse, the ghost trying to get us or my friends scaring me🤬##phasmophobia ##funnymoments ##gaming ##jumpscare ##twitch
♬ Girlfriend - Avril Lavigne
As of publication, Phasmophobia is the sixth most popular game on Twitch, according to Twitch Tracker (although its viewership peaked back in early October at around 100k). According to GitHyp, Phasmophobia is ranked number six on Steam for the highest player count - it peeked at four over this last weekend. There are 11.7 million views on the Phasmophobia hashtag on TikTok, and most of them are of Twitch clips.
Like other indie games that have released in the most bizarre year of our lives, Phasmophobia has clicked with streamers and their viewers. But unlike others, I'd argue that the combination of the game's terrifying content and its timely debut around Halloween season are propelling it to even higher (and scarier) heights.
If you're interested in scaring the shit out of yourself, Phasmophobia is on Steam for $13.99. Yes, I'm buying it.
Here are all the video game Halloween events to help get you in the mood.
