Phasmophobia

The biggest obstacle facing would-be Phasmophobia players is finding enough people willing to join in the shared roleplay that it requires. But, anyone able to put together a quartet of ghost investigators who are free for couple of hours on a particularly dark night will find themselves in one of the most effective co-op horror games ever made.

Kinetic Games' Phasmophobia is a surprisingly scary experience, solo and with friends, though several features - like the lobby browser - need more work.

Phasmophobia undoubtedly creates the kind of scary, hysterical enjoyment that games like this one so often do, encouraging you to want to return over and over. No two games are exactly alike, even on the same map with the same type of ghost, making this more than worth its fair price point. Kinetic Games’ decision to open Phasmophobia up to the console community is something that has been a long time coming and is undoubtedly going to more than satisfy those who have been waiting for it.

Visual issues aside, Phasmophobia is a fun, heart-pounding fear-fest that is hitting consoles at just the right time of year. With some deep mechanics and a plethora of modes and content to terrify yourself and your online ghost hunting pals.... the only question is... Are you brave enough?

This game isn’t entirely for me. I don’t have the patience to grind out tools, nor do I have a static group of homies to become virtual Syfy (or whatever it is now) Channel ghost-hunting superstars with. But Phasmophobia’s intricacy and malleability that offers both kinds of experiences is super impressive. I love that I can have an intense, singleplayer horror survival game, then invite some friends and have that same game morph into something else within its framework. And then, theoretically, have it turn into another different kind of game once the training wheels are off. It’s fascinating in its ambition and complexity, and even if every aspect of it isn’t perfectly fine-tuned, it’s still compelling to engage with. Since Phasmophobia's in early access despite coming to consoles, I can see that fine-tuning continue to take place over time, as the developers keep hammering their clever systems into shape. With a little more clarity and maintenance, I can see Phasmophobia being the horror game to return to year after year.

The console port of Phasmophobia could have been a little bit more, but in many ways it’s exactly what it needed to be. How you play it will come down to personal preference and how many friends you have who also own a copy of the game, but if you’re a fan of spooks, scares and a little bit of silliness I’d say this is a game for you.

It has been some time since I’ve come into contact with a game that seems loved by the masses that I don’t understand, but that’s Phasmophobia. I don’t understand why it’s ok that you have to have a team of four people in order to find mild success. I don’t understand why I need to spend time looking up a cheat sheet to help understand why a haunt is fun. I hate that I need to do so much outside the game, or to play round after round, just to have a better understanding of what is going on. I’m not opposed to playing Phasmophobia again, but it would take some convincing from at least three friends who are in need of a fourth played to have a full party. I also think each session is very dependent on having a good group of people around you in order to enjoy Phasmophobia, or at least a funny group of people to laugh at the misery of playing.