Obviously 2020’s been a weird year for everyone, in good ways and bad ways, especially for games. Some games have faded away, while others have exploded in popularity. Phasmophobia fits in the latter category, as it’s currently the flavor of the month on Twitch and among various gaming content creators. The premise and gameplay loop is simple enough, but the replay and entertainment value has propelled it to the top of Twitch charts in October.
As unfortunate as the shelter-in-place situation and social distancing is, games like Phasmophobia indirectly serve as a unique answer to the pandemic keeping people inside. Much like Among Us and Fall Guys before it, Phasmophobia is bringing the spirit of Halloween to players’ homes during a time where activities outside are still a no-go. It’s the perfect distraction, whether someone has a VR headset and is playing themselves, or watching their favorite creators stream the game on Twitch.
There is an unfortunate irony in Phasmophobia releasing this October, during a time where the pandemic and social distancing renders any concept of going to an actual haunted house moot. For those that don’t know, playing through Phasmophobia is basically the virtual reality equivalent of going to a real haunted house. Up to four players explore several haunted locations utilizing a variety of tools to capture evidence of the ghost. Of course, the game’s full of plenty of scares, hauntings, and ghosts can eventually knock players out in-game.
Each location becomes progressively more frightening the longer plays spend there, which is part of why the game’s become so popular among content creators and Twitch. Every playthrough is different for a variety of factors, whether it’s playing with another group of friends, or the locations themselves changing up the behavior of ghosts. There’s enough varying factors that makes each playthrough different for every person playing/watching, which is largely why the game still finds itself consistently peaking in the top ten of Twitch’s categories.
Several games throughout 2020 have done the same thing, emulating experiences or games that bring people together in uniquely digital ways. That’s part of the reason why Among Us also became a Twitch phenomenon as well, bringing together Mafia/Werewolf fans together with a unique twist, whilst also helping to revitalize an already two-year-old game. Same went with Fall Guys, with the combination of its popularity and surprising success from being free on PlayStation Plus ensuring the game’s success. Fall Guys now has a battle pass and Season Two’s medieval theme is already out, as of a few days ago.
Virality is a fickle and strange behavior of the internet, but the work of content creators can oftentimes result in hugely beneficial explosions in popularity for indie games. Especially in a year like 2020, where for at least half of the year, a majority of players around the world were confined to their makeshift desks to work from home. Or school was cancelled, or whatever reason it was, plenty of gaming enthusiasts needed to find their escapes. Games like Phasmophobia continue to make that happen, even as triple-A games threaten to steal most of its thunder once the end of October rolls around.
That being said, with the prevalence of smaller indie titles getting lots of love from content creators and players, Phasmophobia will likely still be popular throughout the rest of the month. Especially considering how timely it is with Halloween, there definitely was a degree of “right place, right time” helping out the game’s release. But that’s certainly not the full story, as the game’s popularity among Twitch’s biggest stars has certainly led to a rise in players for the game. At least for now, this is the closest thing gaming fans may get to an IRL haunted house any time soon.
Phasmophobia is available now on PC via Steam Early Access.
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