Five Years Since Launch: How "Phasmophobia" Has Walked Hand in Hand with Its Community. What Lies at the Heart of Its Popularity, Revealed in a 5th Anniversary Talk Session
Note: the original Japanese article can be found at:
https://www.4gamer.net/games/537/G053703/20251023060/
Writer: Katsutani Umi | 2025/10/23 12:16 (UTC)
Independent game developer Daniel Knight launched the cooperative survival horror game “Phasmophobia” in September 2020 with early access, and it has since sold over 23 million copies, becoming one of the most popular horror games of the 2020s.
Players take on the role of paranormal investigators who enter haunted locations to gather evidence and identify the ghost behind supernatural phenomena. The game’s high replayability has fueled its popularity, featuring 10 diverse maps and 20 distinct ghosts. To uncover hidden spirits, players use tools like EMF readers that detect paranormal activity, spirit boxes for communication with ghosts, thermometers, video cameras, crosses, salt, and tranquilizers. The lightweight nature of each session—lasting around 10 minutes—has also contributed to maintaining its popularity even five years after release.
Daniel Knight, developer of “Phasmophobia” and founder of Kinetic Games Image Gallery No.004 thumbnail / “Phasmophobia,” which has grown alongside its community for five years — what lies at the heart of its popularity?
At the talk session titled “Kinetic Games Celebrates 5 Years of Phasmophobia” held during TwitchCon 2025, it became clear that while various factors—such as an evolving prestige system, strong appeal to horror fans, and affordable pricing—have contributed to its success, what truly supports the game’s popularity is the vibrant community that formed after launch. This community has been instrumental in sustaining “Phasmophobia’s” momentum.
The panel featured Daniel Knight from Kinetic Games alongside Community Manager Tom Dent, content creators JOJOsaysbreee and hydrasung, and moderator esports caster ParallaxStella, with the discussion taking a roundtable format.
The session began with a heartfelt video message from Kinetic Games directed at the community that has supported them over the past five years. The audience of around 200 people stood up to cheer, applauding passionately—so much so that even ParallaxStella, an outsider, was moved to wipe away tears.
The enthusiastic applause and cheers during the “Phasmophobia” talk session—an event notable for its warm community atmosphere, even in a cooperative game setting Image Gallery No.002 thumbnail / “Phasmophobia,” which has grown alongside its community for five years — what lies at the heart of its popularity?
According to Knight, while early access launched exactly five years ago, development actually began ten years prior—inspired by films like “Paranormal Activity” (2007)". The game received a promising start when popular streamers and YouTubers such as PewDiePie picked it up early on. Alongside Dent, Knight founded Kinetic Games and officially launched development efforts—but even entering 2024, the team consisted of just a few members. Today’s development team has expanded to around 40 people, largely due to their recent shift toward console game development.
The development team has grown to 40 members, and they now work from an 18th-century farmhouse described as “the creepiest house” Image Gallery No.006 thumbnail / “Phasmophobia,” which has grown alongside its community for five years — what lies at the heart of its popularity?
Kinetic Games has long run “The Content Creator Program for #Phasmophobia,” which invited creators like JOJOsaysbreee and hydrasung early on. JOJOsaysbreee continues to stream “Phasmophobia” once a week, while hydrasung, despite dedicating much of his time to “ELDEN RING,” still streams two or three times weekly.
In the past year, this initiative evolved into the Kinetic Games Partner Program—a formal partnership program targeting streamers and video creators who have built a substantial audience. By lowering entry barriers and offering benefits such as early access to updates, invitations to the official Discord channel (with over 4.4 million users), direct contact with developers, and opportunities for merchandise collaborations, Kinetic Games aims to attract more content creators. Notably, they welcome participants regardless of nationality or language—only requiring basic English communication skills.
Currently, the Halloween event “Crimson Eye” is underway in “Phasmophobia” Image Gallery No.008 thumbnail / “Phasmophobia,” which has grown alongside its community for five years — what lies at the heart of its popularity?
Recently, “Phasmophobia” has also integrated with Twitch Drops—enabling viewers to earn in-game items by watching streams for a certain duration. These efforts strengthen the connection between streamers and fans while actively boosting community engagement. It’s evident that Kinetic Games have already built significant expertise in social media-driven marketing.
While it remains unclear when early access will end, the transition to “Horror 2.0” by fiscal year 2026 has already been announced. This update is not a new game but rather a major overhaul involving technical improvements and substantial new content additions. The session strongly suggested that “Phasmophobia,” as a live-service survival horror title, will continue enjoying enduring popularity.
At the end of the talk, fans’ long-anticipated small map expansion, “Nell’s Diner,” was officially announced (related article) Image Gallery No.009 thumbnail / “Phasmophobia,” which has grown alongside its community for five years — what lies at the heart of its popularity?