Fairy Tale Spotlight: Phasmophobia [Early Access Video Game Review]

[Some spoilers, I guess.]

So, I have played Phasmophobia exactly one time, but I think I just about got the full experience in that time. I know how the game works and even want to continue playing it. It is, after all, very repetitive. After a few missions, you get to understanding what this game is all about and can freely describe it.

Phasmophobia is a online co-op game about identifying different kind of ghosts or entities which are haunting various homes or locations. It is most certainly inspired by all those ghost hunting TV shows I remember seeing many years ago. They may still be doing them, as I don't watch much TV these days.

So, you and three other friends can walk into a supposedly haunted house with a bunch of ghost detecting gear and attempt to figure out what sort of ghost is involved. When I say "ghost-hunting gear," I am actually talking about every day items. Not some sort of scifi stuff. We have things like temperature gages, infrared cameras, and radios. There's quite a bit more too. The game allows you to purchase an arsenal of stuff to get the job done, and everyone in the team can chip in on the equipment.

The first thing we would always do is look for sudden temperature changes. That usually signified which room was the ghosts favorite place. We would then use several tricks to see how the entity functions to attempt to figure out its type.

Probably the most terrifying but also surprising way you can figure this out is by... talking to it. No, I'm serious. You can talk to the ghost. Not by picking from a list of text or anything... by actually talking. The game uses voice recognition in order to understand what it is you are saying... and what you say actually does make a difference. The radio is used as a means for the ghost to talk back, and they will sometimes answer your very specific questions.

One example was when a friend of mine asked, "How old are you?" the ghost replied, "Old." There was another time where one female ghost, who we found was named Elizabeth, was being very shy. We were trying to get her to respond, but she did not like that we were all gathered there. My friend stood in the room alone and started to call her some very horrible things... things I cannot type in this family friendly blog. The tactic worked but in a terrifying way. Being mean to the ghost just pisses them off and makes them more active and aggressive, but it might be a good strategy if you are struggling to get it to respond.

You also have two different kinds of camera. One is just an infrared video camera used to look for willow wisps that cannot be seen by the naked eye. You place the camera down in a room you think is haunted and go back to the truck to monitor the location. It's quite an interesting way to get evidence on an entity. But then there's the picture camera. This is what you use to get the best evidence which can also get you a lot more money.

The hardest thing to take pictures of are the ghosts themselves. The reason for this is they don't tend to appear for very long, and if they do appear, it usually means you are in trouble. Like just looking at them can turn your arms and legs into jelly. I had moments where I couldn't even get the camera to snap because I had gone paralyzed. But if you can get that picture of the entity in person, it is one of the most satisfying things in the game.

The best picture I ever took of a ghost looked something like a shadow in the corner of a room. I did it by reflex. I felt like something was behind me... so I turned and snapped the camera, getting one of the best framed pictures of a ghost I was ever able to get in the game. And the thing about this particular ghost was that I and a friend have seen something very similar to this in real life.

In my friend's former home, we saw a similar looking entity standing in a corner. It must have been very shy because it would always poof when it realized it was noticed. I had an idea of how it looked. It was like a standing humanoid shadow that was not connected to the corner it was in. When I found this one creature in the game, I smiled because I felt like I was looking at it again. Such a perfect shot. I was real lucky to not only get it on camera, but for it to be so clear and well-framed.

I recommend Phasmophobia to anyone who want's to experience realistic ghost hunting in a video game. Remember that it is still in early access. That means it isn't finished yet. A lot of the character models are very janky and stiff looking. But the ghosts and the mechanics are pretty solid. It's entirely worth playing as is, and I am sure it will only get better as the developer continues working on it. Also, enjoy my photo of the shadow ghost!

Thank you for reading my blog! Did you enjoy it? Either way, you can comment below, or you can email me at tkwadeauthor@gmail.com. You can also visit my website at www.tkwade.com. Check out my books! Thanks!