This year has seen a lot of strong Phasmophobia updates. Veteran players got a new difficulty tier called Nightmare that puts their ghost hunting skills to the test more than ever. There are also new Cursed Items in Phasmophobia that can spawn instead of the Ouija Board, vastly diversifying the arcane ways that players can interact with ghosts. The new Maple Lodge Campsite map also puts a twist on Phasmophobia by featuring ghosts that stalk the great outdoors, creating new heights of danger for highly exposed players. Phasmophobia may still be an early access game, but it's making the most of that, transforming in all kinds of positive ways.
Still, one wonders what Phasmophobia's long-term looks like. New ghosts and maps can be difficult to develop, so if Kinetic Games plans on updating Phasmophobia in perpetuity, it needs to create more ways that the game can change and grow that'll arrive on players' doorsteps more quickly. Luckily, Kinetic already seems to have plans in that department. Phasmophobia's major update roadmap for 2022 showcases a lot of new content, many of which are wholly new types of features that'll support Phasmophobia positively in the long run. Next year's updates could be even stronger than 2021 because of what they do for Phasmophobia's entire lifespan.
Phasmophobia's Potential 2022 Highlights
While 2021 has introduced some great ghost types to Phasmophobia, 2022 looks like it'll focus more on structural changes to the game than just adding more maps and ghosts. Kinetic will focus on improving VR and the game's Unity engine in early 2022, which is great, but what comes afterward is much more important. After VR changes, Kinetic will focus on adding a custom difficulty system to Phasmophobia that'll let players tweak settings like the amount of ghost evidence that spawns, the strength of Sanity Pills, the weather, and much more. After that, Kinetic will focus on progression in Phasmophobia, introducing new equipment, equipment upgrades, player customization, and much more.
Many of these features are great for Phasmophobia because they'll encourage players to play the game more long-term. Phasmophobia players love to challenge themselves in all kinds of ways, often limiting the equipment they bring. Custom difficulty settings introduce many more ways that Phasmophobia veterans can put themselves to the test, which is a great way to keep them playing. Equipment upgrades also introduce a great sense of progress to Phasmophobia by giving players new things to work towards and earn as they play.
The value of equipment upgrades is reflected in player customization too. It would be great to have a wholly new type of item to spend in-game currency on. For highly skilled players who don't die often, money can lose its value in Phasmophobia since there's nothing worth buying. Cosmetics would be a perfect opportunity to give players new goals to achieve outside of individual missions and something new to spend their precious ghost hunting funds on. Kinetic Games could even raise Phasmophobia's profile and earn some extra revenue with special DLC cosmetics like crossovers with other indie titles.
Investing in Phasmophobia's Future
Phasmophobia needs long-term features like these. Equipment upgrades, custom difficulties, and player customization aren't just one-time updates; they're new core features that Kinetic can continue building on over time. Phasmophobia had a huge surge in popularity when it debuted in 2020, and it still has an enthusiastic fanbase, but Kinetic still needs to plan ahead for Phasmophobia's future if it's going to rely on this horror title for years to come. The best way to keep the game popular is to grow in as many unique ways as possible, making it a more well-rounded game that gives players lots of reasons to stay.
Phasmophobia is available now on PC through Steam.