Summary
- Phasmophobia fans love the game's "bendy backs" bug and don't want to see it fixed.
- Developer Kinetic Games still wants to address this long-standing glitch eventually.
- The current plan is for the bendy backs bug to be fixed as part of Phasmophobia's character customization overhaul, which is planned to roll out "in the near future."
Many Phasmophobia fans want the game to keep its "bendy backs" animations, studio Kinetic Games has revealed. And while this sentiment has so far discouraged the Phasmophobia developer from addressing this weird bug, that might not be the case for much longer.
Originally released as a PC exclusive in September 2020, Phasmophobia quickly established itself as one of the most thrilling co-op horror games on the market. But as tends to be the case with early access titles, its initial version was a bit rough around the edges. Among other things, its jankiness manifested itself in the form of a bug that caused players' character models to contort and twist their backs into unusual shapes.
And while such lack of polish can often be seen as detrimental to the overall gameplay experience, the "bendy backs" bug is something that Phasmophobia fans grew to love, not least because of its tendency to produce absolutely hilarious results. Kinetic Games Senior Developer Ben Lavender confirmed as much in a recent interview with VideoGamer, acknowledging that certain glitches like bendy backs became an inherent part of the game's identity.
Phasmophobia Developer Has Been Reluctant To Fix the 'Bendy Backs' Glitch
Kinetic has thus so far been reluctant to fix this Phasmophobia bug. This is in spite of the fact that it knows exactly how to do so, having previously figured out that the issue stems from the game tying character models' body movements to camera motions. This is something that Daniel Knight, Phasmophobia's original solo developer, decided to do in a bid to avoid having clues show up for two players simultaneously.
Phasmophobia's 'Bendy Backs' Bug Is Still Planned To Be Addressed Eventually
Nevertheless, Kinetic does intend to eventually get around to addressing this bug. On that note, Lavender suggested that bendy backs will be eliminated as part of Phasmophobia's character model and customization overhaul. While the British studio still hasn't committed to a firm release window for this patch, Lavender said that the update is planned to roll out "in the near future."
In the meantime, Phasmophobia has just made its way to consoles, debuting on the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S on October 29. Its console release also prompted a permanent price hike, with the game now retailing for $19.99 rather than $13.99 across all platforms. Even so, Steam users are currently able to grab it at a 25% discount thanks to a Halloween sale that's planned to run until Monday, November 4. Phasmophobia is also expected to finally leave early access sometime in 2025.
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 76 /100 Critics Rec: 62%
- Released
- October 29, 2024
- ESRB
- T For Teen // Blood, Use of Drugs, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Kinetic Games
- Publisher(s)
- Kinetic Games
WHERE TO PLAY
Phasmophobia is a 4-player, online co-op, psychological horror game. You and your team of paranormal investigators will enter haunted locations filled with paranormal activity and try to gather as much evidence as you can. Use your ghost-hunting equipment to find and record evidence to sell on to a ghost removal team.
Immersive Experience: Realistic graphics and sounds as well as a minimal user interface ensure a totally immersive experience that will keep you on your toes.
Unique Ghosts: Identify over 20 different ghost types, each with unique traits, personalities, and abilities to make each investigation feel different from the last.
Equipment: Use well-known ghost-hunting equipment such as EMF Readers, Spirit Boxes, Thermometers, and Night Vision Cameras to find clues and gather as much paranormal evidence as you can. Find Cursed Possessions that grant information or abilities in exchange for your sanity.
Full Voice Recognition: The Ghosts are listening! Use your actual voice to interact with the Ghosts through Ouija Boards and EVP Sessions using a Spirit Box.
Locations: Choose from over 10 different haunted locations, each with unique twists, hiding spots, and layouts.
Game Modes: With 5 default difficulties and hand crafted weekly challenges, there are plenty of ways to test your skills.
Teamwork: Dive in head first, get your hands dirty searching for evidence while fighting for your life. If you're not feeling up to the task, play it safe and support your team from the truck by monitoring the investigation with CCTV and motion sensors.
Custom Difficulty: Create your own games to tailor the difficulty to your or your group's needs, with proportional rewards and come up with crazy game modes of your own!
Co-operate: Play alongside your friends with up to 4 players in this co-op horror where teamwork is key to your success.
Play together: Phasmophobia supports all players together, play with your friends with any combination of input types.
- Engine
- Unity
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op
- Number of Players
- 4
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- Verified
- Early Access Release
- September 18, 2020
- PC Release Date
- September 18, 2020
- Xbox Series X|S Release Date
- October 29, 2024
- PS5 Release Date
- October 29, 2024
- PSVR2 Release Date
- October 29, 2024
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- Genre(s)
- Survival Horror, Puzzle
- How Long To Beat
- 36.5 hours (solo) / 28 hours (co-op) / 33 hours (vs.)
- How Long To Beat (Completionist Runs)
- T For Teen // Blood, Use of Drugs, Violence
- Supported VR Headsets
- PlayStation VR 2 Headset
