The popular indie title Phasmophobia has gone through many changes, with even more planned for 2026. Despite developer Kinetic Games’ plans to branch out into supporting other indie projects through publishing partnerships, an anticipated update for their flagship horror title still takes priority this year. Recently, a release window reveals when a major milestone for Phasmophobia will practically make it a new game for players to enjoy.
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A recent Eurogamer article shared details surrounding an interview with Phasmophobia creator Daniel Knight revealed that Kinetic Games were searching for “creative games from small teams and solo developers globally.” However, this branch out into indie publishing is more to support other small teams, guiding them through releases or popularity like the small team of 30 on Kinetic Games had to face with Phasmophobia‘s staggering success. Even while other teams are taken under their wing, Kinetic Games has big plans to get Phasmophobia out of Early Access this year.
Phasmophobia 1.0 Is Planned To Release Officially In 2026
Toward the end of 2025, Kinetic Games released an update post on Steam regarding the game’s next steps. For a time, players were already aware of “Horror 2.0,” a major update the developers had teased that would overhaul many aspects of Phasmophobia to make the game’s experience fresher than ever. That being said, this goal has shifted into Phasmophobia 1.0, a full release of the game out of Early Access for the first time since it went live in September 2020.
With a Nintendo Switch 2 release in 2026 as well, this 1.0 update promises to be the largest event for Phasmophobia, practically re-launching it as a new title. According to the Steam update, Kinetic Games state that “our aim with the 1.0 launch is to be able to, as a team, look at Phasmophobia after many years of updating, iterating, and evolving and know we’ve fulfilled our vision for the game.” This feels like the end of a long roadmap, solidifying the multiplayer co-op horror game into the best version of itself.
With other quotes stating that Kinetic wants to make the 1.0 update “feel as fresh and exciting as the original release did,” there’s plenty for fans to look forward to in 2026. Based on the Steam update, there was no official release window other than 2026, meaning that the update could come out at any time in the next dozen months or so. Considering how the game originally was made available in September, though, it is likely that the upcoming Fall season might be a good estimate.
This Extremely Popular Indie Horror Title Has Been In Early Access Since 2020
Kinetic Games
To understand how monumental the 1.0 update actually is, players should look back at just how long Phasmophobia has been in Early Access. For the last six years, Phasmophobia has received a plethora of updates, from multiple hot fixes to problematic bugs to larger expansions that add new features. For example, the 0.4 “Nightmare” update added the Nightmare difficulty mode and the Maple Lodge Campsite map, expanding the way players could experience the horror game with their friends.
Even recent updates for Phasmophobia were scattered all throughout 2025, with June and July seeing quality-of-life changes that fans had positive reactions toward. Slowly but surely, Phasmophobia has simply been getting more and more content as time has gone on, allowing Kinetic Games to reach many goals in the game’s development. With over 25 million copies sold, there’s been very good motivation for Kinetic Games to keep working on Phasmophobia and keeping its huge audience of fans happy.
Beyond just patches and bug fixes, Phasmophobia has gone through a number of reworks since 2020, drastically changing how they game plays from when it launched. This has consistently made the game’s “Early Access” title feel legitimate, unlike other live service projects that seem to be in perpetual limbo without an official 1.0 version in sight. This added longevity from constant change helps Phasmophobia stay out, while retaining what makes it popular to this day.
The Long Awaited “Horror 2.0” Update Finally Ends A Multi-Year Roadmap
Evolving the “Horror 2.0” update into Phasmophobia 1.0 marks the end of a long journey for Kinetic Games, but perhaps creates the most exciting time for fans yet. Multiple gameplay overhauls promise features that even veterans won’t recognize with the update, giving new scares for all types of players. There’s even a possibility for more news regarding the Phasmophobia movie in production stages, being developed by Blumhouse and Atomic Monster, two celebrated studios in the horror sphere.
The heights of this indie game are likely to reach a fever pitch in 2026, with the 1.0 update releasing for all platforms at the same time. Even though not many details surrounding Phasmophobia‘s biggest patch to date will be shared to keep its launch fresh, players can expect Kinetic Games to share some details throughout the year to build tension for one of the longest lasting horror titles out there.
Are you looking forward to Phasmophobia‘s 1.0 update? Leave a comment below or join the conversation in the ComicBook Forum!
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