Daniel Knight, the creator of the highly praised psychological horror game Phasmophobia, has revealed that a quest in CD Projekt Red’s The Witcher 3 significantly reignited his drive to develop the game, which had nearly been abandoned. Since its launch in 2020, Phasmophobia has sold over 25 million copies worldwide, establishing itself as one of the most successful horror games ever made.
Since its debut, Knight’s co-op horror game has remained in early access, consistently receiving support and updates from developer Kinetic Games. The most recent major update, titled Chronicle, was released in June and involved extensive reworking of several core mechanics.
In an interview with Eurogamer, Knight discussed how a specific side quest in The Witcher 3, called “Devil by the Well,” served as a crucial source of inspiration for him. Knight explained that experiencing this ghost-hunting tutorial quest helped refine the concept of ghost-types and improved the central gameplay loop of Phasmophobia.
At one point, he almost abandoned the project, unsure of its future as a solo developer. However, the motivation he gained from this particular quest encouraged him to resume his efforts in creating the ghost-hunting game he envisioned.
The Devil by the Well quest serves as an introductory contract in The Witcher 3, emphasizing the use of Geralt’s Witcher senses and the Yrden sign. In this quest, players must uncover the nature of a phantom haunting a well in an abandoned village.
By piecing together clues, Geralt identifies the creature as a noonwraith, which allows him to devise a strategy to exorcise it. This investigative aspect of the quest inspired Knight to incorporate similar elements into Phasmophobia.
Looking ahead, fans can anticipate more paranormal adventures with friends in Phasmophobia’s upcoming Horror 2.0 release, scheduled for 2026. Knight has indicated that this update will bring significant changes, although details have been kept under wraps to maintain an element of surprise.