My partner froze at the lobby board, breath fogging the screen as the match timer counted down. I nudged the joystick and found a tiny option that changed the whole round. You can bench fate in Phasmophobia—if you know where to look.
I’ve spent nights testing presets, trading notes on Steam and digging through Kinetic Games patch logs so you don’t have to. Below I’ll walk you through the real steps I use to force a ghost type in a custom round, explain the limits, and point out a few ways this trick helps you practice for weekly challenges or YouTube content.
The lobby board sits in the center of the room, waiting for you to press it. How to choose the ghost type in Phasmophobia
The lobby board is a control panel. If you’ve ever wondered how streamers hit the same ghost for a montage, this is the secret.
- Step 1 — Interact with the main menu board. Stand in the lobby and press the interact key on the big menu board. Create or join a lobby in single-player or multiplayer; you can apply the setting either way.
- Step 2 — Pick a custom slot. Change the difficulty to Custom 1, Custom 2, or Custom 3. These are the only slots that let you tweak the ghost.
- Step 3 — Edit the match and open the Ghost tab. With a custom preset selected, click the pen icon floating over the square settings tile to modify details. Then switch to the Ghost tab.
- Step 4 — Force a specific ghost type. Under the Ghost section you’ll see "Force a specific ghost type to spawn". Click through that dropdown until the ghost you want is highlighted.
- Step 5 — Apply and play. Press Apply in the bottom-right to save the preset. Load your map and the haunting will match the ghost you selected.
The ghost selector is a pocket laboratory. Use it to practice evidence collection, fine-tune your EMF tracking routes, or create a curated video sequence for your channel.
How do I force a specific ghost type to spawn?
Force it from a custom preset’s Ghost tab. Pick Custom 1/2/3, edit the match, open Ghost, toggle the force option, choose the ghost, hit Apply, and then start the match. Kinetic Games added the feature in the Quality of Life update on Aug. 25, 2026—Steam patch notes and Reddit threads tracked the change closely.
Can I choose the ghost type in any match?
Short answer: no. You must use a custom match. Main difficulties like Amateur, Intermediate, Professional, Nightmare, Insanity, and the weekly challenges have locked settings, so you can’t change the ghost there.
The custom slots are visible but gated behind that edit icon. Can you select the ghost type in any match in Phasmophobia?
That edit pen is where control lives. Only custom slots give you freedom; any preset difficulty keeps its parameters sealed.
Why that matters: if you want to study the behavior of rare ghosts such as the Deildegast, Aswang, Kormos, Obambo, Gallu, or Dayan, forcing the spawn gives repeatable data for training and video content. Streamers and YouTubers use this to build tutorials; competitive teams use it to rehearse hunts.
Want to switch ghosts mid-session? Exit the round and edit the preset again. The setting applies per custom slot, so you can keep multiple presets for different study goals.
If you need a quick checklist before you hit Apply: confirm you’re on Custom 1/2/3, open Ghost, toggle the force option, select the ghost, and save.
I’ve helped players polish evidence calls on Discord and watched creators tweak cinematics on YouTube using the same steps—this is the small trick that shaves hours off practice time. Is it cheating to craft your own haunted rehearsal space, or the best way to get better at spotting subtle clues?