Kinetic Games

What Kinetic Games does

Kinetic Games is an independent UK-based video game studio founded in 2020 by Daniel Knight and headquartered in Southampton (registered as Kinetic Games Limited, company number 12966685). Its flagship product is Phasmophobia, a four-player online co-op psychological horror game in which teams of paranormal investigators use ghost-hunting equipment to identify and survive hauntings; the game launched in Steam Early Access in June 2020 and has accumulated over 28 million copies sold across PC (Steam), PlayStation, and Xbox, with a Nintendo Switch 2 port aligned to the 1.0 release in H2 2027. The title is built on the Unity engine (upgrading to Unity 6 in October 2026), uses Exit Games for multiplayer infrastructure, Unity Gaming Services for cloud save, and Unity Gaming Services (Vivox) for voice/voice-recognition features, and supports cross-platform play plus full VR.

The studio generates revenue primarily through one-time game sales across digital storefronts, supplemented by official merchandise (own storefront plus Amazon US). In January 2026, Kinetic Games launched Kinetic Publishing, a wholly-owned indie publishing label providing $50K-$2M in funding alongside development, marketing, PR, and operational support to small teams with PC/console titles 12-18 months from release, with an explicit exclusion of blockchain, web3, and AI-generated games. The company is privately held, founder-controlled, with no disclosed external investors, and operates with a small team of 11-50 employees. Distribution is digital-first via Steam, PlayStation Store, and Xbox Store, supported by an active community stack (Discord, YouTube, X, TikTok, Instagram) and event presence including Galaxies Showcase and TwitchCon San Diego 2025.

Name

Kinetic Games

Legal name

Kinetic Games Limited

Website

https://kineticgames.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Independent UK game studio founded in 2020, developer of Phasmophobia — a four-player online co-op psychological horror title sold to over 28 million PC and console players globally — now also running Kinetic Publishing, an indie game publishing label.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cooperative Horror Video Games

NAICS

Software Publishers (5132)

SIC

Retail-Hobby, Toy & Game Shops (5945)

akta.pro primary industry

Indie Game Studios (MPAFAAAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Outsourced Art/Audio Production Services (2D/3D, Animation, VFX, Audio/VO) (MPAFAKAM)

Keywords

• Cooperative horror games
• Indie game development
• Indie game publishing
• Psychological horror games
• Early access gaming

Headquarters

HQ city

Southampton

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Game Sales: One-time purchase revenue from Phasmophobia sold on Steam, PlayStation Store, and Xbox Store. The game launched in Early Access in 2020 and has sold over 28 million copies across all platforms.
2. Merchandise Sales: Official merchandise store selling Phasmophobia branded products including clothing and accessories.
3. Publishing Revenue: Kinetic Publishing will support indie developers with funding and advisory services, providing a new revenue stream through publishing partnerships.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Kinetic Games develops and sells Phasmophobia, a four-player online co-op psychological horror game in which teams of paranormal investigators use ghost-hunting equipment to gather evidence in haunted locations; the game is sold on Steam, PlayStation Store, and Xbox Store, with a Nintendo Switch 2 port upcoming. The studio has also launched Kinetic Publishing, a separate publishing arm that provides funding (typically $50,000 to $2 million), development guidance, marketing, PR, and operational support to indie developers 12-18 months from release.

Product overview

Kinetic Games operates as an independent UK-based game developer and publisher with two main offerings: Phasmophobia, the company's flagship four-player online co-op psychological horror game launched in Early Access in 2020 and still in active development with plans for 1.0 release; and Kinetic Publishing, a publishing division established in January 2026 to support indie developers with funding and advisory services. The company has sold over 28 million copies of Phasmophobia across all platforms including PC (Steam), PlayStation, Xbox, and upcoming Nintendo Switch 2.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Kinetic Publishing: Publishing division of Kinetic Games established to support indie developers with funding, development guidance, marketing, PR, and operational support for games 12-18 months from release.

Products and services

• Phasmophobia A four-player online co-op psychological horror game where teams of paranormal investigators use ghost-hunting equipment to gather evidence in haunted locations. Available on Steam, PlayStation, and Xbox, with full VR support, voice recognition, and cross-platform multiplayer.
• Kinetic Publishing An indie game publishing label offering funding (typically $50,000 to $2 million), development guidance, marketing, PR, and operational support to small indie studios with PC or console games 12-18 months from release. Excludes blockchain, web3, and AI-generated games.

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

AI capability2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Remedy EntertainmentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 April 2026Kinetic Games collaborated with Remedy Entertainment on the 'Phasmophobia by Alan Wake' crossover event, marking Phasmophobia's first major franchise collaboration. The event featured unique story content written by Remedy's Sam Lake (creative director), new skins, reworked maps, and narration by Matthew Porretta. No microtransactions were planned for unlockable content. Both studios expressed openness to future collaborations, with Remedy noting Alan Wake's lore 'expressly allows reality to be rewritten.'
• Sam Lake (Remedy Entertainment)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 April 2026Sam Lake, Remedy Entertainment's creative director and original writer of the Alan Wake franchise, wrote the crossover event story for Phasmophobia.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Devolver Digital: Independent game publisher with a portfolio of indie hits (Hotline Miami, Fall Guys, Cult of the Lamb). Devolver is comparable to Kinetic Publishing as an indie-focused publishing partner, though at significantly larger scale and with a public-market listing.

Broad incumbents

• Behaviour Interactive: Developer of Dead by Daylight, the dominant asymmetric/co-op live-service horror game. Behaviour is a broad incumbent in the multiplayer horror space, competing with Phasmophobia for the same player wallet and attention but with a much larger team, live-ops cadence, and licensed content partnerships.
• Supermassive Games: Developer of Until Dawn and The Dark Pictures Anthology under Bandai Namco. Supermassive is a broader incumbent in narrative horror, overlapping with Phasmophobia's horror audience and cross-platform console presence, but operating at AAA production scale rather than indie.
• Remedy Entertainment: Developer of Alan Wake, Control, and Max Payne. Remedy is a broad incumbent in narrative-led single-player action/horror and is also Kinetic's first major IP collaboration partner. Comparability comes from overlapping horror audience and the precedent of cross-franchise collaboration now in place.

Direct peers

• Endnight Games: Developer of The Forest and Sons of the Forest, small-team co-op survival horror titles on PC and console. Endnight directly competes with Phasmophobia for co-op horror players' time and is comparable in team size, indie origin, and platform distribution.
• Innersloth: Developer of Among Us and operator of the Outersloth indie game fund. Innersloth is the closest direct peer: a small founder-led studio behind a single breakout co-op multiplayer hit that subsequently launched a publishing arm with comparable $50K–$2M cheque sizes. Both studios monetize through community-led, no-microtransaction models.
• Frictional Games: Swedish indie developer of the Amnesia and SOMA series. Frictional is a direct peer in the indie psychological horror category — small studio, PC-led horror games with strong mod/community engagement and a similar emphasis on atmosphere over action.
• Pocketpair: Developer of Palworld and operator of its own indie publishing arm. Pocketpair is explicitly grouped with Kinetic Games in the data as a comparable small studio that converted a breakout hit into a publishing initiative, sharing the same founder-led indie model and publishing strategy.
• Red Barrels: Montreal-based developer of the Outlast franchise, including The Outlast Trials (co-op horror). Red Barrels directly competes with Phasmophobia in the multiplayer/cooperative psychological horror niche, serving the same horror enthusiast segment on PC and consoles.
• Landfall: Swedish developer of Totally Accurate Battle Simulator and Content Warning. Landfall is referenced in the data alongside Kinetic as a small indie studio that has launched its own funding initiative to support other developers, making it a direct peer on both the studio and the publishing-side business models.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/PlayPhasmo
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCEyR7e-25KW9-oNv_CY8CSw
• Instagraminstagram.com/playphasmo
• TikToktiktok.com/@playphasmo
• Facebookfacebook.com/Phasmophobia
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kinetic-games

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kinetic Games