- We Are So Dead controls support movement, interaction, communication, and ghost assistance.
- Living players carry relics, investigate floors, and use the séance board to receive warnings.
- Ghost players cannot touch objects but can flicker lights, move through players, and scream.
- Microphone access matters because online communication is central to surviving each floor.
- Check Settings first for the current keyboard, mouse, controller, and voice-input assignments.
We Are So Dead Controls Explained
The We Are So Dead controls are built around a communication-driven co-op horror loop rather than traditional combat. Players explore a haunted house, gather ritual relics, interpret messages, and coordinate before sunrise. One player begins dead, while the living group must rely on warnings from the ghost.
The available source material confirms the game’s central interaction roles, but it does not provide a complete official key-by-key layout. For that reason, this guide explains what each control category does without inventing unverified keyboard shortcuts. Use the in-game settings screen to confirm the exact binding shown in your 2026 build.
The most important distinction is between the living and the dead. Living players can carry objects and work directly with the séance board. Ghosts can see dangers, routes, and escape options, but cannot be heard normally or touch physical objects.
| Control Category | Living Player Use | Ghost Player Use |
|---|---|---|
| Movement | Explore floors, avoid hazards, carry relics | Scout routes and locate dangers |
| Interaction | Pick up relics, operate doors, use the séance board | Limited environmental influence |
| Communication | Speak through online voice chat | Communicate through ghost abilities and the board |
| Object Handling | Transport ritual items back to the board | Cannot carry or place physical objects |
| Survival Actions | Retreat, hide, regroup, and complete the ritual | Warn living players before danger strikes |
Before starting a serious run, open the controls and audio settings, verify your microphone, and test communication with every teammate.
The control scheme matters most when the team is under pressure. A player who cannot quickly identify the interact input may drop a relic, miss a door, or lose time while a demon approaches. A ghost who cannot communicate clearly may see the danger but fail to guide the living group away from it.
Movement
Use movement controls to search each floor, follow safe routes, and retreat when the ghost reports danger.
Interaction
Interaction controls handle doors, objects, relics, and important séance-board actions.
Voice Chat
Voice communication lets living players coordinate searches and lets the group interpret warnings quickly.
Ghost Actions
Dead players use environmental signals, movement through the living, and loud screams to attract attention.
Communication and Ouija Board Inputs
Communication is the most unusual part of the control design. The dead can hear living players and other ghosts, but living players cannot hear ordinary ghost speech. The séance board provides the most stable way to send complete words, although teammates may misread the message.
The game’s communication loop rewards short, deliberate instructions. A ghost should avoid flooding the board with unnecessary letters or vague warnings. The living team should repeat the message aloud, confirm the intended meaning, and act on the safest interpretation.
| Communication Method | Who Uses It | Best Purpose | Main Risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Voice chat | Living players and ghosts listening together | Planning, confirmation, and team status | Ghost speech may not reach the living |
| Séance board | Ghost communicates with living players | Spelling directions, names, and warnings | Letters may be misread |
| Flickering lights | Ghost | Drawing attention to a nearby area | Players may mistake it for atmosphere |
| Passing through players | Ghost | Signaling presence or urgency | Can startle or distract the team |
| Scream | Ghost | Emergency warning or attention grab | The message may lack detail |
Confirm the Speaker
Identify whether the message comes from a living teammate, a ghost, or an environmental effect. Do not assume every sound is a direct instruction.
Use Short Messages
Communicate one idea at a time: a direction, a hazard, a relic location, or a retreat order. Short messages are easier to spell and verify.
Repeat the Meaning
The living player reading the board should say the interpreted word aloud. The ghost can then confirm or correct it with another signal.
Act on Confirmed Information
Move the team, secure the relic, or leave the area once the group understands the warning. Delaying after confirmation wastes the safest window.
A living player should keep voice chat clear while reading the board. Several people talking over one another can turn a correct message into a failed instruction. Establish one designated reader whenever possible.
Do not treat a misread board message as harmless. The game’s core tension comes from acting on incomplete information, so confirm critical words before moving deeper.
The board also becomes more important as the team gathers the required relics. Winning requires spelling the demon’s true name, which the dead can read after the ritual items are collected. The living must reproduce that name accurately to banish the demon.
| Message Type | Recommended Format | Example of Useful Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Direction | Direction plus landmark | “Left hallway near stairs” |
| Hazard | Threat plus location | “Danger behind next door” |
| Relic | Item plus route | “Relic upstairs, return now” |
| Retreat | Immediate action | “Leave floor immediately” |
| Ritual Name | Letter confirmation | Repeat each segment before submitting |
Movement, Interaction, and Relic Handling
Exploration controls are simple in concept but demanding in practice. The house contains nine floors, procedural layouts, changing dangers, and a growing need for coordination. The safest team treats movement as a resource: every unnecessary detour increases exposure and makes communication harder.
Living players should search in pairs or maintain a reliable voice connection with the group. One player can carry a relic while another watches doors, listens for warnings, and confirms the return route. Splitting up may reveal more of a floor, but it also creates more opportunities for a ghost’s warning to arrive too late.
| Activity | Control Focus | Recommended Team Practice |
|---|---|---|
| Entering a room | Movement and interaction | Pause at the threshold and listen |
| Searching for relics | Movement, camera control, interaction | Sweep one section before doubling back |
| Carrying an item | Movement and object interaction | Assign one carrier and one escort |
| Returning to the board | Navigation and communication | Confirm the route before moving |
| Escaping a threat | Movement and awareness | Follow the ghost’s safest path, not the shortest path |
Use the interaction input deliberately. If a door, relic, or board prompt appears, take a moment to identify the object before committing. Panic inputs can send a player toward the wrong doorway or cause the team to abandon a valuable item.
The ghost’s information advantage should shape the route. Dead players can see the demon, hazards, and the way out, while living players must rely on indirect guidance. A good ghost does not merely point toward the objective; they also explain when to stop, turn around, or wait.
Once a relic is found, stop exploring unless the team has a clear reason to continue. Returning safely with one item is usually more valuable than risking the carrier for an uncertain second pickup.
The board and relic system create a repeated loop:
- Explore the current floor.
- Locate the required ritual items.
- Communicate their positions to the living players.
- Carry each item back to the séance area.
- Read and reproduce the demon’s true name.
- Banish the demon and unlock the next floor.
The controls support this loop, but teamwork determines whether the loop succeeds. Assign roles before entering a floor so everyone knows who carries, who scouts, who reads, and who watches the escape route.
The Carrier
Focuses on safe movement, object interaction, and keeping the relic in hand until reaching the board.
The Escort
Stays near the carrier, watches the route, and repeats ghost warnings for the living team.
The Ghost Guide
Scouts hazards, identifies safe paths, and uses signals when normal speech cannot reach the living.
Ghost Controls and Dead Player Strategy
Death does not remove a player from the session. Taken players join the dead and gain additional opportunities to help locate relics, identify dangers, and guide the survivors. This makes ghost controls important even after a failed escape.
Ghosts cannot touch objects or directly carry the ritual pieces. Their value comes from information and attention management. A ghost should prioritize information that changes the living team’s next decision: whether to enter a room, which route to take, or when to abandon a relic.
| Ghost Action | Strategic Value | When to Use It |
|---|---|---|
| Scout ahead | Reveals threats and safe routes | Before the living team commits to a hallway |
| Flicker lights | Signals a location or warning | When players are close but unfocused |
| Move through players | Creates a clear sign of presence | When voice communication is unavailable |
| Use the board | Sends complete words | For names, directions, and complex warnings |
| Scream | Forces immediate attention | During an urgent attack or escape |
The ghost’s strongest tool is timing. A warning delivered before the living player opens a door is useful. The same warning delivered after the player enters may only confirm a mistake. Scout one or two decisions ahead, not several minutes ahead.
Multiple ghosts should avoid sending contradictory messages. Choose one ghost to handle board communication while others scout. If the team has several dead players, divide information by function: one watches hazards, another tracks relic locations, and another monitors the route to safety.
Information is more valuable when it is prioritized. Report the immediate danger first, then the safe route, and only afterward mention optional loot or exploration.
A ghost can also help calm the living team. Panic causes players to run in different directions, abandon relics, or misread the board. Use simple signals and repeat the same instruction until the group confirms it.
The goal is not to make every floor risk-free. The objective is to help the living make informed choices while the house becomes more dangerous. Even a failed rescue can provide useful knowledge for the next attempt, especially when the demon’s rules are unclear.
Controls Checklist and Floor Progression
Use this checklist before each expedition. It covers the control and communication habits most likely to prevent avoidable mistakes.
Pre-Run Controls Checklist
- Verify movement, interaction, pause, and voice-input bindings
- Test the microphone and confirm every teammate can communicate
- Assign a carrier, escort, board reader, and ghost guide
- Agree on short warning words for danger, retreat, and route changes
- Confirm the return path before collecting the first relic
The game’s current Steam listing describes an Early Access co-op séance horror experience for 2–6 players, with one world, nine floors, and nine unique demons in the current version. It also lists a microphone as required and identifies online co-op as a core feature. See the official Steam page for WE ARE SO DEAD for the current control, language, and system information.
| Progression Point | Main Objective | Control Priority |
|---|---|---|
| Starting floor | Learn movement and communication | Verify basic inputs |
| Relic search | Find ritual pieces | Interaction and navigation |
| Return trip | Bring items to the board | Safe movement and voice chat |
| Name phase | Read and spell the demon’s name | Board interaction and confirmation |
| Next floor | Continue deeper into the house | Role assignment and route planning |
For new players, do not attempt to memorize every hazard immediately. Learn the control categories first, then build situational knowledge through repeated floors. The game is designed around procedural replayability, so a route that worked once may not be the safest option later.
Run one learning session focused only on communication: test the board, practice confirmations, and establish your team’s emergency words before chasing speed.
Q: What are the main We Are So Dead controls?
The core control categories are movement, interaction, voice communication, object handling, and ghost actions. Exact keyboard or controller bindings should be confirmed in the current in-game settings.
Q: Can ghosts speak directly to living players?
Ghosts can hear living players and other ghosts, but ordinary ghost speech is not normally heard by the living. The séance board is the most stable method for sending complete words.
Q: What does the ghost player control?
Ghosts scout the house, identify demons and hazards, guide the living toward relics, flicker lights, move through players, and scream to attract attention. They cannot carry physical objects.
Q: Is a microphone required?
The Steam listing identifies a microphone as required. Because the game depends on online co-op communication, every player should test voice input before starting a floor.