Grand Theft Auto is well known for its action and combat scenes, and GTA Online is no different. The game is packed with enthusiasts of all playstyles and preferences, although things can be tricky when trying to enjoy the game alongside griefers. Many fans are still curious to find out how to Unghost someone in GTA 5 as a result.
Players in GTA Online can choose to become “Ghosted to Player” after their character is killed three times within 5 minutes, and they have not done any damage in return. This feature helps protect players from toxic griefers, as players will be ghosted to each other for 2 minutes after respawning – allowing enough time to escape or find a place of safety. However, players cannot manually “Unghost” a player after Ghost mode is active. They will need to wait out the full duration.
While many fans still feel the ghosting system may not always work to the tee, being ghosted can help level out the playing field between various GTA 5 players. Stick around to find out everything there is to know about being ghosted and if it’s possible to Unghost someone in GTA 5.
How Do You Get Ghosted in GTA Online?
The gaming community is filled with various gamers from all backgrounds and preferences, but it also involves the gaming culture phenomenon known as “griefing” or “grieving.” Griefers/ grievers are typically high-level players who find a special type of enjoyment in dampening the experience for lower-level players or even brand-new players, generally targeting opponents with little to no chance of surviving against them.
Griefers usually continue killing the same player repeatedly, topped off with possible harassment – usually until they find a new target or are forced to do so after the victim quits. Of course, this can be ‘part of the fun’ in many gamers’ opinions – but, for the vast majority of the gaming community, this just simply isn’t how one would imagine a healthy and well-rounded gaming experience.
Before recent updates, the only way to avoid these encounters would be to go into Passive Mode, which left a fairly black-and-white set of choices for players. Since the Lowriders: Custom Classics DLC, which was released alongside a selection of bug fixes and tweaks, players have been gifted with a new feature called “Ghosted to Player,“ – which players can select under certain circumstances.
Getting “ghosted” in GTA refers to the player becoming temporarily ‘passive’ to a particular player rather than having to choose Passive Mode altogether. This generally allows a handful of conveniences and benefits to weaker players, preventing certain players from taking advantage of others to an excessive or even toxic extent.
Players can select the option to be “Ghosted to Player” if their character has been killed three times within 5 minutes (specifically by the same opponent in GTA) without doing any damage in return. If players select the option, the player will be invisible and invincible to the player in question after they respawn.
The option to become Ghosted to Player can be found with Respawn, alongside the Passive and One-on-One Deathmatch options. Follow the steps below to become Ghosted in GTA:
- Allow the hostile player to continue with his or her attack. Do not try to escape, hide, or fight back during this interaction, as the mode will only become available without doing any damage in return.
- Let the player kill your GTA character.
- To respawn, hit “LMB” on a PC, “Cross” on a PS4, or “A” on an Xbox.
- Repeat this process, as they will need to kill your GTA character 3 times within 5 minutes for the Ghosting option to become available to you.
- After a few times, an option will appear to become “Ghosted to Player”, which refers to the specific player who has killed your character multiple times within a short time span. To access this option, use the “Spacebar” on a PC, the “X” on an Xbox, or the “Square” button on a PlayStation 4.
- You and the specific player will now be ghosted to each other, although other players will still be able to attack you or be damaged by you.
After you have selected to become Ghosted to the specific player, you will both be ghosted to each other. This means that, while you will be temporarily safe from any attacks, you will also not be able to unleash any attacks yourself, which is why the feature levels out the playing field to a degree.
How Long Does It Last?
The “Ghosted to Player” mode only lasts for 2 minutes in-game – which is generally enough time to even out the odds of surviving without being passive for absolutely everyone. During this time, your character and the specific player will not be able to attack each other. They will be depicted with a transparent overlay until the timer runs out, after which you can attack each other again.
How Can Ghosting Help Players?
While the term “Ghosting” may imply some additional abilities or invincibilities, the feature is more of a temporary means for players to escape the griefer in question. The idea is that toxic players or griefers, who typically get bored quite easily in-game, will move on to another victim by the time your Ghost mode is up.
Being Ghosted in GTA will allow you to escape the player who is constantly killing you, find a new hiding spot, or head to an apartment for some protection. However, the feature is not always foolproof – there are still cases where other players may follow you and track you down as the timer runs up, only to attack you once you are no longer Ghosted.
Can You Unghost Someone in GTA Online?
Unlike the Passive Mode available to players in GTA Online, players who make use of the Ghosted to Player feature cannot turn it off after it’s active. It’s also not possible to become Ghosted to a specific player and then Unghost the player while the mode is active, as this would allow an unfair advantage to the former victim.
The only time players will have full control over their vulnerability is with the in-game Passive Mode option. This can be altered from the GTA Online Pause Menu by navigating to “Online” to the “Options” tab and then selecting “Enable/ Disable Passive Mode.”
Players will simply have to wait out the 2-minute timespan, and the two players will automatically be Unghosted at the same time – although there have been a handful of cases where the time runs up shortly before the 2-minute mark. Players can tell if the Ghost Mode feature is no longer active by looking at the specific player, if possible, as the transparent or translucent appearance will return to normal.
That’s everything there is to know about getting Ghosted and Unghosted in GTA and how the mode works. While you cannot manually turn off Ghosting mode or Unghost someone once the mode is active, players can still gain from the short time frame that allows them to potentially escape their opponent.
