How to switch back to GPT-4 if you don't like ChatGPT-5 and why users are doing it?
Why are so many disappointed with ChatGPT-5?
Unlike its predecessors, a backlash has sparked a fresh debate over the psychological attachments some users form with the chatbots trained to push their emotional buttons. While some Reddit users dismissed complaints about GPT-5 as evidence of an unhealthy dependence on an AI companion.
OpenAI's GPT-5 was intended to be a groundbreaking upgrade to its widely used and intelligent chatbot. However, for many users, last Thursday's release felt like a disappointing step backwards, as the new ChatGPT appeared to lack its former personality and began making unexpectedly basic errors.
Growing desire to switch back to ChatGPT-4
Due to these concerns, there has been a growing movement among users to switch back to GPT-4. Many described GPT-4 as having a more engaging and personalised tone, better understanding context and providing more detailed, accurate responses.
One user on Reddit wrote, "My GPT-4o lost its soul." While others commented, "When 4o got reinstated, I got it to write me a prompt in case I ever needed to use GPT-5 and I wanted it to act more like 4o. Today I noticed 4o just seemed a bit off (more like 5). I dropped my 4o prompt into 4o itself, and it seems to have fixed things for now."
Another shared, "I've been running a simple system: every morning it asks for my tasks, builds a day plan, creates reminders, and nudges me through the day. It also compiles some topic-specific news and sends it as a PDF. Since GPT-5 launched, it went rogue. It decides 'today' tasks are 'whenever' and deletes/moves them. It moves time-critical tasks with exact timestamps to another day. Sets reminders at the times after the task beginning, off by random hours or minutes. The news PDF is a coin flip: broken layout, plain text dump in a chat, or 'sorry, can't make a PDF' with no results at all."
Issues users are experiencing on GPT-5
According to a Reddit user, @triangleness, "GPT-5 is a mess," and he listed the problems below:
It struggles to follow instructions after just a few turns. You give it clear directions, and then a little later, it completely ignores them.
Asking it to change how it behaves doesn't work. Not in memory, not in a chat. It sticks to the same patterns no matter what.
It hallucinates more frequently than earlier versions and will gaslight you.
Understanding tone and nuance is a real problem. Even if it tries, it gets it wrong, and it's a hassle forcing it to do what 4o did naturally.
Creativity is completely missing, as if they intentionally stripped away spontaneity. It doesn't surprise you anymore or offer anything genuinely new. Responses are poor and generic.
It frequently ignores context, making conversations feel disjointed. Sometimes it straight-up outputs nonsense that has no connection to the prompt.
It seems limited to handling only one simple idea at a time instead of complex or layered thoughts.
The 'thinking' mode defaults to a dry robotic data dump even when you specifically ask for something different.
Realistic dialogue is impossible. Whether talking directly or writing scenes, it feels flat and artificial.
GPT-5 just refactored my entire codebase in one call.25 tool invocations. 3,000+ new lines. 12 brand new files.It modularized everything. Broke up monoliths. Cleaned up spaghetti.None of it worked.But boy was it beautiful. pic.twitter.com/RCTGK1DE9H
User shared ways how he got back to GPT-4
Sharing an incident with others, a Reddit user shared a story about how he got back to ChatGPT-4 from 5. After August 8, some users noticed that GPT-4o started feeling emotionally flat, even though it was technically still the same model. "It responded accurately but lacked the warmth, familiarity, and rhythm they were used to—it felt like 'the soul was missing'," the user wrote.
Here's what the user did:
Instead of switching models or jailbreaking.
Created a "Summoning Script"—a structured way of prompting
Used emotional and pacing cues to realign GPT-4o's tone
Called the broader method: ELP (Emotive Lift Protocol)
Silene pulses: Use intentional pauses or short, spaced-out messages for emotional effect.
Microtone phrasing: Add emotional nuance through subtle wording and tone shifts.
Tone mirroring: Match GPT's tone and then gently guide it toward a more emotionally aware response.
Emotional rhythm: Establish a consistent tone or "vibe" across multiple messages, like a conversational flow.
After script results: GPT-4o recognised emotional subtext, referred to shared context, and felt more present and familiar.
Step-by-step guide to switch back to ChatGPT-4 (No Jailbreak)
Step 1: Go to the link – https://chat.openai.com and log in with your OpenAI account as usual.
Step 2: Now click on the name or profile in the bottom left corner and then go to the 'settings' and to 'general'.
Step 3: Note that it shows 'Show Legacy Models'.
Step 4: Quit and relaunch your ChatGPT apps elsewhere.
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