Control Resonant review: A vibrant celebration of creative game design

The Hiss. The Oldest House. The Director. Prime Candidate 6. For anyone who spent time with Remedy's Control, those names carry weight — and Control Resonant opens by asking whether you remember them, then immediately asks you to set all of it aside.

The new game is framed as a story about remembering, but its opening message is deliberately contradictory: before you can recall what happened to the Federal Bureau of Control and what was done to it, you have to let go of what you think you know. It's a striking hook, and it suggests Remedy is not simply offering a straight sequel that picks up where the first game left off.

A Fresh Start Built on Familiar Foundations

That tension between memory and forgetting appears to be central to how Control Resonant presents itself. The original Control trapped players inside the shifting, brutalist maze of the Oldest House, where a supernatural force known as the Hiss had corrupted the FBC and its staff. Jesse Faden's rise to Director — and the mysteries surrounding Prime Candidate 6 — formed the backbone of that story.

By invoking those touchstones and then telling players to forget them, the game signals a clean entry point. Returning players will likely catch every callback, while newcomers can approach the story without feeling like they need homework first. It's a balancing act Remedy seems aware of, and the framing suggests the studio wants the game to work on both levels at once.

What This Means for the Series

Control became a cult favorite thanks to its atmosphere, its telekinetic combat, and its willingness to lean into the strange. Any follow-up carries high expectations, and the rhetorical, almost hypnotic way this project introduces itself — repeating questions about memory, about the FBC, about what was done to it — hints at a story that treats the player's own recollection as part of the experience.

Whether Control Resonant is a direct continuation, a reimagining, or something harder to categorize remains to be seen. What's clear is that Remedy wants the act of remembering — and forgetting — to matter.

What Happens Next

Remedy has opened the door on Control Resonant, and more concrete details about its story, setting, and release timing are expected as the studio shares additional information. Players who want to prepare may want to revisit the original Control — or, as the game itself suggests, maybe they should forget it all first.

Source: the original publisher