I got a chance to play CONTROL: Resonant and it is as weird and awesome and only a Remedy game to be.
I can’t show the opening, but from the start of the game you are hooked into the story even if you didn’t play the previous game which is great for newer players eyeing this entry in the Remedy universe. Stakes are high from the start, enemies are otherworldly but keep you on your toes, and combat gets going very quickly which is great for the pacing. Movement is made up of a unique set of abilities that allow you to traverse the very disturbing and unique worlds that lay outside of The Oldest House and the early part of the game gives you quick a few quick unlocks that I feel other games would spread out. This quick ramp up in movement allows for the world to get weirder and combat to get faster right out of the gate. After an intro that I can’t show and a few quick tutorial sections you run into Zoe, an FBC agent who has survived the events that have broken the city but is about as lost as we are. You decide to work together but quickly get separated because she calls you parautilitarian, which is FBC speak for you’ve got powers and she doesn’t.
I can't go too far without mentioning Sound Design. The remedy sound team really deserves some praise. Back in Alan Wake 2 there are still a few sounds that are so viscerally disturbing I can still remember them now. Combat weight, environmental audio design and the music/background tones all come together to complete this world of otherworldly disturbing and unique feelings it seems only Remedy can muster. To no surprise they once again crushed it.
Combat even early on is based around two weapons. I picked a scythe first, but there were also daggers and I think what I could call a heavy sword and the secondary weapon choice was an extendable whip I think, drill staff and I chose the giant club hammer to have a heavy attack balance with my quick ranged scythe. I eventually unlocked a ranged option after the first boss and I saw a skill tree with three main branches and a solid number of nodes for each weapon. Three weapons to pick from for each primary, secondary and ranged paired with the skill tree leads me to believe there is a solid chance for some nice replayability. I couldn’t tell if it was a gear system or just something like a single artifact but there was a bit more to what you were wearing than just visuals it seems. You’ll be picking up a decent amount of resources so either crafting or unlocking some different things as you progress should keep the pacing and freshness of new things pretty consistent.
Enemies early on are just a couple of types a heavy that keeps the minion type enemies spawning, but they were pretty manageable with a few dodges at the right time. The first boss is quite a sight and a solid tactical fight. Decent amount of attack variety and a couple moves that were visually impressive while also presenting quite a challenge. It’s got solid action / soulslike dodging mechanics so far that seem to be pretty well tuned in everything I felt. I don’t believe there is a parry so it will be all about your dodge which when you do them back to back allows you to cover a solid distance. That helped because the first boss was pretty sizable. Mid-air dodges and floats along with attacking mid air allows the floor to be a bit treacherous I’d guess in future fights.
The trailers have made the game look better and better each time I see them, but the last piece of the puzzle was going hands on to really get a feel for the melee combat, and they really have the complete package here. Weirdness worthy of the Remedy title card, great combat feel and enemy design, and a gripping story that will feels like it will keep you hooked from start to finish.
I can’t wait for Sept 24th and you’ll likely see more content from me about
@ControlRemedy Resonant before, at and after launch. I was excited before this weekend, and it’s one of my higher anticipated games for the rest of 2026.
Huge thanks to
@remedygames for the hands-on experience this weekend.