by Anthony O’Connor
Worth: $17.00
FilmInk rates movies out of $20 — the score indicates the amount we believe a ticket to the movie to be worth
Intro:
… a striking, original and utterly compelling game …
Remedy Games are almost their own genre these days. The Finnish video game studio was initially best known for the first two Max Payne games, those hardboiled shooters that used slow motion bullet ballet as a central mechanic. However, over time, their work became more esoteric. And weird. 2010’s Alan Wake was a fascinating, Stephen King-tinged meta horror that combined survival elements with dizzying plot twists. 2016’s Quantum Break toyed with time in trippy and interesting ways. 2019’s Control, the most relevant item here, was an X-Files meets Twin Peaks story-focused third person shooter and one of the most strikingly original games in yonks. Remedy would go on to make the superb Alan Wake 2 in 2023 but now, in 2026, Control Resonant arrives with a fresh new perspective, a different style of gameplay entirely and, once again, a plot that makes you feel like the top of your skull is slowly unscrewing and being filled with caffeinated gerbils.
Remedy’s back, baby! And this one’s a doozy.
Control Resonant shifts the perspective from Control’s Jesse Faden to her mentally ill, paranaturally powerful brother Dylan, who wakes from a coma seven years after the Hiss invasion of the Oldest House, the mysterious home office of the Federal Bureau of Control. If that all sounds like a lot of confusing proper nouns, just understand that a government organisation tasked with stopping paranormal threats has gone tits up and New York is being invaded by transdimensional creatures of an unpleasant disposition. Dylan must step outside and do his best to help the FBC get things under (ahem) control, before the whole world becomes a living nightmare.
In practical terms, Control Resonant is an open world game with specific zones to explore, quests to complete, powers to earn and upgrade, not to mention gigantic bosses to fell. Combat this time around is mostly of the melee variety, with movement and positioning skills making the whole thing feel more like Devil May Cry than the paranormal Max Payne vibe of Control’s previous entry. The adjustment may take a little while to get used to for Control veterans, but once you’ve mastered the basics and you unlock a few of the more useful traversal skills, it becomes absolutely addictive. The open world owes more to Elden Ring than any of the hand-holdy examples of the genre (looking at you, Ubisoft), with much left to the intelligence and dedication of the player to solve. This means that the first few hours of Control Resonant can be a little daunting and confusing (Remedy sure do love to dose you with poorly explained mechanics and upgrade options), but once you get your head around this thing, it’s an absolute belter.
Where Control Resonant excels most is in its atmosphere and world. The sheer depth of the story world is shockingly impressive and the startling originality of certain sections – particularly one involving a sinkhole – is generationally excellent. The story is a cracker too, although fans of Control may at times get a little frustrated with the lack of updates on Jesse’s character. Because make no mistake, this is (mostly) Dylan’s story and he feels a bit wet compared to his sassy sibling. The combat also, while slick and responsive, is a little too frequent at times and the enemy variety isn’t quite enough to keep you fully engaged, particularly in the back end. And the boss fights? They’re just okay. Which seems a rare whiff from such a skilled studio.
That said, this is the kind of game where you’ll go wandering through a shifting city where walls become ceilings, ceilings become floors and gravity itself becomes a suggestion rather than a rule. It’s the kind of title where you’re fighting mould monsters one second and singing badly to defeat a possessed karaoke machine the next. You’ll fly through realms that feel ripped straight out of Backrooms and gape at vistas that exist in a madman’s fevered imagination. It’s a trip, man.
Control Resonant is a striking, original and utterly compelling game that cements its developers as truly singular. Its flaws are few and its rewards are many, especially for those brave enough to fully immerse themselves in Remedy’s unique vision.
