Control
Control is a third-person action-adventure game set in the Federal Bureau of Control, a secretive U.S. government agency that studies paranormal phenomena. Players control Jesse Faden, who arrives at the Bureau's headquarters, the Oldest House, to find it invaded by a hostile force called the Hiss. Gameplay combines supernatural abilities with a shape-shifting firearm, and the environment is reactive and destructible.
What it feels like
A crushing atmosphere of invasion, bureaucratic dread, and the hostile Hiss pressing down on the player throughout the experience. The Oldest House is subtly wrong—impossible geometry, shifting spaces, and the familiar made disturbingly alien. Secrets, withheld answers, and enigmatic lore drive curiosity throughout exploration of the Oldest House.
What it's about
Paranormal phenomena, hostile spectral forces (the Hiss), and supernatural abilities form the entire premise and threat. Surreal, creeping wrongness and paranoia characterize the Oldest House and the Hiss invasion, with a fragmented narrative reality. Unraveling the truth about the Oldest House, the Hiss, and Jesse's origins structures the core narrative progression.
How it plays
A shape-shifting firearm is a core interaction pillar, with tactile aiming and shooting central to moment-to-moment combat. Jesse's supernatural abilities include teleportation mechanics that serve as core movement and combat tools. Combat emphasizes stylish, expressive execution of supernatural abilities chained together in fluid sequences.
How it looks and sounds
The game is explicitly a third-person action-adventure with camera focused behind the protagonist's shoulder throughout. The Oldest House features stark concrete geometry and oppressive modernist architecture as its defining visual identity. Stark lighting and strong visual contrast between the normal and paranormal define the game's striking aesthetic.
How it's structured
The game is designed exclusively for solo play with no multiplayer component. A bounded authored story arc with beginning, middle, and definite ending following Jesse's journey in the Oldest House. The Oldest House is an interconnected map with ability-gated progression, rewarding backtracking as new powers unlock access to closed areas.
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