Control's Sequel is Real - and It's Leaving the Oldest House Behind

Control is finally getting a proper sequel, and it’s not messing around. Control Resonant brings back the weird, but this time ditches the Oldest House for a twisted version of Manhattan and puts Dylan Faden in the spotlight instead of his sister Jesse. Announced during The Game Awards, the game is due in 2026 on current-gen consoles, PC and Mac, with Annapurna Pictures joining Remedy behind the scenes.

Remedy is talking about a cosmic force that bends gravity, warps the city and turns Manhattan into something closer to a bad dream than an open-world playground. Dylan gets a shapeshifting melee weapon, a deep progression system and a lot of mental baggage to work through. It sounds like classic Control energy, just scaled up and pushed outside the office walls.

Control Resonant puts Dylan Faden in charge

Control Resonant finally makes Dylan more than a plot device. He’s the main character now, not just the brother you hear about in files and cutscenes.

• Dylan is the playable protagonist
• Jesse Faden remains part of the story’s legacy, but not the lead
• The sequel is confirmed as a direct follow-up to Control
• Story focuses on Dylan’s powers and his mental state

Dylan was central to Jesse’s journey in the first game, but you never got to actually control him. In Resonant, that flips. Remedy is leaning straight into his “troubled psyche”, with the game taking you into a metaphysical space that mirrors his mind as much as the outside world. That alone sets a very different tone from Jesse’s climb through the Federal Bureau’s corridors.

A reality-warped Manhattan instead of the Oldest House

Goodbye office labyrinth, hello broken city. Control Resonant takes place in Manhattan, but not the one from Spider-Man. This one is being bent out of shape by a cosmic force.

• Setting: Manhattan, not the Oldest House
• Described as an “expansive, unfamiliar world”
• Cosmic force reshapes the environment and distorts gravity
• Reality is reordered into a “geophysical nightmare”

Remedy describes this Manhattan as being twisted by an invading cosmic force that “defiles natural law and distorts gravity”, turning the city into something unstable and hostile. Streets, buildings and the rules of physics are all fair game. You’re not just dealing with enemies – the space itself is trying to kill you. Expect areas that fold in on themselves, shifting layouts and scenes that blur the line between physical reality and Dylan’s headspace.

Combat, powers and Dylan’s shapeshifting melee weapon

The sequel keeps Control’s mix of guns, powers and environmental chaos, but leans harder into melee and progression.

• Dylan wields the Aberrant, a shapeshifting melee weapon
• You use elemental abilities and the environment in combat
• Remedy promises a “deep progression system”
• Choices shape how Dylan’s abilities grow over time

Instead of Jesse’s Service Weapon, Dylan gets the Aberrant, a melee weapon that changes form as you fight. Alongside that, you’ll be throwing enemies around, using the scenery as a tool and layering on elemental powers. Remedy talks about a progression system where your choices define how Dylan’s abilities “manifest and grow”, which suggests more build variety than the first game. It still sounds like a straight-up action game, just with more emphasis on close-quarters chaos and long-term character growth.

Who’s directing Control Resonant?

Remedy isn’t handing this off to a random new team. It’s being directed by a long-time studio veteran.

• Director: Mikael Kasurinen
• He’s been at Remedy since the early 2000s
• Brief stints at Avalanche Studios and DICE before returning
• Annapurna Pictures is co-financing and co-producing the game

Kasurinen has been around for most of Remedy’s modern history, with only a short break at Avalanche and DICE before coming back. That means Resonant is in the hands of someone who knows exactly what made Control click in the first place. Annapurna Pictures joining as co-financer and co-producer hints at bigger ambitions for the IP, even if the VGC piece doesn’t go into detail on that front. At the very least, it means Remedy isn’t tackling this sequel alone.

Written by

Share

Copied