Control

By: Patrick "TheLaw" Morris

Every now and then a game comes along that completely obliterates all expectations, something that fires on all cylinders from start to finish and leaves its audience both extremely satisfied but ravenous for more. Control is one of those games. Remedy's latest sci-fi/thriller offering absolutely nails down the fundamentals of what make a great narrative based single player experience by executing to perfection its story, characters, setting, gameplay, and atmosphere to make for an unforgettable experience. From start to finish Control offers a thrill ride that punches way above its weight in almost every way, the game left me in complete disbelief and will not only be a big focus in game of the year consideration but could also hold its own in any game of the generation conversation.

Welcome welcome welcome everyone welcome back to LegalSpeak a ColdNorth Production. I'm TheLawMorris and this is the video essay series in which I get to talk about the games ive been playing and what I think of the medium as a whole. You can see everything we do including both of your podcasts all in one spot over at ColdNorthPro.com. This week we got to kick off what is looking to be a packed fall video game season with an absolute banger, this week we will be talking about Control so lets get to it!

Creating an atmosphere that contributes to the overall tone or message of a game is something that can be a make or break element. Not to sound reductionist but anyone can create a three dimensional space with the tools available today; what turns that three dimensional environment into a living breathing world to function as a complimentary setting for a story to occur in is atmosphere. For Control, Remedy has crafted a completely fantastical setting that I never once found to be even the least bit unbelievable and that level of believability was achieved through an incredible and incredibly consistent atmosphere. The Federal Bureau of Control feels like an office space where people work, and have recently stopped working in a hurry. Desks are left untidy, papers have been strewn about, and office supplies are left tipped over as though whoever was here before left with a considerable amount of haste. The space is able to feel organic and lived in while at the same feeling just a bit to perfect giving the player a sense of discomfort like this isn't a normal office building.

Everything about the FBC is consistent. The architecture, furniture, uniform, and technology are what gives the player their best idea as to when the game takes place. A midcentury modern aesthetic throughout the game gives the player the sense that they are the alien here not any of the characters that inhabit the FBC which inherently allows the player to connect on a deeper level with Jesse by giving them something in common; both the player and Jesse are the ones that don’t belong. The sounds heard throughout the game, the low ambient music that when actually listened to is somewhat neutral but still somehow instills a feeling of dread when listened to passively, the bright whites and deep reds, and the obvious immaculate state the entire building was in just hours prior to Jesse's arrival, and the stunning usage of lighting all contribute to building a cohesive sense of space and make the FBC not just a 3D space but a real setting for the player to explore.

But it's not all perfect, the unbelievable visuals of such a perfectly crafted setting put a massive strain on the PS4 version of the game. Constant performance issues plague the game from a noticeable stutter for about five seconds after every time the game is paused, to not loading in the actual image of the map just the location names, to the visuals completely freezing for 15-30 seconds after the completion of nearly every mission Control struggles to maintain a steady 30 frames per second at 1080P even on the PS4 pro. And to make matters worse in the late game when combat really ramps up everything slows down mid fight from time to time no doubt due to the particle effects, harsh lighting, and insane number of enemies having to be rendered on screen all at once mega man style. I absolutely adored this game and early on was willing to completely overlook the technical issues of the port (which from what I hear is exclusive to the PS4 version of the game) and justify it by saying that it’s a smaller more double A type game not coming from one of the major triple A publishers but as the game progressed so did the technical issues. Not that these technical issues are at all a reason to not play the game but just a word of warning if you have the ability to play on either an Xbox One X or a PC you would probably be better off on those platforms.

In discussing Control with a friend he called it the "Death Stranding that nobody is talking about" in the sense that it is a very mysterious sci-fi story that seems to have been put together extremely well and has revealed almost no major story beats throughout its marketing campaign. And thank god it didn’t! The story of Control is a completely absurd engagement that had me on the edge of my seat from the moment I met the Ahti the janitor. Early on the developers establish an understanding that the player isn't going to be able to guess what happens because literally anything happen. And while this is without a doubt personal preference I love stories where I am intentionally kept in the dark chasing anything that looks even remotely like a shadow. The most obvious comparison for me as I played was to liken it to the Phillip K Dick short stories I read in high school, more of a sci-fi thriller than a sci-fi fantasy.

Jesse's personal connection and motivation throughout the story remain at the forefront of her mind just as she arrived at the FBC with a personal goal in mind. Her relentless seventeen year long search for her brother is mentioned in the opening minutes and hooks the audience in a really fun way similar to a really good episode from the early seasons of the X-Files. And that theme of consistent and understandable motivation applies to all the characters, they all have their reasons for doing what they do and even the minor characters in the side quest type activities demonstrate a remarkably human reaction to their circumstances, a welcome attention to detail not often seen in big budget games these days. Some parts of Control are truly scary and almost all of Control is eerie or off-putting and the player isn't the only one that feels that way.

At the outset of the game the employees of the FBC have scattered. Some lucky ones have made it into the lockdown shelters placed strategically throughout the building, some were able to hunker down and keep quiet, and the rest were taken by the Hiss the hostile other dimensional entity attempting to invade our world. Initially I resented the supporting cast of characters for adding an unwelcome sense of comfort breaking the tension that builds with each new room the player enters into. But at the conclusion of the game the characters are all utilized well and never become to common or intrusive allowing some time to regroup and add narrative and exposition to the story as well as make both Jesse and the player uncomfortable with their immediate respect and understanding of Jesse's new position as director. Trench, Ahti, Emily, Marshall, and Dylan all make up an excellent cast of characters that I was hesistant to trust all the way up to the very end but none of those were the most interesting relationship dynamic the game has to offer.

Throughout the opening hour of the game Jesse's internal monologue kept referring to herself as "I" or "me" then would quickly correct herself and say "we." After hearing this a handful of times it dawned on me that this wasn’t just Jesse's inner monologue that I'm listening into, this was Jesse having a conversation with me. A fourth wall break that added to the story in such a profoundly unique way that anytime Jesse addressed me was the time I was most invested in what was going on. Eventually Jesse names the player Polaris and begins to understand and embrace her relationship with the player more openly. The player acting as Polaris and Jesse working together makes for an astounding pair of main characters to experience the story and feels genuinely innovative and compelling in a medium that has been more plagued with stagnation than any other before it.

Control is nothing short of pure excellence. From start to finish the game gives off a sense of being something truly magical and haunting and easily stands out amongst the ever growing crowd of science fiction. 2019 has been a slow year up until the last few weeks and looks as though all the heavy hitters will come in the last quarter, but when it comes time to discuss game of the year I personally will absolutely not be forgetting about Control.

Did you play control? What did you think of it and are you like me going to go back and play Alan Wake now? Let me know in the comments down below.

Sorry it's been so long since ive made a video I've had a lot going on and this is something that regrettably fell onto a back burner. But if you stuck around and youre still with me thank you, im going to get back to releasing videos once per week and don’t forget you can see everything we do all in one spot over at coldnorthpro.com. Ill be back next week talking about Links Awakening so until then just go play some games.