Control Resonant outshines the hype: sequel delivers more than fans hoped

Control Resonant arrives as more than a follow-up; it’s a deliberate reinvention. Released on September 24, 2026, Remedy Entertainment traded the original’s gunplay for brutal, up-close combat and recentered the story on a new protagonist — changes that make this sequel feel immediate and risky in a crowded AAA slate.

Platform	PC, PS5 (reviewed), Xbox Series X/S
Price	$59 / £49 / AU$99
Release date	September 24, 2026
Genre	Action RPG / hack-and-slash

Why this matters now

The game underlines a broader trend: big studios are willing to take gameplay risks with established franchises. For players, that means Control Resonant is not just a new entry — it’s a statement about where Remedy wants to take its world and what fans can expect from AAA experimentation this year.

What’s different

Rather than iterate on the formula, Remedy revamped the core loop. The slick, supernatural gunplay of the first Control gives way to visceral melee encounters. You no longer play as Jesse — the lead role belongs to her brother, Dylan — and that change reshapes both tone and tactics.

Maps are larger and more interconnected, skill trees are deeper, and mission structure aims to make most objectives feel consequential. Expect a longer campaign: I found the main story plus optional content takes roughly twice the time of Control’s original run if you explore widely.

Story and setting

The plot picks up soon after the first game but is built to be approachable for newcomers. A recap option helps, and the narrative clears the essentials quickly, so you rarely feel stranded. Still, long-time players will notice threads that reward familiarity.

Lower Manhattan has been warped by the dimensional breach at the heart of the series. Familiar cityscapes are reshaped into a dreamlike, often disorienting landscape where geometry betrays you and ordinary streets become hostile terrain. At the center of the crisis are the game’s antagonists, the Hiss, whose spread turns civilians into grotesque foes and reshapes the city itself.

Combat and progression

Combat is the headline change. The Abberant — Dylan’s mutable weapon — can transform into a variety of forms (sword, club, whip) with selectable primary and secondary modes plus a finish move. Each form has variants, and experimenting with combinations is a major part of the fun.

The game rewards aggressive play and adaptability. Some encounters demand quick parries and evasions; others encourage slow, tactical build-ups. Difficulty is tunable, so if you’re more interested in story than mastering complex combos, you can dial the challenge down.

• How you learn new powers: Taking down boss creatures known as Resonants unlocks signature abilities.
• Traversal: Dylan keeps the series’ hover-and-dash mobility, which is key to both exploration and combat.
• Progression: Killing enemies and completing missions grants generous XP, quickly empowering Dylan.

Boss fights are inventive and often inject new tools into your kit, so hunting them is both narratively and mechanically rewarding. By late game I felt significantly more capable than at the start, and the build variety kept encounters feeling fresh.

Design: a city turned inside out

Control Resonant isn’t an open world in the conventional sense. Instead, it presents a series of linked zones — each with its own visual identity and hazards — connected through underground passages and hidden transitions. That design preserves a feeling of cohesion while allowing for large, playground-like levels.

Navigation occasionally frustrates. The map doesn’t always make traversal limits obvious, and some objectives require unlocking specific abilities before you can reach them. These moments can interrupt momentum, but they’re a minor friction compared with the game’s strengths.

Presentation and sound

Technically and artistically, this is one of Remedy’s most ambitious releases. Environments show a high level of polish and imagination, with a palette that leans into stark contrasts and unsettling textures. Character models are strong, but the real showpieces are the locations — dense, layered, and often startling.

I tested on a PS5 Pro with a “balanced” mode that delivers ray tracing at an even compromise between performance and fidelity (roughly 40 fps with RT enabled). On high-end PCs the visuals should only get better; this feels like a title built to shine on multiple hardware tiers.

Verdict

Control Resonant is a bold sequel that does more than continue a story — it reshapes the gameplay identity of the franchise. Combat is overhauled in a way that mostly pays off, the world-building remains compelling, and the production values are excellent.

There are small navigation hiccups and a learning curve for the new systems, but those rarely overshadow the core experience. For players who enjoyed the original and for fans of action-heavy, supernatural hack-and-slash games, Control Resonant is one of the year’s most memorable releases.

Bottom line: Remedy took a significant risk and largely succeeded: Control Resonant stands on its own while expanding the series’ possibilities.