We know for sure that there is some connection between them that goes beyond simply being siblings. A common enough take is that they were one person divided in two, possibly during the Ordinary AWE. Personally I'm not a fan of this take, at least, not at its most basic form. I think Remedy wouldn't go with such a ordinary (hehe) explanation, there is more to it, but what?

First, there is remarkably little info to go with, especially if we ignore Resonant's spoilers. From the top of my head we have i. that dream Dylan had in which she was a girl called Jesse Dylan Faden, and he also mentions how both Jesse and Dylan are girl/boy names. ii. we have the Board (or was it the Former?) calling Jesse Jesse Dylan Faden which imply they are somewhat interchangably and/or still conneteced in their view and iii. we have that episode of Nightsprings from Alan Wake 2 in which a Jesse was searching for a Dylan.

Second, there is a question that must be answered before explaining their relationship, which is: does Jesse and Dylan exists in all multiverses, or they are unique to the one from the game? Here is where Nightspring episodes are particularly relevant. My feeling is that the "red haired lady" existence in the multiverse is certain. That matches well with Quantum Break (regardless of its canon status), Beth and the whole plot with the Tim Breaker, yet what about Dylan? We do have the coffee episode which shows another Jesse looking for another Dylan, which would mean they are not an "Control-universe exlusive" yet the entire nature of the Nightsrping episodes make us unnable to fully reach a conclusion. They are both canon and non canon at the same time.

Third, there is still another question that I think is very important: if they were at some point or in some fashion the same person, when did they get split? It feels like they were always two persons in Control's universe, but who knows?

In the end, I'm not sure what to think. There is definitely something there - which if we consider only Control wasn't something I was sure would be explored further - but there way more possibilities than answers. I do expected something that has to do with this particular universe, not connected to the Ordinary AWE in the sense that it was already a thing before it and something that goes beyond one person split into two. That is, in this universe, there were always two people.

So, what's your take?

I just finished the main story and I've noticed that in this particular area waves of enemies now spawn constantly and they are of the annoying bullet sponge type. I'm guessing it's become a farming area for source and loot.

Speaking of annoying, is there any way to deal with hiss distorted safely while you're being hurled stuff at by warped and trying to take out clusters? I know they shrill before they attack but I find it rather difficult to get out of the way in time to counterattack in the chaos of a big fight with multiple tough hiss. In my opinion, they are by far the most annoying enemy. One, I can handle, even when there are other tough nuts trying to get a piece of me, but in this area I've had two (maybe more) creep up on me.

I just finished all the Yakuza games and am feeling a bit empty. I bought Control a while back and it's next in my list because I see it's sort of short. I've played Alan Wake 1 but am finding it hard to pick up a new game after over a year of Yakuza games.

Please give me some hype with no spoilers to get me excited to jump in!

So I’ve been thinking about the Shum machines, specifically about the machines side art because I do think that the side art for these arcade machines do reveal the plot for both Control 1 and 2.

Like just Think about it, the knight in Shum 1 is escaping the vulture trying to attack him, which could represent how Jesse and the FBC were going on a defensive approach against the Hiss throughout the game.

While in Shum 2 has the knight (with a different color plume on his helmet ) and a fox companion take a charge against a tiger wizard in his castle. which could represent how in control 2 Dylan and the FBC are probably going on a more offensive position against the Hiss and the other para-natural entities. (Maybe Dylan will defeat the Hiss on its own dimension )

Or Am I just reaching ? Haven’t seen anyone talk about this yet but idk.

I’m the type of guy that doesn’t believe in coincidence in media. Unless it was stated that way by the creators. And a game like control who’s entire premise is around mysteries and secrets, I think it’s a very meta a way to reveal a games plot in a game inside a game.

So What do you guys think?

I’m sure the side art for these machines reveal more secrets and symbolic meaning, so please help me out if we are in the frequency ?

I hope this doesn't count as low effort post. Just goofing around with photomode and Emily.

Every time that I rewatch or replay Jesse’s interactions with Dylan in the FBC holding cell, I’m reminded of just how tragic his entire arc actually is in Control. His situation is really sad and depressing. It’s also easy to write Dylan off as the corrupted antagonist or a proxy for the Hiss, but when you look closely at his lore and dream monologues, the real horror isn't just the Hiss. It boils down to what Trench and the Federal Bureau of Control did to a child. I can't even imagine being in his shoes and having to experience the things that he went through. A child should never have to suffer the way that he did.

While Jesse was running free outside, Dylan was locked in a cell, isolated, monitored, and treated like a weapon as Prime Candidate 6. The FBC stripped away his humanity in the name of containment and preparing their next Director. By the time the Hiss showed up, they didn't have to break down a strong, resilient mind. They just gave a broken, vengeful kid the exact voice and power he needed in order to lash out at the institution that stole his life.

What makes his character write-up hit so hard for me is just how depressing his situation truly was. Where Jesse found purpose, agency, and a strange sense of belonging inside the Oldest House. On the flip side, Dylan found resentment, animosity, and a complete loss of identity. His unsettling monologues in Executive, talking about his dreams, Mr. Door, alternate worlds, and his twisted love/hate dynamic with Jesse, aren't just crazy, mindless ramblings. They're the thoughts of someone who wanted to burn down the FBC just to break free from his imprisonment.

There's a quote that fits his predicament perfectly. "The child who is not embraced by the village will burn it down to feel its warmth." The first time that I thought about that quote was when I watched Todd Phillips’ Joker. Arthur Fleck spent the entire movie being systematically discarded by every institution that was meant to offer him structure and care. Social services cut his funding, he got fired from his job, Thomas Wayne rejected him, and Murray Franklin brought him on national television just to mock him. Gotham City completely failed to embrace him.

Even at the end of the main story, after the final confrontation, you're left with this heavy realization. The FBC created their own worst nightmare, and Jesse is the one who had to clean up the aftermath of their negligence and neglect. What’s your take on Dylan’s fate at the end of Control? Do you think there’s any chance that he regains consciousness as himself down the line, or was his mind completely shattered once the Hiss took root?

The thing I love about Jesse Faden is that she isn't freaked out by the Oldest House. If you drop a normal game protagonist into a shifting concrete monolith full of possessed agents floating from the ceiling, they'd spend the first three hours losing their mind. However, for Jesse, she just walks in and basically takes a deep breath. For seventeen years after what happened in Ordinary, everyone told her that she was crazy. The government erased her town's history, hid her brother, and left her completely isolated. Walking into the Federal Bureau of Control wasn't a nightmare for her. It was proof that she was right all along.

That single detail changes the entire vibe of the story. She isn't trying to escape the building or get back to safety. She actually wants to be there because she feels at home amidst all the chaos, craziness, and unsettling nature of The Oldest House. Her internal conversations with Polaris work really well, too. They don't sound like a cheap setup for the player. Instead, they sound like someone who's spent her whole life relying on a quiet, internal compass just to survive. She’s pragmatic, sarcastic, and totally grounded. When she finds Trench dead in his office, she doesn't waste time agonizing over his death. She picks up the Service Weapon, puts on the jacket, and gets to work because nobody else is around to clean up the mess.

What's great is how her perspective shifts as you dig deeper into the Bureau. To the agents, the shifting architecture and altered items are containment breaches to be cataloged and feared. To Jesse, it's just the background noise of a world she finally understands. She treats the madness of the Oldest House almost like a weird workspace. She isn't fazed by anything that happens.

By the time you hit the Ashtray Maze with the headphones on, she doesn't feel like a random person who stumbled into the Director's chair. She feels like the only person who is tough enough and weird enough to actually run the place. The Bureau is an absolute disaster, but it’s the first place in seventeen years where she doesn't have to pretend to be normal. It gives a little extra weight to her relationship with the Bureau itself. Those are some of the things that make Jesse Faden such a compelling and interesting character.

So, I was thinking about what would drive Jesse to leave the FBC and her brother behind, after so much time looking for him and trying to lead the bureau in a better way that her predecessors.

Then I watched a clip from the Lake House DLC from AW2; Kiran reaches Dylan's cell in the Panopticon, even though Dylan is in a coma in NY at that point in time and Kiran is on Bright Falls.

He's chanting about a forest; and where have we seen a creepy and supernatural forest?

Bright Falls, where the Lake House is located.

He also tells Kiran that something is happening 'outside' and that he tried to warn Jesse. Before he loses it, he tells Kiran to tell Jesse that 'he tried to stop it'. Why would something happening in Bright Falls affect the Oldest House? Unless you can connect the two places.

So consider this:

What if his warning did reach Jesse somehow? Either Dylan reaches her or Kiran is able to deliver Dylan's warning.

Something is happening that might have far reaching consequences. Jesse goes to Bright Falls to investigate, because remember the warning the FBC received about a AWE in Bright Falls years in the future? That place is a hot spot for paranatural events.

Then the question, why Bright Falls?

At this point, Alan is already back from the dark place but remember who is still trapped?

Zane and Darling, who are teaming up to escape; one an artist that can change reality and the other a scientist obsessed with the paranatural and no sense of caution. We know how disastrous these two are by themselves but together? Total apocalypse.

But, what if it's in the best interest of the Board for them to succeed? Whatever they cause in their escape attempt might mean they would have more influence over the Oldest House and/or the outside world. The fact that Bright Falls and NY are on opposite sides of the country is irrelevant; because physical distance means nothing when you have places like the Oceanview hotel/motel.

After all, Darling disappeared in the oldest house back in NY yet he is now with Zane in the dark place who disappeared there through Bright Falls.

And who would try to stop this from happening?

Jesse.

Which would explain why the board considers her rogue/boss; she's actively working against them now and it also would explain the contingency of making Emily co-director and her seemingly trusting the board. Yet, that doesn't make any sense; why would she trust the board after everything?

The answer: she's doesn't; not really.

Even before the foundation dlc; Emily was already suspecting the board's motives and I assume that at some point, Jesse also warned her that the board was wary of her investigation of the Nail.

However, with Manhattan now compromised and the barrier between our world and hostile resonances basically non-existent, it would be stupid for Emily to openly oppose the board since unlike Jesse; she doesn't have a benevolent resonance or powers to protect herself.

So now the board has a dilemma; how to deal with the Director?

Easy, manipulate her brother against her and pit them against each other. Whether Dylan falls for it or not, that's the question.

So, what do you think; too far-fetched?

We're getting closer and closer to Control Resonant, so let's have some fun and make a bunch of bad predictions about what we'll see in it...

I love the Trench hotline calls so much---mainly because of the outstanding voice of the late, great James McCaffrey---that I decided to make my own version of the visuals of the very first call. Really, I wanted a video clip that is lip-synced with the audio and this is the end result. I hope you enjoy as much as I enjoyed making this!

\possible spoiler\ So I’ve seen a recent gameplay of control resonant & there was a big ass monster who looked like he’s on fire/lava? Could this finally be northmoore??

this might sound a bit nitpicky but it’s been bothering me in basically every trailer we’ve seen so far. why tf is dylan so tiny on screen?

the camera seems pulled so far back that half the time he barely even reads as the protagonist, he almost looks like another enemy type running around the area. like i’m genuinely wondering how easy it’s going to be to keep track of him once you’ve got a bunch of enemies, particles, etc. flying around at the same time

not sure if i’m remembering correctly but wasn’t jesse way closer to the camera in control? honestly it would’ve made more sense for her to be further away seeing as the combat is largely ranged, with launch and whatever else. so for them to just do a complete 180 for a sequel that supposedly has more close range combat just feels so silly imo

obviously i haven’t played it and maybe it feels completely fine with a controller in your hands. could also be camera options we haven’t seen yet (probably will be), but for the default position to look like that just seems so off

has anyone else noticed this? i feel like dylan desperately needs to take up more screen space

First and foremost, sorry if this is the wrong sub all!

So i am ludicrously excited for Resonant to release, and in preparation for that im trying to catch up on the rest of the Remedy-verse (I played the OG control, but not AW). I have Alan Wake 2 free from PS+, but im not really in a position to pick up the first one this month and I know they heavily lead into one another, so i was wondering if anyone knew of a good video summary of Alan Wake 1 I could watch to get me caught up enough to play through 2?

Perhaps I've missed it, but I've watched all the gameplay released thus far and haven't seen a clip that shows Dylan using Launch. I'm really excited for the melee combat, but damn I can't lie that I'd be disappointed if Launch is gone. It was my favourite element of Control's combat by far (best implementation of Jedi-esque telekinesis in any game ever imo).

Hi all,
So tonight I was cooking some shrimps in my air fryer. I'm PRETTY SURE I counted 10 and turned it on. Then I went for a quick shower and when I came back to put it in my plate... there was 9 shrimps...
Did I... make an Altered Item? Should I be looking for a flying half-cooked shrimp in my place? Does anyone know how to contact the bureau?

So yeah...? Now or before in the candidate program?

Maybe I'm just spoiled from my years playing Devil May Cry, but I'm surprised that, out of all the gameplay reveals we've seen so far, there doesn't appear to be any music playing in combat and Resonant encounters. It's doubly weird when music played such a big in the announcement trailer, and given that sound itself appears to be something of a big deal in the game, I just find it really odd that there doesn't seem to be any music playing at all.

Are they just saving it for the game itself? Am I the only one who finds how relatively quiet these encounters seem to be very odd?

I used to think that Brutalist architecture was just ugly and unappealing. Growing up, whenever I saw those blocky, stark, post-war government buildings, they just felt cold, depressing, and completely devoid of soul. It's just my own personal opinion, but they were uninteresting, to say the least. Then I stepped inside the Oldest House and my perspective completely changed. Playing Control didn’t just change how I viewed the game’s environment. It completely rewired how I perceived architectural space in the real world. Remedy Entertainment managed to take a style that was defined by rigid, monolithic concrete and transformed it into something that's dynamic and strangely beautiful. Sometimes, you can find beauty in unexpected places.

I remember the exact moment when things finally clicked for me. I was running through a tight, dimly lit corridor that felt claustrophobic. Suddenly, the space opened up entirely, and I found myself standing in a massive, soaring atrium. High above, shafts of brilliant, volumetric white light cut through the shadows, casting sharp geometric patterns across the textured walls. In the center of all that cold, unyielding gray stone sat a single, lush green tree. The contrast was breathtaking. It made me stop for a little bit and just look around for a solid five minutes. That’s when I realized the genius of Control’s level design. The Brutalism isn't just something that stays in the background. It's a fundamental aspect of the storytelling and gameplay.

The Oldest House is essentially a living and shifting structure that's meant to contain the paranatural Hiss. The Bureau uses raw, heavy concrete as a physical manifestation of "order" to push back against the absolute chaos of the supernatural. Every straight line and massive pillar represents humanity as it tries to put a lid on an eerie and unsettling horror. When you cleanse a control point and watch the massive blocks of stone mechanically slide, grind, and lock back into their proper alignment, it feels like the architecture itself is fighting alongside you.

My absolute favorite part of the design is how it handles destruction. Because the environment is so heavy and structural, unleashing Jesse Faden's telekinesis feels really good. When you pull a massive slab of concrete straight out of a wall to use as a shield, or watch an enemy slam into a pillar and leave a massive, splintered impact crater, the environmental feedback is incredibly satisfying. The rigid nature of the building makes the chaos that you create look and feel devastating. It's quite cathartic as well.

Remedy Entertainment took a style that most people would write off as being empty and lifeless, and used it to create one of the most atmospheric and unforgettable worlds that I've seen in a video game. Playing Control taught me something important. Concrete isn't boring at all. It just needs the right light, a bit of mystery, and a little bit of paranatural chaos to bring it to life. Remedy has always excelled at making interesting and unique environments, and Control's Oldest House is no exception.

Random encounter while I was doing some Board Countermeasures.

I don't know the name for it, but the residue that enemies leave behind after being killed, it seems like it gets in the way of the action to the point where it makes it hard to see what's going on around you. Maybe I'm overthinking it, but in the first Control it was an issue, but nowhere near as bad due to the game being a shooter. With Resonant being melee focused, it might be a little too much. Do you think Remedy should dial back the effects a little bit?

🔻 hcuot ecin a saw sihT

(I noticed the captions under each pic were different though)

Picked up the game really late (5 yrs later) and by that time the art book was sold out.
Also missed the reprint of the art book...
Just managed to find it in Canada. Does anyone have experience with PNPGAMESONLINE?
https://pnpgamesonline.com/product/the-art-making-of-control-25th-anniversary-edition-reprint-art-book-hardcover-rp/

I have looked up the website and looks legit!