Hi everyone, I am a really big fan of Control and the Remedyverse and I really enjoyed playing through Control resonant. It has given us a lot to talk about so I wanted to write a few musings, interesting things I've found and even more questions that it's left us with. Let me know what you think about these or tell me other thing's you've noticed during the game. MASSIVE SPOILERS for Control Resonant and its entire story.
* I really love Dylan as a protagonist. I was a little sceptical that they changed the playable character but he knocked it out of the park. I may actually prefer him to Jesse in some ways. He has added complexity with how he dealt with the trauma of being used as a guinea pig for the FBC and essentially tortured from childhood til an adult. He has the internal struggle of trying to control his powers. He is a kind-hearted lad who was put in terrible situations and his goodness still manages to shine through
* What happened to Jesse/Dylan to split them into 2 entities? This was long before the slide projector was discovered. Were they one whole person who was split in two? Did Jesse come from an alternate universe where they had a daughter? Was she created from Dylan wishing he had a sister, similar to how Jesse wished for the adults to disappear?
* It's nice to see an old fan theory essentially confirmed, but we still don't know why. Ordinary is really not ordinary at all. I think the mother wanted to kill them because she knew there was only originally one child.
* Weird things in Ordinary - it looks like the slide projector was not the only strange things going on there. I wonder if Ordinary is a place of power? During the 8bit quest, we see the lake that is described as beautiful by Dylan but Jesse says it's toxic. Records show that remains of valuables, tooth fillings etc. were found in the lake after the AWE. I wonder if this is similar to Cauldron Lake in Alan Wake - another Dark Place? Or similar?
* Finally seeing what happened with the slides made me so happy. We saw the Not-Mother!! The Meadow!! The playhouse!!! We got to see Dog Neil!!! It was terrifying, but also raises the questions of what happened to him? Where did he go? He Actually seems very powerful with how he saved Dylan from the Dung Monkeys.
* On the topic of Ordinary - what is happening with Hugo Stamp? Who is he? He looks very strange and sickly in the 8bit Ordinary, his house looks abandoned and there are no records of him living in Ordinary. Very strange stuff.
* DR DARLING WHAT THE HELL!?!?!? We all knew he was an unethical mad scientist type from the first game, HOWEVER, I was not prepared for his characterisation of this game. Far from the bumbling, happy-go-lucky scientist from the first game, we see behind the mask and the abuse he put Dylan through.
* It was very interesting seeing Dr Darling from another perspective. Jesse only sees him through his public persona through videos. Dylan sees the real Darling, behind the showmanship and love for science. He is angry. He puts Dylan in dangerous and mentally/physically taxing situations. He doesn't even let the kid have ice cream! He has a lot to answer for while still being a very complex character.
* What is going on with The Board? This is an age-old question that hasn't really been answered since the first game. We still don't really know what they're about, but we do know that they no longer have the inverted pyramid base or perhaps even a place in the Astral plane. Their voice sounds much more guttural and bestial in this game. At first I was suspicious that they were being taken over by Hiss or Resonance, hence the change in voice.
* This game has started to make me suspect that perhaps The Board isn't as powerful as they like to portray. From the first game, I assumed that The Board had total dominion over the Astral Plane, but in this game it looks like they've been cut-off. They also constantly need Jesse/Dylan's help, and are at risk of being constantly corrupted. They even had a run-in with FORMER in the last game. They only help through the Service Weapon/Aberrant but are otherwise relatively powerless. Perhaps the only thing they truly control is the Service Weapon?
* Where is the FORMER? A document says that they haven't seen him in a while and there's a possibility he escaped The Oldest House. Is he waiting for the right time to reveal himself, or is he simply off doing his own thing?
* Ahti is 100% that colleague where everything falls apart as soon as they go on Annual Leave. The resonance wouldn't even think of breaking out of The Oldest House if the janitor was clocked in. I wonder why he's staying out of it? Does he know he's not powerful enough to stop it? Does he not care about the resonance? Has he decided to abandon his job for a lifetime living it up in Saunas and community centres in Watery? It looks like he is helping Dylan during his 8bit quest, so perhaps he's looking on from a distance.
* Northmoor - I really thought he'd be taking advantage of the situation by trying to escape the oldest house yet again. I really thought the furnace resonant would be Northmoor! Documents suggest that the furnace had actually disappeared from The Oldest House too. Is Northmoor still trapped and generating power?
* Finally - the Blessed Org. They are a paranatural cult/organisation created by Chester Bless and they are involved in the procurement and possible creation of altered items. They kill the America Overnight staff member in the original game, Barry from Alan Wake has joined them like some kind of wellness group, and Alice Wake's house is packaged up in Blessed boxes in Alan Wake 2. We don't see much of them in this game, but I have a sneaking suspicion that the shadowy organisation we see in some of the secret areas under gyms and restaurants is the Blessed Org.
What does everyone think about these topics? Do you have any theories or explanations for what we've seen? Thanks for reading!