Control

 PC
User Score
7.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 1505 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 995 out of 1505
  2. Mixed: 273 out of 1505
  3. Negative: 237 out of 1505

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  1. jessejojo
    Aug 29, 2019
    7
    So ... i just finished the game and I dont know how to feel about this. First up gameplay:
    The gameplay and shooting mechanics are great and I really like them. The game offers several abilities which are just fun to use like force push, hovering etc. In fact, killing stuff with ur "force" is so much fun it makes me think about the upcoming Star Wars game of EA and that they should really    So ... i just finished the game and I dont know how to feel about this. First up gameplay:
    The gameplay and shooting mechanics are great and I really like them. The game offers several abilities which are just fun to use like force push, hovering etc. In fact, killing stuff with ur "force" is so much fun it makes me think about the upcoming Star Wars game of EA and that they should really get behind it. Be aware though, some abilities you will only find if you go after some side quests, which brings me to the next point.

    There are a couple of sidequest even after finishing the game which vary between really interesting (bosses etc) and absolutly pointless gather or kill missions. Some of this quests are even timed but there is not a single reason to complete them. You will find this quests across the map which is probably my biggest problem with the game.

    Traversing in this game, atleast at the beginning, is horrible. The map in this game just sucks and i didnt count how many times I was lost, but it sure was a lot. I dont know who thought about this map, but it really should be handled differently. Sometimes you have to figure out that some elevators take you to different places which are of course not marked on your map. After a couple of hours you will get the hang of it and understand the map but this shouldnt be a thing.

    Lets get to the story.
    To be honest ... I dont know what to tell you about the story, because on the one hand I feel like the story and the characters are really well done but on the other hand I am not sure if i actually understood anything that happened in the game. This is probably where all this 10/10 reviews come from but just because the story is complicated, it does not mean the story is good. Its definitely entertaining but not worth a 10 out of 10. At some point int the game I thought i understood the plot and the whole story around it but no ... the game keeps throwing confusing things at you which are never cleared up or make any sense at all. Best example would be the whole janitor thing.

    Graphics and performance:
    The game looks really good and they definitely put some work into the maps and special effects. Sometimes the characters look a bit off just like in Quantum Break but thats not a killer for me.
    Personally i had no problems running the game, but others keep complaining about it. Thought i should mention that. Also ... I am talking about the PC version here but I have seen some framerate tests of the game on ps4 and xbox, where the game falls as low as 12 frames which is simply unacceptable. The physics in this game are very well done, which is probably why the consoles have such a hard time running the game. Everything you touch, control or run into actually moves accordingly ... atleast most of the time.

    Conclusion:
    If you like Quantum Break you will definitely like this game aswell. For all others, I would advice to wait for a price drop because I think the game is worth about 40 bucks. It offers some solid shooter fun for ca. 8 hours if you rush through the story and way more if you care about sidequests. If it werent for that overall confusing story with more or less no real ending and a terrible map, i would give this game a higher score.    … Expand
  2. pamev
    Sep 3, 2019
    4
    The gameplay gets repetitive very quickly but the voice work and writing is awful from the very first minute. Less compelling words have never been less convincingly delivered. Honestly, the idea that real, living, adult human beings earned a wage writing the words being spoken in this game is mind-boggling.

    Still, there's no denying it's pretty. Pretty like a painting which can only be    The gameplay gets repetitive very quickly but the voice work and writing is awful from the very first minute. Less compelling words have never been less convincingly delivered. Honestly, the idea that real, living, adult human beings earned a wage writing the words being spoken in this game is mind-boggling.

    Still, there's no denying it's pretty. Pretty like a painting which can only be viewed in tandem with the world's worst audiobook. Plus stale gameplay.    … Expand
  3. Sane__
    Sep 2, 2019
    4
    First, let me begin with that I see myself like an avid Remedy (especially Sam Lake) fan. My childhood is marked by Max Payne & Max Payne 2 and I think that Alan Wake is one of the best experiences I've ever had (I say experiences because the gameplay was not exactly the best I've ever had)

    Quantum Break was okay-ish. Besides that absolutely epic production value, the game itself was    First, let me begin with that I see myself like an avid Remedy (especially Sam Lake) fan. My childhood is marked by Max Payne & Max Payne 2 and I think that Alan Wake is one of the best experiences I've ever had (I say experiences because the gameplay was not exactly the best I've ever had)

    Quantum Break was okay-ish. Besides that absolutely epic production value, the game itself was bland at best and the story was 6.5/10 max.

    But this... I mean, I really expected a lot, a lot more. Sam Lake is a tremendous writer but Sci-Fi is not his strong side. Thriller/Noir stories are something he really excels at but this second attempt at Sci-Fi just doesn't cut it. The story is boring, the characters are not relatable (I really don't care if someone of them dies and this is always a bad thing). The whole experience is just not memorable. I'm a fan of good quality SCP (X-Files, Stranger Things, etc) but this doesn't even come close.

    Gameplay-wise the game gets repetitive very quickly. The upgrade tree is very basic and boring, the shooting mechanics are okay and the power feels awesome but that gets very old quickly. Soon after you will see the boring pattern of the gameplay loop. Go there, kill the enemies, claim the control point. Go there, kill the enemies, claim the control point.

    This is the most painful 4/10 rating I've ever give since I really, really consider myself as a Remedy Entertainment hardcore fan.    … Expand
  4. CaueV
    Sep 3, 2019
    1
    Do not bother playing this game.
    The game does a terrible job at introducing you to its world. it feels like you missed a cut scene or a dialogue for the first hour or 2. And by the end you kind of just accept things.
    Checkpoints are miles away from your objective.This is particularly infuriating because many enemies can one shot you. It artificially increases the duration of the game    Do not bother playing this game.
    The game does a terrible job at introducing you to its world. it feels like you missed a cut scene or a dialogue for the first hour or 2. And by the end you kind of just accept things.
    Checkpoints are miles away from your objective.This is particularly infuriating because many enemies can one shot you.
    It artificially increases the duration of the game by adding absurdly long shooting parts. The ending fights take (I'm no kidding) around 20 minutes each. 20 minutes of literally just shooting at zombies, while all you want is to progress the damn story. And don't you dare die to one of the one shot dudes, or you'll get to fight them again aaaall the way from the beginning.
    The only reason I kept playing was to ~~unveil the mystery~~. Too bad the ending is just the same non-sense and it was all a waste of time.
    The gameplay is fun for a while, but these guys should be awarded for not knowing what their game is about. They do everything in their power to take you away from the story line, either by flashing uninteresting side quests on your face, filling the world with "lore" collectibles that don't add anything to the story, adding 10 minute long shooting bits or by making you go back to the last checkpoint.
    Don't even get me started on the terrible waypoint system.

    Again, don't play the game. It's not worth it. My last couple of hours I was just forcing myself to play it just to see the ending, just to get disappointed once again.    … Expand
  5. Kairax
    Aug 27, 2019
    6
    Hey, are you old enough to remember "Psi-Ops: the mindgate conspiracy" ? This is new age re-imagining of that game but with flare of SCP, new graphics and blander story.

    If you are new to games - enjoy destructibility and new way to control environment, you will like it.
  6. Roswell
    Aug 27, 2019
    9
    Remedy proves once again that they are one of the best studios in the industry

    + Great Visuals and Effects
    + Immersive Story
    + Addictive Game-play
    + Soundtrack (and music from Poets of the Fall) Is awesome.

    - Lip sync and animations in some of the conversations (cut-scenes) are little bit bland, and it
    sometimes seems that side characters are much better looking than the main character.
  7. Timppa87
    Aug 27, 2019
    10
    Very high quality action game. Unique story and excellent game mechanics. Beautiful graphics! PC with RTX on is just pure candy for your eyes!
  8. exeandrey
    Aug 28, 2019
    3
    It has some old good Max Pain features like ringing phones that you can pick up, amazing game physics and objects interaction. But the game itself is super boring and repeatative. Scenario makes no sense, some psychodelic crap, with no prestory, no indroduction, same locations and enemies all over again and again. Same rooms, same boring shooting. Thers no fun in shooting enemies: someIt has some old good Max Pain features like ringing phones that you can pick up, amazing game physics and objects interaction. But the game itself is super boring and repeatative. Scenario makes no sense, some psychodelic crap, with no prestory, no indroduction, same locations and enemies all over again and again. Same rooms, same boring shooting. Thers no fun in shooting enemies: some rainbow stuff instead of blood, and bodies imidiatly disappears. With no explanation at all what is going on. Basicaly script is : BURO (makes no sense), BROTHER, DIRECTOR(makes no sense), HISS (makes no sense). I would put zero or one score if not great furniture shooting. Do not reccomend, if you cant try it for free.… Expand
  9. Duppaduu12
    Aug 27, 2019
    10
    Game is awesome! Is mysterious triller like Alan Wake but even better. Best game of year 2019 so far.
    Just buy it.
  10. Tidytib
    Aug 28, 2019
    4
    This Nvidia RTX Tech demo could be an excellent game. Shooting furniture is fun for only a little while.
  11. tomppa500
    Aug 27, 2019
    10
    The game graphics were pleasant and delightful. The story was weird even so made me laugh many times. Unlike Remedy's previous games, Control is open-world game and i think Remedy made it work well!
  12. TitaniumDragon
    Mar 15, 2021
    8
    Control is a third-person story-heavy metroidvania action game that draws obvious inspiration from the stories of the SCP Foundation – which itself took inspiration from various secretive government agencies containing the paranormal, like the MIB.

    As a fan of SCPs, I was excited to see other groups play around with this idea, as it is one that is very ripe for exploration. Here, the    Control is a third-person story-heavy metroidvania action game that draws obvious inspiration from the stories of the SCP Foundation – which itself took inspiration from various secretive government agencies containing the paranormal, like the MIB.

    As a fan of SCPs, I was excited to see other groups play around with this idea, as it is one that is very ripe for exploration.

    Here, the main “feature” is that a lot of the “Altered Items” are, rather than being fantastic things, instead extremely mundane. The central premise is that something is granting seemingly ordinary objects extraordinary power (possibly the collective belief of humanity in these icons), and they do various fantastical things as a result.

    The mixture of the mundane and the fantastic works quite well; when you see a rubber duck in a cage behind a thick sheet of glass, you know that it is dangerous, despite its innocuous nature.

    You play as Jesse Faden, a young woman who is looking for her brother, who was taken by the Federal Bureau of Control years earlier. As the game unfolds, you learn that she and her brother were involved in some sort of Altered World Event, where a seemingly innocent item created major problems, and in the process of the event, the pair of them gained extraordinary powers.

    Jesse’s main ability is to bind herself to Objects of Power – a particular type of Altered Item that grant paranatural abilities to those who build some sort of connection to them. These abilities range from hovering in the air to telekinetically throwing objects to making a shield of stone around yourself.

    And it’s a good thing she has these abilities, because she walks into the Bureau of Control while it is in a crisis. The bureau is located in the Oldest House, an imposing building that hides itself from the eyes of normal men, and whose insides are constantly shifting and changing, and it is under lockdown – some sort of horrible otherworldly thing, called the Hiss, has entered it, and taken a bunch of agents under its control.

    Jesse, blind to all of this, walks straight into the Director’s office – ordinarily impossible due to security, but instead all too easy because of the devastation wrought by the Hiss – and finds him dead on his desk, his weapon – the Service Weapon, an object of power that looks like a gun that identifies you as the Director of the Bureau – right next to him. Naturally, she binds herself to it, and in the process realizes that this is far, far bigger than her search for the brother – and that the Bureau needs her.

    This is a really neat premise for the game, and as you go through the game, you gradually uncover the history of the Bureau. In truth, the Bureau’s background is really the main thing that makes this game work – reading about all the events and altered items, then dealing with the various issues they’re causing, works really well. These are often rather funny, but in a rather dark sort of way, and the contrast of the mundane-seeming items and the mundanity of government work is contrasted with the ridiculousness of the items they’re trying to contain and the danger that they represent.

    Pretty much everything about this is fun, but sadly, the rest of the game doesn’t quite hold up to it.

    The combat is only okay. For being as fantastical as it is in some ways, virtually everything you fight is some variation on “dude with gun” or “dude with telekinetic powers who chucks stuff at you”, along with a couple melee enemies. There’s really not that much variety in terms of what you’re facing, and as a result, you will spend the whole game doing more or less the same thing in combat – even more so as you get your best power, telekinesis, very early.

    The game’s dearth of bosses also hurts it – there’s really only three bosses that aren’t some variant of “dude with gun” (though one “dude with gun” boss does have a nice array of powers), and so, despite the seemingly fantastic setting, there’s really not that much fantastic about the combat. In a game that is 20+ hours long, that is far too little variety.

    The game also suffers from its Metroidvania aspects. The problem with Metroidvanias is that they encourage backtracking, but backtracking through the Bureau isn’t much fun – the main fun of the game is discovering new things, and this is pretty boring.

    The sidequests, too, are a mixed bag; some of them are nothing but filler, while others are some of the best content in the game, including several of the more interesting bosses.

    Finally, the game’s ending is quite lackluster. There is no final boss and you are left with a number of dangling plot points – and while that’s not entirely a bad thing it still feels unsatisfying in many ways.

    All in all, Control is a game that I was very enthusiastic to play, and felt great about playing for about 3/4ths of it, but was good but not great in the end.    … Expand
  13. darioxlz
    Jan 17, 2020
    8
    Excellent game, good story although it is easy to get lost on the map and not achieve the objectives easily, after finishing the game I did not want to continue doing the secondary missions because I got bored
  14. napoxog
    Jul 12, 2022
    2
    This is the 1st review I post here.
    This game just made me mad.
    I'm setting 2 of 10 only because of graphics. this is the most stupid game design I've seen for decades. (I'm 43) It is so secondary to Star Wars in terms of "powers".... no guidance in some places - is the feature? get lost. Stupid dialogs... Useless resources in the begging wit no clue for future use... Useless but    This is the 1st review I post here.
    This game just made me mad.
    I'm setting 2 of 10 only because of graphics.
    this is the most stupid game design I've seen for decades. (I'm 43)
    It is so secondary to Star Wars in terms of "powers"....
    no guidance in some places - is the feature? get lost.
    Stupid dialogs...
    Useless resources in the begging wit no clue for future use...
    Useless but rare mods....
    shooting is ok. but no sex.
    The setting is some kind of mashed X-Files with Twin Peaks in a bad way... Unclear and boring, unlike these two...
    This one is a waste even with discount...    … Expand
  15. musical_muze
    Jan 26, 2023
    8
    TLDR: A thrill ride of a game that I found very compelling. 8/10

    At first, I did not like Control. I’m the kind of gamer who stays away from anything remotely horror-adjacent because I’m a whimp. The scariest games I’ve ever played were probably Metro 2033 and the original Bioshock, to give you an idea of my scale. So, why did I even try Control? Because I’m a huge SCP fan, and I    TLDR: A thrill ride of a game that I found very compelling. 8/10

    At first, I did not like Control. I’m the kind of gamer who stays away from anything remotely horror-adjacent because I’m a whimp. The scariest games I’ve ever played were probably Metro 2033 and the original Bioshock, to give you an idea of my scale.

    So, why did I even try Control? Because I’m a huge SCP fan, and I kept hearing that Control was “SCP: The Unofficial Video Game.” So I hesitantly downloaded the game and tried to give it a fair shot.

    At first, I did not like Control, but I soon learned to love it. It certainly had its flaws, but I found the game hard to put down, and hard to stop thinking about in my spare time. I’m sure the game will live in my brain rent-free for a very long time.

    The game is definitely SCP: The Unofficial Video Game, and it does its job well, which is the game’s greatest positive for me. The story, the environments, the ambiance, and the collectibles all weave a paranatural world of both curiosities and terrors, and it’s yours to explore. I could not have asked for more.

    I also started playing the game because I had been itching to play a decent shooter, and, while it didn’t disappoint there, it also didn’t deliver exactly what I expected, as someone who has almost a thousand hours of CSGO in my backlog. The gunplay is fun, but it’s not the highlight of combat, and I never felt like my FPS skills tipped the outcome of an encounter in my favor. The combat in Control relies more on your paranatural powers than your ability to click on enemies’ heads, and it was a lot of fun.

    However, Control isn’t without flaws. The game had occasional performance issues for me before I tweaked the settings to perfection, which most people won’t do. Some enemies were overly frustrating because they either had no obvious way to reliably damage them, they output huge bursts of damage that you’re not prepared for, or a little of both. The timed missions were a flavor win, but a huge fail in execution, and I did two or three before deciding they weren’t worth my time. All of the firearms have an accuracy range regardless of your motion, so I could have my cursor right on an enemy’s head and still miss, which was frustrating to me.

    While not perfect, Control is a game that I would recommend without hesitation. I had a ton of fun with it, and I can’t wait to continue finishing all the side quests and exploring the DLC.    … Expand
  16. aligunes
    Feb 1, 2023
    8
    The atmosphere of this game is too good to be true. The graphics are very good, the story is interesting, the features are excellent.
  17. madterps
    Nov 12, 2021
    7
    I did enjoy the old RPG element of revealing little bit of the story by collecting documents, etc. and talking to NPCs. And I enjoy the power you get to a degree however the game has a few flaws. Even when you have your awesome power, the hiss infected enemies are still very powerful, not the regular ones but the floating ones who use telekinesis and the ones who carries a rocket launcher.I did enjoy the old RPG element of revealing little bit of the story by collecting documents, etc. and talking to NPCs. And I enjoy the power you get to a degree however the game has a few flaws. Even when you have your awesome power, the hiss infected enemies are still very powerful, not the regular ones but the floating ones who use telekinesis and the ones who carries a rocket launcher.

    They hit like a Mack truck however you don't have too much room to manuever in the later fights as you constantly dies due to being overwhelmed by enemies. And the worst part is that you get a 10% penalty every time you die. So that means when you need to upgrade your health, etc. it takes forever to do so.

    Another thing I found was that the game is mostly based in a bland building setting so it really kind of messes up tracking at times as all of the offices look alike after a while. Even though you do have hints at time where to go, the blandness of the environment does not help you at all.

    Overall this game has some cool concepts but the environment and the artificial difficulty rubs some points off what could have been an excellent game.    … Expand
  18. passionne
    Apr 18, 2023
    7
    The good :
    - graphics are awesome with ray tracing enabled.
    - dark atmosphere.
    - gameplay : a few useful powers and weapons make you very powerful against enemies hordes
    - manual saves

    The bad :
    - enemies respawn
    - uninteresting secondary quests.
    - requires a very powerful PC at 4k with ray tracing enabled.
  19. tshrimp
    Jan 30, 2021
    9
    Very good game. One of the better games I have played in years. I didn't give it a 10 as no game is perfect.

    Pros: Graphics, Controls, Story, No Woke content, fresh ideas, challenge, no notable bugs, just the right length.

    Cons: Save point structure, allowing to start a mission that you cannot finish without completing of other missions.
  20. Vaeu
    Dec 25, 2021
    6
    The story and characters are the weakest part of Control, the graphics, and music are decent. Control shines in its gameplay, the multitude of ways to engage combat with levitating, ground-pounding, chucking objects, and shooting with different weapons is great fun. Since the game isn't too long I don't think the gameplay gets repetitive quick enough.
  21. nietzfk
    May 20, 2023
    9
    I love it. Layered structure, perfect functioning of metroidvania. I wish I could understand the story too.
  22. Ratingss
    Jul 26, 2022
    4
    The game looks fine but its full of stupid things that just tick me off, like the infinite ammo gun that takes forever to reload, the powers are all overpowered, the janitor that speaks in gibberish, the goddamn red lights, the same stupid enemies ripped straight from Quantum Break. And on top of that the PC port is a mess that just freezes whenever it wants.
  23. random_gamer
    Feb 8, 2022
    5
    This game is so much wasted potential.
    I would have loved to give this game a 8 or maybe even a 9.
    But there are some major flaws. Positives: + The launch ability feels amazing on itself + The graphics are very good + It has some (!) very nice and crazy looking areas Negatives: - The map is just a joke - The combat gets stale very quickly, because its always the same -    This game is so much wasted potential.
    I would have loved to give this game a 8 or maybe even a 9.
    But there are some major flaws.

    Positives:
    + The launch ability feels amazing on itself
    + The graphics are very good
    + It has some (!) very nice and crazy looking areas

    Negatives:
    - The map is just a joke
    - The combat gets stale very quickly, because its always the same
    - Totally unnecessary "go here and kill stuff" quests. And those quests even pop up randomly and have a time limit! I don't know who decided these quests would add anything to the experience. They do not.
    - Not much enemy diversity (and enemies despawn, which feels bad)
    - The majority of areas are bland offices
    - There is way way wayyyy too much stuff to read/watch/listen to everywhere. Some of the things you can read is funny, but the majority of it are boring science results etc. And it is just too much. If you really want to read everything the play time is 50% playing and 50% reading stuff.
    - The majority of characters are boring (the female scientist, the security guy, etc.). Only the janitor is kind of interesting

    All in all it is a decent action 3rd person shooter. But the map killed it for me. The thing is an insult to every other gaming map. Half of the time it does not show the correct layout of the map, the other half you get confused because you can never see **** because the different levels are on top of each other without any separation. Fortunately the signs within the game world are good enough to use those for orientation. But even then you sometimes get quests telling you to go to some generic place and you just don't know where to go.    … Expand
  24. ARGX
    Apr 14, 2022
    1
    The game would be good if it weren't for those invisible hisses. They completely spoiled my enjoyment of the game. Opponents who kill you in one hit are never a good idea
  25. h3is3nb3rg
    Dec 6, 2022
    8
    Loved this game. The combat is so satisfying. I did not understand the plot completely but I had a hunch of what was going on throughout the game. The dash and the levitate mechanics were a breath of fresh air. The combat felt very similar to Doom Eternal but better in every way. Looking forward to playing the DLCs
  26. AkuAku
    Oct 3, 2019
    6
    The first time you start to play you like everything. Everything is interesting, mystic, there is a lot of things to do, places to be, stuff to shoot, things to read, etc. Then, after an hour or two, game starts to feel empty. Same level design, same enemies, same missions. All those cryptic messages pile up and you get tired of reading them. Most of them are "we saw {data deleted}. it isThe first time you start to play you like everything. Everything is interesting, mystic, there is a lot of things to do, places to be, stuff to shoot, things to read, etc. Then, after an hour or two, game starts to feel empty. Same level design, same enemies, same missions. All those cryptic messages pile up and you get tired of reading them. Most of them are "we saw {data deleted}. it is now contained inside The Bureau." And most of all - there is not a lot of story, and almost no characters. Almost nothing is happening. And all you do is shoot same enemies with the same boring gun, grind for rediculous and very boring crafting mechanic, and blindly follow where people tell you to go.… Expand
  27. nitorita
    Jun 23, 2020
    6
    Unlike its predecessor Quantum Break, Control suffers from a story that is confusing and uninteresting. It tries to attract your interest, but fails to do so as it tries to push a ton of lore onto you without providing any context. Since you don't know what's going on, you're forced to play along with it in hopes that you will eventually figure it out.

    Lacking an introduction, you're    Unlike its predecessor Quantum Break, Control suffers from a story that is confusing and uninteresting. It tries to attract your interest, but fails to do so as it tries to push a ton of lore onto you without providing any context. Since you don't know what's going on, you're forced to play along with it in hopes that you will eventually figure it out.

    Lacking an introduction, you're thrown straight inside a random building that doesn't have much in the way of exploration, and it's hard to ever justify doing so because the environment doesn't seem all that interesting. There are collectibles for you to find, but they don't provide anything meaningful besides inconsequential lore.

    A lot of the time as you're progressing through, you will get lost and not know what to do because the game takes a bit of a hands-off approach. Checkpoints don't really exist in the game, so even though the game isn't particularly difficult, it can be annoying at times to have to start over in a region if you die.

    I admire that Control got telekinesis done right unlike other games in the past that tried to incorporate it, but that alone doesn't save the game from its faults. The game is formulaic as well, since you simply enter a room, fight the enemies inside, and then enter the next one and rinse and repeat. There's nothing else to do outside of fighting besides going through required cutscenes or events.

    Overall, you won't miss out on much by not playing this game. This is another one of those shooters that'll eventually get tossed into the bargain bin and become forgotten. It's bland, lacks direction, and never tries to get you to care about the world and its characters. It's not very lengthy either since you can get it done in around eight hours. I'd say that Control is worth a 6.5, but I settled on a 6 because of its repetitive gameplay and lazy writing.

    (On a side note, Control suffers from a known issue where if your GPU is overclocked, it can error out and freeze. If you experience this, turn off any GPU overclocking and it should run fine.)    … Expand
  28. Hack
    Dec 24, 2019
    7
    I just finished it and overall I enjoyed it, but it wasn't without issues. I feel like the game starts off really strong but ends rather weak, by the end I was ready for it to be over, it definitely overstayed its welcome. Certain scenes just dragged on, or maybe they just felt like they did because I was getting bored by the end.

    + Visuals + Combat + Voicework - Performance (I had    I just finished it and overall I enjoyed it, but it wasn't without issues. I feel like the game starts off really strong but ends rather weak, by the end I was ready for it to be over, it definitely overstayed its welcome. Certain scenes just dragged on, or maybe they just felt like they did because I was getting bored by the end.

    + Visuals
    + Combat
    + Voicework

    - Performance (I had to turn down/off far too many settings to keep 60+ fps with a GTX 1080, 8600k @ 4.8GHz at only 1080p)
    - Confusing map, maybe it's just me but I got lost a lot
    - Unsatisfactory ending
    -Overstayed its welcome    … Expand
  29. nurii29
    Feb 13, 2021
    0
    its bored me to death i dont give any little **** about storty wtf is this gameplay i would excuse it if this garbage came out 2010 **** this
  30. NothingisTrue
    Nov 20, 2020
    7
    Not my favorite, but solid effort from Remedy. Hopefully Alan Wake 2 is next.
  31. MeritCoba
    Jun 4, 2020
    4
    I didn't want to score this game at all but I had to, to write these comments. Why? Because I returned the game after playing an hour to get a refund.

    The main reason I returned the game was that I could not connect to the protagonist and the story. I thought I was mistaken about it so I read a few reviews and finally read a summary of the plot. It just confirmed that it was a poorly    I didn't want to score this game at all but I had to, to write these comments. Why? Because I returned the game after playing an hour to get a refund.

    The main reason I returned the game was that I could not connect to the protagonist and the story. I thought I was mistaken about it so I read a few reviews and finally read a summary of the plot. It just confirmed that it was a poorly written story.

    First let me talk about the protagonist: Jesse.
    Normally when you play a game you identify with the main character. Mass Effect springs to mind. This often means that you know what she knows. Of course, this is not always the case, but it is usual so when things are important to the story. However, in this game it is clear that the protagonist knows things that you do not know and which are vital to the story and you do not get informed about them in a straight manner. Why are you in that building? What is your motivation? You get only told in bits and pieces. Some games do that too, but often supply a reason: the main character has lost her memory or is otherwise unable to recall everything correctly. Some games and movies make that into a story feature: it is called the unreliable narrator. Here it is simply: you do not get told for no other reason than we want to keep things mysterious for the player. As such there is an immediate disconnect between you and the main character.

    Now couple this to the poor story development. You wander through the halls of this empty building that has obvious been invaded by some hostile force. It screams that fact from the security screens in the first security room near the entrance. I found this well done... until I ran into the janitor. Did he not notice the alarms? Did he not notice the scattered briefcases in the corridor? But Jesse just shrugs him off as someone she likes, even though she says that he is a good candidate for an axe-murderer.
    The deeper you go into the building the weirder things become. And the more I wondered why she was going into that building unarmed and lacking any kind of protection and with a likely chance that both the invaders and security will see her as an unfriendly?
    Jesse's actions get hardly explained. In fact we get hardly explained who Jesse actually is or why we should care for her. There is nothing that springs to mind about her but that she has voices in her head and is looking for her brother. She is almost no personality. Is she worried? Scared? Is she determined? Is she adventurous? Is she a journalist? Is she married? Nothing.

    The poor writing starts to show up everywhere. There are for instance the documents that you can collect which are mostly filled with bureaucratic clap trap that is obviously there for laughs. It is a strange dissonance with the overall mood. It is like making slapstick jokes in a serious horror.
    Even worse: things get explained in notes. Like what hiss adversaries are. It is told as a found documentary. Where did this come from? How did they know?
    The adversaries feel like apparitions: they teleport in and after you killed them they fall apart in dust that blows away.
    Then at some point Jesse meets a bureau official who doesn't ask who she is, what she is doing in the building, assumes she is friendly and instantly remembers an event that happened seventeen years ago that Jesse is asking her about without even looking up things.
    It feels like this is some kind of dream or illusion, but it never plays that twist when i finally researched what the plot was. Oh an it all gets explained with referring to Jungian psychology.
    You saw that connection too. Of course you did..

    So let me throw in another concept. The story is obviously inspired by the ideas of Tacitus, the foremost chronologist of the history of the first century of the Roman Empire. His central theme: a dominant central power corrupts everything it touches is evident in the game. It leads to chaos, infighting and the defeat of its ultimate goal: stability. It descends into the chaos brought on by internal strife until finally control is established and peace returns. And this is more proof of the game being based on Tacitus' ideas than any of the reviews provide proof for a Jungian inspiration.
    That is control for you: lacking a clear and well written story you can just say anything to make yourself seem smart knowing that few people will correct you out of fear to look dumb.
    Of course you can always say: that because you, Merit, don't understand it, doesn't mean it is poorly written or not Jungian. Providing some proof for you claims would go a long way.

    So let's apply Ockham's razor here: there it the possibility that this is a well written story that works in various aspects of Jungian psychology, or it is just a poorly written story that was needed to give the game some background. Seems the latter is the more likely.    … Expand
  32. Aim45
    Apr 17, 2020
    2
    Overrated, Overhyped, Boring, Tedious, Frustrating, Repetitive -> just some words to describe this crap

    The first hours of the game are ok-ish, the story starts with lots of mystery, but it gets repetitive very very quickly. The story is interesting, in the beginning at least, but the mystery never unfolds! It gets more and more mysterious, confusing and you'll just lose interest    Overrated, Overhyped, Boring, Tedious, Frustrating, Repetitive -> just some words to describe this crap

    The first hours of the game are ok-ish, the story starts with lots of mystery, but it gets repetitive very very quickly. The story is interesting, in the beginning at least, but the mystery never unfolds! It gets more and more mysterious, confusing and you'll just lose interest eventually, because it really gets stupid and ridiculous after a while. The writer really tried too hard with it, he just wanted to put more and more mystery into it to make it more interesting, but he pretty much failed to make it so.

    The entire game is so **** repetitive. There are different sections and you will unlock them by progressing through the game, BUT they all look the same. The level design is one of the worst things, it super, super repetitive. Also, you will be backtracking ALOT, as if it's not enough that the level design is repetitive, you'll go through the same rooms over and over again.

    Next, the navigation: BLEAH, this is really the worst navigation i've seen in any game, like ever. Sometimes, it is so hard to find out through which narrow corridor you have to go to get somewhere, many times you'll teleport right near the objective, but because of a wall or some stupid crap you'll have to go round the entire map to get there. Really, why do they have to do this?!?! Why do they have to make you go round a **** map to get to the objective which is a few meters from you, but cannot get there because of a window, wall or some other stupid **** You'll end up looking on youtube to see where to go and which direction you have to take, but even on youtube, the guys who are recording the walkthrough are searching for the direction, room, the narrow corridor or a **** lift to get to the objective. It's like Remedy deliberately made this game super frustrating to navigate around.

    Next, CHEAP DEATHS: yes, the game itself is pretty easy when you're fighting regular enemies, but when you have to fight a boss, it gets reaaaaly frustrating, painfully difficult, and you'll die, ALOT. They are super unpredictable and you'll die in one shot or so. It is just stupid, they tried too hard to make it challenging and as a result, they filled it with super cheap deaths.

    The characters, same as with the story, dull and uninteresting, this jesse faden is one of the most uninteresting main characters i've ever seen. The rest of them were so boring that they were super forgettable, i cannot think about any other character in the game, other than that stupid Emily Pope.

    I just finished the quest "The Face of the Enemy" but really, i completely stopped caring about it, the game got so boring that i just couldn't bring myself to finish it, i just uninstalled it because it got so boring, tedious and repetitive.

    I really wanted to like this game, but i just cannot see why it is so highly rated, it's absolutely NOTHING special, it really doesn't deserve a full price. I think it's pretty clear that Remedy paid to have good reviews for it, otherwise the game would've gotten just 5-6 on average. I wouldn't be surprised if the good user reviews on this platforms are written by Remedy staff.    … Expand
  33. pongkrit03
    Apr 16, 2020
    4
    Definitely overhyped. I don't know why the critics gave very high score. I bought the game expecting very awesome experience, stunning graphic, but it is not the case at all. First, the game drains a lot of your GPU but only has mediocre graphic and poor environment. Nothing looks beautiful here because you are always in the building. The game extremely wants players to use RTX for RayDefinitely overhyped. I don't know why the critics gave very high score. I bought the game expecting very awesome experience, stunning graphic, but it is not the case at all. First, the game drains a lot of your GPU but only has mediocre graphic and poor environment. Nothing looks beautiful here because you are always in the building. The game extremely wants players to use RTX for Ray tracing, It has too much different, like you won't be able to see through mirror without Ray tracing. However, even with tracing, the environment still felt bland and uninteresting. Action is ok for the most part but the worst here is the Story. You don't know what you are doing and where you are going and enemies are just respawned out of nowhere and have boring same looks as well. The building felt like maze, then you are teleported to some another bland demension, once you clear obj then teleported back in the bulid, then after move from room to room, kill some repeptitive enemies, again teleported repeat cycle. Map design is very confused and hard to navigate in menu too.

    All in all, I tried to like it, but I couldn't. Playing it for 5 hrs then gave up. I couldn't tolerate myself any further. Don't buy this game, It is not worth it even with the 70% sale !! just don't.    … Expand
  34. muzmuz
    Sep 4, 2019
    6
    Control is a graphically astonishing third person shooter tackling on a different theme/setting. It offers a satisfying combat, a unique core mechanic and a lot of visual/auditory pleasure. Unfortunately, the seemingly nonsensical story, repetitive environments and bland acting kills it for me.
  35. Galaxian
    Jan 1, 2020
    5
    I stopped playing the game to create a metacritic account and review this mediocre game. The game is very tiring. The boss fights are difficult and not satisfyingly difficult. The checkpoint system makes you fight spawning enemies every time you die and make your way to the boss fight. This gets very tiring and is a pure waste of time.

    The level design is impressive at times, but you're    I stopped playing the game to create a metacritic account and review this mediocre game. The game is very tiring. The boss fights are difficult and not satisfyingly difficult. The checkpoint system makes you fight spawning enemies every time you die and make your way to the boss fight. This gets very tiring and is a pure waste of time.

    The level design is impressive at times, but you're so tired from seeing the same places all the time (because you die in vain) that it loses its charm.

    There are good elements in the game. Like the powers that you have and are impressive and fun to use. Like the story that is intriguing (although way too much on the supernatural side), but these elements do not make the game enjoyable in the end.

    I'm struggling to finish the game. I really want to give the game a good rating but it became so tiring with all the bad design choices that prohibits me from doing that. Only recommended in a heavy sale (like 5 euros).    … Expand
  36. Ingepunk
    Sep 1, 2019
    6
    In English:
    What should I say about this mediocre game, now let's start with the story.
    It's about something that has infected a building. Why, you do not know! Now Jessie Faden goes in there to ... look for the brother and becomes the director of the building because they find a "living weapon". Graphics: Northlight Engine, as in Quantum Break very mediocre. Owners of an RT graphics    In English:
    What should I say about this mediocre game, now let's start with the story.
    It's about something that has infected a building. Why, you do not know! Now Jessie Faden goes in there to ... look for the brother and becomes the director of the building because they find a "living weapon".
    Graphics: Northlight Engine, as in Quantum Break very mediocre. Owners of an RT graphics card can be happy otherwise the graphic does not tear anybody off the stool.
    Sound: In German the purest catastrophe, In English good.
    Gameplay: Here comes the biggest weakness of Control to wear.
    At first it is entertaining enough to chase after the mysterious story, but after about 5 ~ 6 hours the game does not even know where to lead it. I like games with a tick challenge, but Control leaves you completely in the lurch.
    Even sidequests take you on an endless journey, because you're not strong enough to get any further or you're lacking in certain skills, but where do other side quests make you end up?
    This Metroidvania concept annoys without end!
    It is indecisive, illogical and makes quite a good game concept completely broken.
    Even the gunplay in the often too narrow spaces is more difficult than funny, right when you get 5 rockets at once in the face. The super powers help there just as much as Pooping, namely not at all.

    My conclusion 6/10
    It could have been such a good game from Control, but no, it had to be different (do not mind) just so different that it just becomes unpleasant after 6 to 7 hours. One tortures himself mainly by having fun instead of having fun.

    In Deutsch:
    Was soll ich zu diesem Mittelmäßigen Spiel sagen, nun fangen wir bei der Story an.
    Es geht um etwas das ein Gebäude Infiziert hat. Warum, weiß man nicht! Nun geht man als Jessie Faden dort rein um...den Bruder zu suchen und wird zur Direktorin des Gebäudes weil man eine "lebendige Waffe" findet.
    Grafik: Northlight Engine, wie bei Quantum Break sehr Mittelmäßig. Besitzer einer RT Grafikkarte können sich freuen sonst reißt die Grafik niemanden vom Hocker.
    Sound: Auf Deutsch die reinste Katastrophe, In English gut.
    Gameplay: Hier kommt die größte Schwäche von Control zum tragen.
    Anfangs ist es noch ganz Unterhaltsam der mysteriösen Story nachzujagen, nach etwa 5~6 Stunden weiß aber nicht mal mehr das Spiel selbst wohin es lotsen soll. Ich mag ja Spiele mit einem Tick herausforderung aber Control lässt dich völlig im Stich.
    Sogar Sidequests nehmen einen mit ohne ein Ende zu finden weil, du bist längst nicht Stark genug um da weiter zu kommen oder dir fehlt es an bestimmten Fähigkeiten, aber woher nehmen wenn selbst wieder andere Sidequests dich nicht zum Ende kommen lassen?
    Dieses Metroidvania Konzept nervt ohne Ende!
    Es ist unschlüssig, unlogisch und mach ein recht gutes Spielkonzept völlig kaputt.
    Selbst das Gunplay in den oftmals viel zu engen Räumen ist eher Anstrengent als lustig, erstrecht wenn man 5 Raketen auf einmal ins Gesicht bekommt. Die Superkräfte helfen da genausoviel wie Pupsen, nämlich gar nicht.

    Mein Fazit 6/10
    Man hätte so ein gutes Spiel aus Control machen können, aber nein, es musste ja anders sein (nichts dagegen) nur so anders das es nach 6 bis 7 Stunden einfach unlustig wird. Man Quält sich hauptsächlich durch statt Spaß am Spiel zu haben.    … Expand
  37. OverWind
    Sep 16, 2019
    5
    Decent enough game, but not the 10/10 a lot of magazines claim it is.

    The setting is really bland (anonymous offices, which is basically pretty much the whole game).
    The enemies get's boring as well. Yawn.
  38. czg
    Jan 1, 2020
    5
    Visuals are very nice. Architecture is cool. Backstory and world are interesting, though the creepypasta vibe and the main character's cliche inner monologue wears thin after a while.

    On the negative side, the gameplay is more of an obstacle than a boon. Difficulty curve is unenjoyably punishing and the gameplay is too slow for the dozen-or-more retries a boss battle takes. After each    Visuals are very nice. Architecture is cool. Backstory and world are interesting, though the creepypasta vibe and the main character's cliche inner monologue wears thin after a while.

    On the negative side, the gameplay is more of an obstacle than a boon. Difficulty curve is unenjoyably punishing and the gameplay is too slow for the dozen-or-more retries a boss battle takes. After each death, I have to start again from a save point miles back and navigate the map to the boss fight to be killed again, rinse and repeat ad nauseam.
    I work on games for a living and I don't have the time for this.

    Would ask the devs to add difficulty settings to the game; if not, I'd ask for a refund if I could.    … Expand
  39. NoCashLeft
    Jan 1, 2020
    5
    A mediocre game that won game of the year 2019 by IGN. What a joke. According to IGN, this game beats Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, Resident Evil 2 Remake and Disco Elysium, can't believe it. Control is in most aspects a worse game than the other title by Remedy - Quantum Break. As with Quantum Break the player obtains special powers that spice up the combat. Control has smoother game playA mediocre game that won game of the year 2019 by IGN. What a joke. According to IGN, this game beats Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, Resident Evil 2 Remake and Disco Elysium, can't believe it. Control is in most aspects a worse game than the other title by Remedy - Quantum Break. As with Quantum Break the player obtains special powers that spice up the combat. Control has smoother game play with less stutter issues. This is the only advantage against Quantum Break. Control has a more boring story, a lot more difficult combat, a lot less diverse environments and it uses the same uninspiring engine, Northlight, which has water washed colors but at least Control does not freeze or stutter like Quantum Break. The sound effects are acceptable except for the annoying voices in the head of the protagonist (don't use headphones unless you want to go mad). The story progresses through obtaining pieces of information but it is constructed in a rather boring way. The game play is repetitive and boring. Wait for a sale, rent or borrow from a friend. Not worth the current price tag.… Expand
  40. a_wild_dandan
    Jun 6, 2020
    4
    Control does 'moody atmosphere' exceptionally well and fails at nearly everything else.

    The majority of the game's locations look identical, making navigation confusing and boring. The map menu is nearly useless for aiding navigation. It desperately needs a 3D view for a world with such verticality. Doom (2016) did this perfectly. Enemies are also homogeneous. As you explore and    Control does 'moody atmosphere' exceptionally well and fails at nearly everything else.

    The majority of the game's locations look identical, making navigation confusing and boring. The map menu is nearly useless for aiding navigation. It desperately needs a 3D view for a world with such verticality. Doom (2016) did this perfectly.

    Enemies are also homogeneous. As you explore and retread the map, you'll waste hours grinding through the same predictably respawning hordes of junk. (Or, like me, you just give up and start running past them. They'll keep returning no matter what you do anyway. Why bother?)

    The gameplay loop is aggressively tedious: go here, liberate the control point of samey enemies, and watch a few lines of dialogue. Ad nauseum. There are occasionally puzzles to refreshingly break up the monotony. It isn't nearly enough to offset the overwhelming drudgery.

    The boss battles are far too difficult and acutely frustrating. Worse, there are no checkpoints before the fights. Upon death, you get to trudge from your last safe zone to the battle, sit through the same dialogue sequences, and twiddle the same knobs to trigger the fight. Over. And over. And over. This is what ultimately led me to cut my losses and uninstall the game. Control would've scored several points higher if it simply had no boss battles at all.

    The graphics (maxed) are surprisingly bad. Textures are often blurry and characters look like mannequins. Despite this, my 2080Ti struggled in various locations. I have little sympathy for games which both look bad *and* perform poorly.

    The in-game media is delightfully reminiscent of Alan Wake. You'll find scores of live actor video films, memos, and audio recordings. Unfortunately, most of the reading is light on world building and mostly filled with monster-of-the-week fluff analogous to X-files episodes or SCP stories. Which gets tedious.

    Are you seeing the pattern here? The map is tedious, the enemies are tedious, the gameplay loop is tedious, boss fights are tedious, the lore is tedious...The mysterious, eerie world can only hold one's attention for so long when everything else is pure tedium.    … Expand
  41. Lamp
    Aug 29, 2019
    7
    Pros: Lack of quest markers, fairly clean HUD, serviceable combat, ok level design, light horror atmosphere, decent pacing, wide field of view when not aiming, high production values, gameplay customization options like enemy health bars on / off
    Cons: Kind of boring, map only gives position of named locations so traversing can be a chore

    Overall you'll just be shooting things
  42. Thegm963
    Aug 29, 2019
    5
    Lets begin by saying that this game is a massive resource hog with my 1080 barely being able to keep up, and that at 60fps. To make matters worse, this does not translate to visual fidelity, not only the setting is a by 70-80% a very bland set of offices and gray corridors, the rest looks outdated too. Like, trees/plants/foliage don't even animate, what year is it?

    The story is cool,    Lets begin by saying that this game is a massive resource hog with my 1080 barely being able to keep up, and that at 60fps. To make matters worse, this does not translate to visual fidelity, not only the setting is a by 70-80% a very bland set of offices and gray corridors, the rest looks outdated too. Like, trees/plants/foliage don't even animate, what year is it?

    The story is cool, though rather predictable, which is a shame because the overall setting and mood would make an amazing stage for a kickass story with plot twists, mysteries and stuff. Oh well.

    Unfortunately, the game also suffers from a Dark Souls complex to put it this way, which is extremely annoying to see in more and more games. You unlock checkpoints as the game goes on, you can only level up/upgrade stuff to them, you can teleport between them and when you die, you return to them with some ending up being annoyingly far away from where you died. Oh, and most enemies respawn as well! To add insult to injury, loading times are probably the longest I have seen since a long time, I would pick up my phone and chat when they d pop up. And they do pop up a lot. Wanna save some time and fast travel to a point nearby in the same level? Better go pee or eat something because it's loading time!

    Overall, a very meh game. Not great, not terrible. Maybe if it was on Steam and it would go on some decent sale...    … Expand
  43. Ivan
    Sep 9, 2019
    5
    I was excited to buy this game after reading so many positive reviews. What a disappointment!!! After three hours of play I can say that I have understood nothing or almost nothing in history.The beautiful graphics are not enough. The variety of settings is nothing. The gameplay is fun but not enough to save the game. I really love complex and intricate stories but this just doesn'tI was excited to buy this game after reading so many positive reviews. What a disappointment!!! After three hours of play I can say that I have understood nothing or almost nothing in history.The beautiful graphics are not enough. The variety of settings is nothing. The gameplay is fun but not enough to save the game. I really love complex and intricate stories but this just doesn't involve me. Sin… Expand
  44. BFM
    Apr 5, 2020
    3
    Remedy, the Studio behind the ground breaking Max Payne 2, has forgotten how to make a PC game.
    The bad framerate, the forced motion blur, the lack of MSAA, the bad translation of console controls to keyboard & mouse.
    The graphics are horrible, as everything got a grainy, fuzzy, grizzle, that changes with every camera move. I guess this is ok for console players who sit far away from    Remedy, the Studio behind the ground breaking Max Payne 2, has forgotten how to make a PC game.
    The bad framerate, the forced motion blur, the lack of MSAA, the bad translation of console controls to keyboard & mouse.

    The graphics are horrible, as everything got a grainy, fuzzy, grizzle, that changes with every camera move. I guess this is ok for console players who sit far away from their TV, but on PC, this is just butt ugly.

    And the gameplay itself ... is okay.
    The system of having just one weapon and selecting transformations to switch between isn't fun,
    but you spend 90% if the game throwing rocks into enemies anyways.
    The enemies are all pretty boring and generic, and they respawn all the time.

    The world itself is a rather boring, sometimes cool building that you never leave.
    It's all very clinical uninspired, but it works.
    The decision to make this game non-linear was the biggest mistake, as the developer jumps on the overrated and over-done metroid-vania bandwagon, to sacrifice good level design for the sake of backtracking.

    The bad map system doesn't help.
    Some boss fights are good, but the final part of the game seems like it was developed 1 week before the game was finished.
    (Not that you would care about the unappealing characters in this game anyways, starting with Jesse herself.)

    Unless you are a hardcore metrod-vania fan, you will find yourself rooting for the game to finally be over. You just want to be done, so you can uninstall it forever .
    If you are a fan of Max Payne 1 and 2, I am sorry to say that the Remedy that mode those masterpieces is dead now.    … Expand
  45. SirFaulty
    Mar 22, 2020
    3
    Typical Remedy rubbish, at this point I still don't know why I continue to support their games. The story is absolute trash, the combat is incredibly frustrating, especially with all the bloody cool downs
    (from weapons to powers), yet enemies seem to be able to spam combat actions repeatedly which often results in a lot, and I mean a lot, of trial and error gameplay.
    The artificial    Typical Remedy rubbish, at this point I still don't know why I continue to support their games. The story is absolute trash, the combat is incredibly frustrating, especially with all the bloody cool downs
    (from weapons to powers), yet enemies seem to be able to spam combat actions repeatedly which often results in a lot, and I mean a lot, of trial and error gameplay.

    The artificial difficulty is further inflated by the terribly designed boss fights that are so cheap you will be clawing the walls with no nails left on your fingers the nearer the end you get because there is nothing skillful required here as the game throws hordes and hordes of frustratingly difficult enemies at you all at once which will test the patience of every normal gamer out there who isn't trying to prove he/she is god's glorious gift to gaming. The game simply becomes one of attrition the further into it you get and that is not my idea of fun, at all!

    It is also coupled with one of the most infuriating maps I have seen in a long time. So much time is wasted trying to get around its serpentine labyrinthe of a map because you have no objective markers to help you along the way. While I get some may enjoy this, I find it frustrating as I don't play games in one weekend like some people. My gaming window, because I am a working adult , is small. Leave the game unplayed for a few days or weeks and you will be totally lost when it comes to the map and remembering where things are. Not that that should be the biggest of your worries because the game will annoy you so much that you won't want to touch it for weeks. I installed this 7 months ago and I literally play 15 min of it before I can't take anymore of it. Sadly when I start something I have to see it to the end, so at this point it's just that compulsion that is driving me forward not because I am invested in the character, the world or the game at all.

    F**k Remedy and f**k this **** game. I am out. No more of your horribly designed crap will clog my systems going forward no matter how good it looks on the outside.

    I am giving it a 3 because it looks relatively good on PC and plays very smoothly but that is the only pro.    … Expand
  46. Drcuck
    Sep 28, 2019
    3
    Very disappointing. Awful, poorly voice acted dialogue. Poorly synced facial animations. The combat system is satisfying at first, but becomes repetitive and boring. If you aren’t fighting boring mobs of enemies using the game’s boring combat system, you’re running around trying to find the entrance to an area you haven’t reached yet, which the map does a terrible job of helping you find.Very disappointing. Awful, poorly voice acted dialogue. Poorly synced facial animations. The combat system is satisfying at first, but becomes repetitive and boring. If you aren’t fighting boring mobs of enemies using the game’s boring combat system, you’re running around trying to find the entrance to an area you haven’t reached yet, which the map does a terrible job of helping you find. The music is as cookie-cutter as it gets - the “action” music is all the same, nothing but “intense” drumming - and my god the one metal track written for this game is horrendous (seriously, what were they thinking?). The story is cliched and uninspired, fed to you through mind-numbing expository cut-scenes, audio recordings (which can’t be listened to while running around, for some reason), and WAY too many notes, and the characters are one-dimensional and groan-inducing. The graphics and especially the destructible environment physics are nice, but they serve little more function than to polish a turd. Unbelievably overrated, unfun, waste of time and money that has little to no replay value even if I wanted to continue playing it.… Expand
  47. dr_yev
    Sep 9, 2019
    4
    Control does not come close to living up to the hype. It was supposed to be a mindbending experience in a fascinating setting. Instead, we get a slightly non-linear arcade shooter in a drab brutalist building. The setting is stylistically interesting for the first hour but then it becomes clear that, aside from brief interludes, we are to return to the same stereotypical governmentControl does not come close to living up to the hype. It was supposed to be a mindbending experience in a fascinating setting. Instead, we get a slightly non-linear arcade shooter in a drab brutalist building. The setting is stylistically interesting for the first hour but then it becomes clear that, aside from brief interludes, we are to return to the same stereotypical government building over and over. The map is just awful and should have been three dimensional.

    The storytelling is just weird. The "insight" into the protagonist's thoughts is unnecessary and could have been accomplished by more expressive facial animations. The endless notes and memos provide little background and get old quickly. I'm usually all for reading this kind of thing but I have been just skimming them for clues lately. I am yet to come across something that is a clear Alan Wake reference but I played Alan Wake nearly 10 years and many games ago. Who has the time to pay that much attention to boring text notes?

    The combat is repetitive and each new iteration of the service weapon or new power adds little to the gameplay. It is launch-headshot-rinse-repeat action at its core. It is similar to the earlier games in the mass effect series combat without improvement. Jesse can't figure out how to crouch behind cover? There are also some rather cheap mechanics that allow the ai to turn the tide of battle and, before you know it, you respawn at one of the sparsely-placed checkpoints and have to run half a mile to get to the action. It is not difficult, it is annoying. The combat is not unenjoyable but I find that I get bored after about an hour of playing.

    Now, the elephant in the room: the real-time ray tracing. It's pretty, sure. But, you really have to pause and look for it to notice it; it matters little during combat. I'm yet to play this game on a 4 k display for which I will most likely have to turn RTX off, I suspect that it may look better with a higher resolution and no ray tracing.

    I got this game for free with my computer so I guess I cannot complain much. I would have been pissed off had I bought it.    … Expand
  48. dyeah
    Apr 14, 2020
    2
    A great story and game totally ruined by absurd difficulty spikes and terribly placed save points. Battles can last several minutes and finish with you getting instakilled by a single lucky shot by one Hiss enemy. Most of the time it is not even clear how you die because of the saturated red screen. So sad to see a great concept and world ruined by the "try-hard" crap design. Fail.
  49. Faunymaroo
    Sep 27, 2019
    2
    Incredibly bland, **** game with piss-poor fps mechanics, an incomprehensible narrative and a nod to something better with limited telekinesis and flying that barely introduces anything different. A step back for the studio. At least stick bullet time in, blimey. I replayed the original Max Payne afterwards as a palette cleanser - so so much better. Colossal disappointment.
  50. sldbd
    Aug 30, 2019
    9
    Short:

    In my opinion Control can be a real piece of Art, if you are into these kind of Games. It manages to balance story and gameplay just right for its purposes and delivers a truly immersive experience, if you can attach yourself to its genre. If not leave it or refund it. its one of those games that you either love or hate, i believe. In either case a 6.6 at the time of writing    Short:

    In my opinion Control can be a real piece of Art, if you are into these kind of Games. It manages to balance story and gameplay just right for its purposes and delivers a truly immersive experience, if you can attach yourself to its genre. If not leave it or refund it. its one of those games that you either love or hate, i believe. In either case a 6.6 at the time of writing doesnt do it justice. its a well executed concept, although its hungry and will make your rig sweat.

    in Detail:

    Control is a Game with a weird Story. For the better part of your playthrough it will be confusing and thats what is was deliberately made to be. The plot line, the ever-shifting environment, the lack of evident explanation or guidance. Slowly you will learn more about the Bureau, your Characters purpose, motives and origin and what the **** is happening in this odd place.

    The Gameplay is enjoyable but not strong enough to carry the game, if youre not bringing an affinity for the Genre (Soft Sci-fi/Mystery). The telekinesis abilities remind me a lot of force unleashed just with a better physics engine. After completing the main plot I for my part am still fascinated by them, mainly because the more you progress the better you can rely on them. I rarely use the Gun anymore. The Gunplay is only on average maybe below, but thats not the reason im into this game. The bosses can be challenging when underestimated, but thats no competition to real boss fights, like in for example soulsbourne games. The Enemies are repetitive, but everything else wouldnt be story cohesive.

    The Atmosphere created is absolutely great, although from what i read you will need to have pretty good specs to fully taste how this game is meant to be played. I played it maxed out on 2k and found that through the exceptional use of lightning (even without ray tracing), particles, detailed mapdesign and physics i could really immerse myself into the environment.

    Additionally there has been put great effort into writing all those memos/audio tapes/Clips, that can be discovered around the map. In most games you get the feeling those were just placed as random fillers and didnt get much attention in the development process. Here they are mostly entertaining in addition of being a crucial part in understanding the story as a whole piece by piece a little bit better.

    What i dont get about reviewers ranting on this game, is the fact, that they are obviously not the targeted group of gamers this game was developed/written for. If youre not into exploration dont buy subnautica, if youre not into blunt Shooters dont buy DOOM, if youre not into story driven games and/or mystery as a genre dont buy Control.
    Remedy games have pretty much always been strongly story focused. Alan Wake, Quantum Break, Max Payne relied for the most part on an immersive Story. Those Games are "one time playthroughs" and thats it and only as that they deserve to be judged. At least in my opinion. A product is not to be judged as what you want or expect it to be, but what it was meant to be. You dont go into a Starbucks ordering coffee, only to go on a rant on how **** this kebab tastes.    … Expand
  51. Kekkone
    Aug 28, 2019
    5
    This game is beautiful if you have the hardware to run it. Too bad you spend your time inside a restricted grayish-blueish facility. However, when you get some variation to that, it's always awesome. I'd say this game's strongest points are artistic and mysterious level design at least in some parts, sound design and overall graphics and effects. Controls are adequate but a bit clunky. InThis game is beautiful if you have the hardware to run it. Too bad you spend your time inside a restricted grayish-blueish facility. However, when you get some variation to that, it's always awesome. I'd say this game's strongest points are artistic and mysterious level design at least in some parts, sound design and overall graphics and effects. Controls are adequate but a bit clunky. In the end, however, it's just another Remedy games with recurring Remedy problems:

    +First: very low or zero replayability (well, death rally had replayability for sure, but the games after that didn't, except maybe Max Payne for some nostalgia). Once you have completed this game, you can practically just sell it. Quantum Break theoretically had replayability, but the game was so painful that I don't really want to do it again just to see the movie clips.

    +Second: linearity. You are just running from place to another in a restricted area.

    +Third: recycled ideas. The ability to manipulate environment has been around since Max Payne. In the later games this same concept is just reused in a slightly different ways. Sure it looks cool and is fun for a
    while, but it gets very soon repetitive and can't carry the whole game.

    +Fourth: exclusivity to stores no one wants to use.

    +Fifth: boss fights.

    +Sixth: average storyline.

    +Seventh: performance issues on PC.

    +Eighth: Forced over-the-shoulder mode with no possibility to go first person. Also no stealth. All fights are practically shoot & hide.

    Btw. if you didn't notice it already, 90% of the 10/10 reviews seem to be user score manipulation. Lots of accounts have been created just to give full score to this game.    … Expand
  52. Ekko
    Aug 27, 2019
    8
    This is an atmospheric game. It's a looker and a sounder (the ambience is beautiful, sound, music cues, it's just spot on). While I personally never found any character in Remedy games more likable than Mr. Wake, I don't feel bugged by Jesse. Not as much as by almost the entire Quantum-Break-cast which just oozed Hollywood-by-numbers. An intricate web of information and details is woven.This is an atmospheric game. It's a looker and a sounder (the ambience is beautiful, sound, music cues, it's just spot on). While I personally never found any character in Remedy games more likable than Mr. Wake, I don't feel bugged by Jesse. Not as much as by almost the entire Quantum-Break-cast which just oozed Hollywood-by-numbers. An intricate web of information and details is woven. The narrative feels right. Timing wise, content wise. It's presented beautifully. There's a certain colour curve and grain over everything, that lends itself fittingly to the 60-70's-ish interior and feel of the Bureau. Gunplay feels quick and responsive, there's lots of physical game mechanics that are rally fun to learn and use. Feels very potent. Highly recommended. Get on it, you.… Expand
  53. FTWOblivion
    Jun 27, 2020
    10
    Fantastic Sci-Fi mindbender. My personal GOTY. Give it a shot. I don't think you will regret it if your computer can run it. Good luck Director.
  54. alfheid
    Sep 1, 2019
    10
    Посмотрел значит первый стрим мэда. Он как обычно ныл и искал проблемы во всем. Смотреть это более было невозможно и я решил попробовать поиграть сам... и знаете что? давно ничего из сингл проектов так меня не цепляло.
    -Великолепный стиль ар-деко прошлого века, окутанный таинственностью секретных служб США. Все это существует на проработанном движке с шикарной графикой. Иногда просто    Посмотрел значит первый стрим мэда. Он как обычно ныл и искал проблемы во всем. Смотреть это более было невозможно и я решил попробовать поиграть сам... и знаете что? давно ничего из сингл проектов так меня не цепляло.
    -Великолепный стиль ар-деко прошлого века, окутанный таинственностью секретных служб США. Все это существует на проработанном движке с шикарной графикой. Иногда просто хочешь скриншотить все подряд.
    -Лучшая физика что я видел в играх. Качайте телекинез - не пожалеете.
    -Приятный геймплей и отличные анимации.
    -История не прям 10/10, но я если углубиться и не бежать сломя голову чтобы поскорее закончить игру(привет медовый), то она вас не разочарует уж точно.
    п.с. миссии с зеркалом и особенно с лабиринтом просто вышка.

    Играл на 1060(6g). Стабильные золочёные 30 fps.    … Expand
  55. dave1505
    Sep 7, 2019
    4
    Sure it has graphics, but if what you make is nothing but a pretty picture than you'd get better off making drawings or paintings or take a digital design course, not making videogames. It's just another bland game that falls in the graphics-but-expect-nothing-more trend. The characters' motivations, personalities and actions are never explained, so I guess you're just supposed to have aSure it has graphics, but if what you make is nothing but a pretty picture than you'd get better off making drawings or paintings or take a digital design course, not making videogames. It's just another bland game that falls in the graphics-but-expect-nothing-more trend. The characters' motivations, personalities and actions are never explained, so I guess you're just supposed to have a wtf face the entire time while trying to make sense of their barely related words within their sentences. That's the story, the gameplay is just repetitive shooting at enemies that either swarm you from a direction or from every direction, so press the "shoot" and occasionally the telekinesis buttons and hope to not randomly get insta killed.… Expand
  56. ecimir
    Sep 18, 2019
    6
    Interesting and unique gameplay and world but it quickly gets boring. Not to mention pefromance issues.
  57. Chaython
    Sep 8, 2019
    5
    I appreciate the implementation of Ray Tracing and physics.
    The superpowers are "fun" but repetitive.
    The map however is very confusing. The lore is uninteresting, the story is campy, the acting and facial animations are bad. cut scenes have terrible camera angles that it randomly jumps between because the scenes are just talking... The AI is bad, flying enemies cannot float below a    I appreciate the implementation of Ray Tracing and physics.
    The superpowers are "fun" but repetitive.
    The map however is very confusing.
    The lore is uninteresting, the story is campy, the acting and facial animations are bad. cut scenes have terrible camera angles that it randomly jumps between because the scenes are just talking...
    The AI is bad, flying enemies cannot float below a certain height, enemies often can't come up stairs...
    Enemies do high damage and they throw 10 at you at once, to overwhelm you rather than giving them any logic. n most rooms there's an area you can defend without the enemies being able to hit you.    … Expand
  58. Pier
    Oct 29, 2019
    6
    It's amazing the first 2-3 hours and then it becomes super repetitive and the writing just falls apart.

    Also, considering it's a game about moving a round a massive building, the map you use is quite frankly terrible.
  59. ZeroXR
    Sep 4, 2019
    7
    A good game. Simple, cool physics and nice to play. Acceptable graphics and good moves.
  60. Renaigse
    Jan 9, 2020
    4
    Сюжет игры изначально подается откровенно плохо, ты совершенно не понимаешь,что происходит, затем приходит почти полное осознание происходящего, но это вовсе не значит, что ты остаешься этим доволен. Сюжет пытается казаться небанальным, уникальным и "нидлявсех", однако это совершенно не так) Концовка вообще слита в труху. Геймплей по началу кажется неплохим, он в принципе такой и есть,Сюжет игры изначально подается откровенно плохо, ты совершенно не понимаешь,что происходит, затем приходит почти полное осознание происходящего, но это вовсе не значит, что ты остаешься этим доволен. Сюжет пытается казаться небанальным, уникальным и "нидлявсех", однако это совершенно не так) Концовка вообще слита в труху. Геймплей по началу кажется неплохим, он в принципе такой и есть, однако приедается уже к середине игры, ты пользуешься максимум 2 приемами, стрельба всратая, под конец старался не стрелять по возможности, а просто метать объекты во врагов. Противники ведут себя странно, то стоят как вкопанные и даже не стреляют, то стремительно тебя рашат, причем это вообще не имеет никакой логики. Видов врагов всего где-то 5-6, по ощущениям 2-3 ( Джаггернаут, летающие челы, и дефолтные нелетающие челы). Игра очень монотонна, одинаковое окружение, одинаковые действия ( приходишь куда-либо, убиваешь толпу врагов,ищешь бессмысленные, ни капли не раскрывающие лор записки, смотришь катсцену/ведешь диалог с персонажем). Прокачка персонажа убога, просто повышение стат, диалоги убоги и непонятны, состоят в основном из обсуждения псевдонаучных терминов и явлений, в которые невозможно поверить, оружия мало, хоть и дизайн великолепный, персонажи максимально неинтересные, к ним не привязываешься ни капли, музыкальное сопровождение битв раздражает, помимо битв его будто бы вообще нет, единственный момент, когда музыка в игре хорошая - это миссия с лабиринтом, длительностью 2-3 минуты, дополнительные квесты крайне примитивны( сходи убей), за исключением нескольких квестов в конце которых нужно победить босса, кстати о боссах, в основной сюжетке их нет совсем,только в доп миссиях. Плюсы у игры, конечно же, тоже имеются, это прекрасная графика, детализация предметов выполнена отлично, с RTX картинка становится просто конфеткой, некоторые локации, в частности лабиринт и отель, выполнены выше всяких похвал, гг не бесит, порой даже вызывает симпатию, дизайн пушек действительно уникальный и выглядит классно, физика окружения, разрушаемость, отменная, такой интерактивности, как здесь, пожалуй, ни в одной другой игре нет, также разрабы почти сумели создать крайне интригующего персонажа, а именно уборщика, но почему-то не сумели хоть как-то его раскрыть. В целом у игры больше минусов, чем плюсов, сюжет уныл, геймплей надоест очень сильно к концу, враги говно, боссов нет, интересных персонажей ровно 2( гг и уборщик), и то их не раскрыли, пушек мало, прокачка и квесты примитивны,локации cntrl c + cntrl v, музыка ни о чем, зато у нас графика хорошая и разрушаемость, не рекомендую крч.… Expand
  61. Steyraus
    Aug 18, 2020
    2
    Horrible boring badly optimized game that they charger customer again for it to run ok on next gen, The actual game is massively overrated and only Games Journalist liked it because it had a female protagonist and derpy men in the game.
    Its utterly boring, most of the game is runing around ugly arse environment, lost because there is no capable map. Combat is fun for about 1 hr but you    Horrible boring badly optimized game that they charger customer again for it to run ok on next gen, The actual game is massively overrated and only Games Journalist liked it because it had a female protagonist and derpy men in the game.
    Its utterly boring, most of the game is runing around ugly arse environment, lost because there is no capable map. Combat is fun for about 1 hr but you so OP that the only way they could add difficulty is with ranged one hit kills from invisible enemies. I really hated this game and Hate what remedy has become.    … Expand
  62. Damislav
    Nov 26, 2019
    8
    It runs very good and looks amazing for lower settings that I played on. Story is little bit abstract which may be good or bad thing, depending on taste. Atmosphere is amazing and gameplay feels really good. Throwing people around is very satisfying..
  63. GoodMorningAss
    Mar 6, 2020
    5
    This may be for someone a "masterpiece" I have not mastered, too boring. The wait was a completely different project. The graphics and destruction are excellent.
  64. TheSandMann
    Oct 28, 2019
    8
    I loved the game!
    The gameplay is insane.
    The interaction with the environment is something that i did not see in a fps before. The story is good and keeps you on the edge of your seat till the end, though i felt that the end is somewhat anti-climatic. The graphics is good. The soundtrack is kinda repetitive except for one segment in that game which is epic. I think its a really    I loved the game!
    The gameplay is insane.
    The interaction with the environment is something that i did not see in a fps before.
    The story is good and keeps you on the edge of your seat till the end, though i felt that the end is somewhat anti-climatic.
    The graphics is good.
    The soundtrack is kinda repetitive except for one segment in that game which is epic.
    I think its a really worthwhile game and fps lovers should definitely get this one    … Expand
  65. baconmania
    Jun 1, 2020
    6
    This is a pretty good game. Interesting story, good visuals. It'd be a much better game if it wasn't trying so hard to be a Soulslike. The studio seems to have gone out of their way to make the game frustrating to play, and in an exploration-focused game like this, there's just no need for that. A lot of potential in this game, but in many ways the experience is spoiled by choices theThis is a pretty good game. Interesting story, good visuals. It'd be a much better game if it wasn't trying so hard to be a Soulslike. The studio seems to have gone out of their way to make the game frustrating to play, and in an exploration-focused game like this, there's just no need for that. A lot of potential in this game, but in many ways the experience is spoiled by choices the designers made.

    Some examples:
    - Combat difficulty is absurd, even for just random enemy encounters, and there's no difficulty setting
    - Fast travel points aren't well distributed, so you have to struggle your way back to where you were every time you die, which will happen constantly
    - There's no minimap, and the map that *is* provided is a single graphic which overlays all floors (of which there can be five or six). This makes the map much less useful than just one map per floor.

    My feedback to 505 Games would be, next time, don't try so hard to be "hardcore". Just make pretty games with good stories and let people enjoy the game if they want to play at a more relaxed pace!    … Expand
  66. artandpassion
    Jun 2, 2021
    9
    Unlike Naughty Dog, Remedy Entertainment actually knows how to write good and likable female main characters. Solid game!
  67. gameking
    Jan 10, 2020
    8
    Graphics are amazing. Atmosphere is very successful. Game-play is very good and you enjoyed. But the story is too complicated. You need to collect all items in the game. If you don't you will miss something. Boss wars are very bad. They are just normal soldiers with more health.They put real and best bosses in the side-missions.
  68. boeph
    Nov 17, 2019
    6
    Эта игра не так хороша, как, возможно, ожидалось. Дизайн уровней оставляет желать лучшего, главная героиня не очень интересна, а изучение в духе Метроидвании может быть слишком сложным. Тем не менее, игра становится немного лучше в конце.Эта игра не так хороша, как, возможно, ожидалось. Дизайн уровней оставляет желать лучшего, главная героиня не очень интересна, а изучение в духе Метроидвании может быть слишком сложным. Тем не менее, игра становится немного лучше в конце.
  69. Deaden
    Aug 25, 2020
    1
    I deleted this game after playing an hour. Just went to watch ending on video channels and I see I got the right decision. It's an ultra boring class game.
  70. GoodGames99
    May 1, 2021
    10
    Not best from Remedy, but still solid game and i love connection with one of my favorite games "Alan Wake". Bonus points for good looking main character.
  71. bar1
    Sep 2, 2019
    10
    Love this game.

    For some reason this game gets a lot of hate and those negative reviews seem to be totally out of place. From my point of view at least. I hope too many people don't skip this game just because of negative spammers. It's pretty much 10 or 0 from the reviewers, which is hilarious. Anyhow... I run at 1080 resolution with all graphics maxed and it has worked like a    Love this game.

    For some reason this game gets a lot of hate and those negative reviews seem to be totally out of place. From my point of view at least. I hope too many people don't skip this game just because of negative spammers. It's pretty much 10 or 0 from the reviewers, which is hilarious.

    Anyhow... I run at 1080 resolution with all graphics maxed and it has worked like a charm. (Remember to use the latest drivers dated aug 27.) So with RTX 2070 max Q I can get all the raytracing and oh my it is a noticeable technology. All the see throughs and reflections etc. Very nice. Looks fine without them as well but it really is some cool and new.

    Gameplay has had no hiccups. For me everything works like it should and the telekinesis with the shooting is very enjoyable. I do not recommend to play it in one go, just take your time and explore. Story is good, enjoyed much. Haven't read ALL the documents etc. YET and I can see how this game is not for all todays fast food consumption gaming addicts. To say the plot and story is not good most likely means you really haven't taken your time to even understand it but just rushed through the game. If you have played it through in 8 hours, you have missed a lot! The whole game.

    So it is not a game for everyone but that is what makes it interesting. You either get it or you don't. Usually the best kind of games!

    The world is amazing. Weird, enchanting, surprising and there's always something totally unexpected coming around the corner.

    I will be spending a lot of time exploring the world even the game is finished. Waiting for additional content already.

    GO WATCH SOME VIDEO REVIEWS AND DECIDE THEN. Seems those are legit at least, whether they gave anything from 0 to 10.    … Expand
  72. aqz27547
    Aug 30, 2019
    10
    I love this game! The atmosphere of the game is amazing. You can really get immersed in the world.
    - Graphics to this game look fantastic, even on low settings
    - Weapons feel good, shoot good, and make you feel powerful with each shot. Also includes bullet speed, and one-shot headshots
  73. Rydik
    Sep 2, 2019
    10
    Wonderfull game, having tons of fun, pretty good story, very atmospheric and stylish, love Jesse. Solid gameplay, maybe little repetitive.
    Has some problems with optimization.
  74. joshbreviews
    Aug 31, 2019
    8
    This is a really good game that's held back by some really obvious flaws. A few more months of tweaking gameplay and story, and this could have easily been a 9/10 or even 10/10.

    PROS Amazing world-building (amazing lore, amazing atmosphere, fully-realized bizzaro-office complex, etc.) Decent core gameplay (guns and powers feel good in general) Graphics and sound are really good    This is a really good game that's held back by some really obvious flaws. A few more months of tweaking gameplay and story, and this could have easily been a 9/10 or even 10/10.

    PROS

    Amazing world-building (amazing lore, amazing atmosphere, fully-realized bizzaro-office complex, etc.)

    Decent core gameplay (guns and powers feel good in general)

    Graphics and sound are really good (plus, amazingly almost-fully-destructible environment)

    CONS

    Main plot is not so good (player character constantly narrates explanations for major plot points which you would NEVER EVER intuitively figure out on your own)

    Braindead AI and extremely basic enemy variety (this is offset a bit by fun guns and powers)

    Acting is hit and miss (this is also due to the writing not really giving the actors room to breathe or express themselves)

    Almost no mission variety (offset by the occasional good story mission or puzzle mission)

    Pacing is hurt by the semi-open world structure (this game would've been much better as a linear, super-focused game); lots of time wasted backtracking and wandering around for the objective

    8/10. The world and the core concepts are there, but execution needed a few months more polish. It saddens me cause this really, really could've been a wildly amazing game.

    Read on for a deep-dive:

    The pacing of the game is really bad. For the most part you're doing fetch quests for 3 characters. And then, suddenly the game cranks it up to 11 in the final act and you're left thinking "darn, I wish the earlier parts of the game had this much scenic variety and plot developments". On top of bad pacing, the plot points don't really make much sense. The main character keeps explaining things for you as they happen and you're just meant to nod along. In contrast, Alan Wake's plot was clear as day and easy to follow. Plus, for Alan Wake, his narrations were deeply woven into the style and direction of the game so it felt natural. In Control, Jesse's narrations feel off; the narrations feel as if they're just there to compensate for the nebulous plot. Additionally, in Alan Wake, the plot and the gameplay were so intertwined that it felt like you were watching a movie; the game kept you razor-focused on the main plot. In Control, it's very easy to forgot the main plot as you do fetch quest after fetch quest. In Control, the main bad guy, The Hiss, is always talked about, but never really explained; in contrast again, The Shadows in Alan Wake were straight up explained by Wake himself as the game progressed. In Alan Wake. you can appreciate what you are fighting. In Control, the game just tells you "The Hiss is the bad guy. It's a mystery why they're bad. Why? Because. Deal with it.". Additionally, Control's ending is SO BAD. Yes the bad guy is beaten, but it doesn't feel like anything significant happened. Compare this to Alan Wake's ending which was amazing and monumental and clear. It really feels like Control's story was so focused on being weird and unique that it forgot to be a good story in the first place. Wasted potential.

    The core gameplay is decent but needs work. In general, combat is too simple and too easy. This game could've used difficulty modes. The game should have also made its resource system more complex. They should have added cooldowns to abilities on top of the energy bar. They should've lengthened ammo recharge time, but made two separate ammo pools that recharge independently. Why make these changes? So that you're forced to diversify your approach. I'm not kidding when I say you only need the Launch ability to kill everything. The only reason you'll use your gun is because you're waiting for more energy to cast Launch. Launch is too powerful and everything else is so weak in relation that it makes the combat extremely simple. Add to this the extremely simple AI and enemy variety, and I can easily see a lot of people getting bored with the game after a few hours.

    Lastly, the level design. It's semi-open world, which is a bad thing for this game, honestly. All the backtracking it makes you do is not fun. It's a shame because the wow-factor of each new area is great; but it diminishes rapidly the third time you revisit the area. I have to compare it to Alan Wake again. Alan Wake was linear, but it was better for it. When the game is linear, you can polish each enemy encounter. You can polish each platforming section. You can polish each vista and scene. When the game is linear you can make awesome one-time scripted events. In this semi-open world, wonders of the office complex fade away greatly with every re-visit. The only good thing about the semi-open world design is exploring for secrets; but again, this is also something you can also do in a focused linear game.

    If they make a sequel to Control, I hope the review their past wild success with Alan Wake, and re-focus Control to try and recapture Wake's mix of charm, mystery, levity, and gameplay.    … Expand
  75. philzlz
    Sep 1, 2019
    9
    One of the best action games of this year with the most spectacular implementation of ray tracing yet. While the fighting mechanics with its same enemy types became repetitive near the end game the story will keep you on edge. I wasn't particularly impressed by the trailers of Control but couldnt stop playing once i started the game. The FBC and all of its secrets and collectible documentsOne of the best action games of this year with the most spectacular implementation of ray tracing yet. While the fighting mechanics with its same enemy types became repetitive near the end game the story will keep you on edge. I wasn't particularly impressed by the trailers of Control but couldnt stop playing once i started the game. The FBC and all of its secrets and collectible documents are one of the most interesting locations i have visited in a game. This is Remedy in its old form.… Expand
  76. matcarfer
    Sep 3, 2019
    9
    Im a fan of CONTROL. First thing I say is this game is awesome. I just registered on Metacritic just to post my review as I see this great game is getting undeserved bad reviews.
    Played the game on pc at launch, bought it on Epic Store, finished it in 20 hours aprox, on my Intel i5 9600K, Vega 56, SSD, 16GB RAM. Locked to 60fps in Ultra at 1080p.
    Graphics: Photorealistic mixed with    Im a fan of CONTROL. First thing I say is this game is awesome. I just registered on Metacritic just to post my review as I see this great game is getting undeserved bad reviews.
    Played the game on pc at launch, bought it on Epic Store, finished it in 20 hours aprox, on my Intel i5 9600K, Vega 56, SSD, 16GB RAM. Locked to 60fps in Ultra at 1080p.

    Graphics: Photorealistic mixed with fantasy. Some structures are crazy in a good way, particle effect blowed me away and in general felt like a next gen game (PS5, Scarlet). Could have use some color variation on enemies. 9/10

    Gameplay: just great, Jesse moves, shoot, and throw things beautifully. The game is a mix of metroidvania, with dark souls, with classic 3rd person shooter. 9/10

    Stability: Found one silly bug in my 20hs playthrough, which I reported to Remedy. Game is super polished. Most polished game I played in years.

    Story: convoluted as hell and a really different to all AAA games, this is the type of stories that I think before I go to bed, tell my friends about it, discuss online and see videos just to undestand more. It's a great mess, but its great. Many things to watch, read and listen. 8/10

    Content: has many missions, some suits and skills to unlock, personal and mod weapons. Has an upgrade system for weapons which I find it nice. There also random events. Missions are varied and a nice change to classic AAA games. 9/10

    Sound: oh my god. I played the game with headphones and ambient sound and music are oppresive, it got to my nerves many times. Also sound effects are top notch. Loved it. The guys that hang from the ceiling talking like crazy made me cringe. 10/10

    All in all, the game is a 9 for me. This game is a nice change of style and play.

    Things that Id change if I could:
    -Enemies could use color variation, specially for high level enemies.
    -More varied attack skills to Jesse woudl be great as shoot and throwing stuff is super repetitive.
    -Endgame content. Random event encounters are not sufficient.
    -Photo mode (already planned by developers).
    -I miss achievements/throphies. Developers should make them internal for PC [using a menu] (like some other games) as Epic Launcher doesnt have it.
    -There are no internal statistics for the game. I dont know how many items I still have to collect, hidden rooms undiscovered, missions undiscovered, boxes to open, etc.
    -Epic store is crap and exclusivity to it bothers me. I dont hate it but lacks achievements, hours played, game blog (to know developers news and updates), unable to locate installed game or move it to my ssd, fps counter, and more.

    Please like if it was helpful.    … Expand
  77. VAX_78
    Oct 23, 2019
    1
    Strange game ... The principal character is ... not interesting, the gameplay is boring with "deja-vu" GO/BACK system, collect information to enlarge the story was good in 2000, the gameplay is repetitive as hell and the places crossed are all the same.

    The only thing that deserve to be observed is the progress on how the light is rendered. But be carefull, nothing exceptionnal. I've    Strange game ... The principal character is ... not interesting, the gameplay is boring with "deja-vu" GO/BACK system, collect information to enlarge the story was good in 2000, the gameplay is repetitive as hell and the places crossed are all the same.

    The only thing that deserve to be observed is the progress on how the light is rendered. But be carefull, nothing exceptionnal.

    I've read a tons of "compliments" on this curious product. Don't believe the hype.

    It's just a bad game.    … Expand
  78. 4ortik
    Sep 2, 2019
    9
    +
    Игра очень хорошо сделана со стороны окружения.
    Разрушаемость это красота. Мрачный геймплей. Приятная мимика лица. Главный персонаж, который не молчит!!! Сверхспособности в совокупности с левитацией превращают игру в наслаждение. Взмываешь в небо и раскидываешь ящики во врагов или врагов во врагов. Под конец оружием почти не пользовался. Огромное пространство для изучения, что    +
    Игра очень хорошо сделана со стороны окружения.
    Разрушаемость это красота.
    Мрачный геймплей.
    Приятная мимика лица.
    Главный персонаж, который не молчит!!!
    Сверхспособности в совокупности с левитацией превращают игру в наслаждение. Взмываешь в небо и раскидываешь ящики во врагов или врагов во врагов. Под конец оружием почти не пользовался.
    Огромное пространство для изучения, что вдоль горизонтальной плоскости но и вертикальной.

    -
    Мы играем не за спецназ а за "простого" человека, получаем низкий процент попадания в противников.
    Очень запутанный сюжет игры. Я прошел игру и Я не вкурсе кто это или что это внутри головы находится у персонажа.
    Очень много текстовых документов. По началу это радует. Когда половина текста скрыта, в голове дописываешь, додумываешь. Но, под конец идут разные отчеты, письма сумасшедших. И это уже начинает раздражать.
    Беготня по одним и тем же локациям, по причине поэтапного открытия доступов и возможностей персонажа.
    Скомканный конец игры.    … Expand
  79. Clean
    Aug 27, 2019
    10
    Brilliant and intriguing thriller that keeps you hooked! One of the best games in 2019 so far!
  80. exxr
    Jan 24, 2020
    2
    This game needs more negative reviews.

    At first it looks and it's hyped to have great visuals. This couldn't be further from the truth since even on "ultra textures" the game assets look positively awful. Textures are very low res, grainy, smudgy, artifacty...you get the point for a game offering supposedly next gen visuals. It seems to me to simply be a ray tracing demo, with oodles of    This game needs more negative reviews.

    At first it looks and it's hyped to have great visuals. This couldn't be further from the truth since even on "ultra textures" the game assets look positively awful. Textures are very low res, grainy, smudgy, artifacty...you get the point for a game offering supposedly next gen visuals. It seems to me to simply be a ray tracing demo, with oodles of shiny reflective surfaces, way too many in fact making it gaudy.

    Usually game reviews always have someone claiming their [insert ultra high end GPU] is stuttering and I've found this to be false in 99.9% of cases. Not here, it's the 0.1% that actually has stuttering even with a RTX 2080 Ti which is just inexcusable.

    The story and game play...well what is there to write, they're downright boring with heaps of grinding and poor AI and the same monsters over and over and the overpowered yet uninspiring bosses just like every other review said. It really screams at you that this game was made with the only purpose of showcasing ray tracing and that's it.    … Expand
  81. Fuflick
    Sep 5, 2019
    9
    Отличная игра, давно не получала такого визуального удовольствия, единственный минус для меня стрельба, а в целом очень достойно похвалы.
  82. Gordar
    Sep 8, 2019
    8
    Very good game. The setting is mainly what is so interesting here. Gun play is also lot of fun. I can recommend this.
  83. zi0
    Aug 27, 2019
    9
    great atmosphere and physics, well made mechanics, first game shows real RTX solutions.
    in other hand, game looks unfinished (face animation gradient from ugly in some scenes to about perfect in others), AI is too dumb, most weapons is about useless.
    Also bad localisation, but it's last in the list. Looks like game use adaptive difficulty level, which have not good algorithm. Still I    great atmosphere and physics, well made mechanics, first game shows real RTX solutions.
    in other hand, game looks unfinished (face animation gradient from ugly in some scenes to about perfect in others), AI is too dumb, most weapons is about useless.
    Also bad localisation, but it's last in the list.
    Looks like game use adaptive difficulty level, which have not good algorithm.

    Still I gave 9 points as game could be tuned with some patch.    … Expand
  84. shipo
    Sep 3, 2019
    4
    Control is 12-hours game for kids with great visual. On start of game you will become the new FBI director, by entering into pure artistic oldest building. In the sixties you looking for your supernatural brother Dylan (he is like others currently in a coma). So Jesse trying fight back against evil entity the Hiss. Game story and progress is really bad (not even extrovert developers knowControl is 12-hours game for kids with great visual. On start of game you will become the new FBI director, by entering into pure artistic oldest building. In the sixties you looking for your supernatural brother Dylan (he is like others currently in a coma). So Jesse trying fight back against evil entity the Hiss. Game story and progress is really bad (not even extrovert developers know mystery). They trying make some crazy superhero RPG shooter.

    POSITIVES: Detailed graphics; Destruction physics;

    NEGATIVES: Level design is based on unrealistic biggest rooms (there are un-functional map for navigation). Most sad thing is gameplay. Spawning enemies are stupid so they have millions health points. Level checkpoints are placed inconsistent. Game design is pure trash. They spend funds only on graphics and marketing. By deleting hundreds of lowest meta-critic user reviews, they make fake score 5 -> 7.1 (most 9 or 10 have only 1 review).    … Expand
  85. Fedeastica
    Sep 4, 2019
    10
    Absolutely amazing game. I played for like 30 hours, finished all side missions and I'm still hungry for more. I expected a Ray Tracing demo and I got one of the GOTY.

    The level design is great, and while the map it's not very helpful sometimes, I actually had fun looking for secret rooms and hidden corridors. The combat is a blast, especially when you're fully upgraded. I just wish    Absolutely amazing game. I played for like 30 hours, finished all side missions and I'm still hungry for more. I expected a Ray Tracing demo and I got one of the GOTY.

    The level design is great, and while the map it's not very helpful sometimes, I actually had fun looking for secret rooms and hidden corridors. The combat is a blast, especially when you're fully upgraded. I just wish there was a Game plus, as I would love to replay some difficult optional boss battles with my fully upgraded character. The story is quite convoluted, with many crazy flashbacks. Some missions and sections were absolutely trippy. Loved it!!!!

    BTW, the combat starts slow, so the game requires some patience until it gets more intense. If you like single player games with a rich story, great setting and fun combat get it!    … Expand
  86. yoloman0805
    Sep 1, 2019
    8
    A very refreshing action shooter. Even though the story could have been better the gameplay was innovative and fun. Also the world building was amazing. Remedy shows that your can build great gameplay world in closed environments. Also big pops to the maze level, one of the most innovative game level design I have seen in that mission.
  87. snowrabel
    Sep 1, 2019
    10
    Very high quality action game. Unique story and excellent game mechanics. Beautiful graphics! PC with RTX on is just pure candy for your eyes!
  88. Kappadona
    Sep 2, 2019
    10
    Стильно. Отличный звук и визуал. Интересная история, которая возможно даже больше уходит в состояние передачи ощущений, нежели конкретно поданной истории, что необычно и смело для игры. Если интересен Линч, то обязательно игратьСтильно. Отличный звук и визуал. Интересная история, которая возможно даже больше уходит в состояние передачи ощущений, нежели конкретно поданной истории, что необычно и смело для игры. Если интересен Линч, то обязательно играть
  89. Vergesso
    Sep 6, 2019
    10
    I am delighted with this game and can not find almost any reason for criticism. For me, there is a fascinating story, an interesting world so that it does not bother to collect information and read documents, and in addition - fascinating gameplay. I saw complaints about weak enemies that miss shots, but I have never encountered anything like that - all opponents are deadly dangerous. II am delighted with this game and can not find almost any reason for criticism. For me, there is a fascinating story, an interesting world so that it does not bother to collect information and read documents, and in addition - fascinating gameplay. I saw complaints about weak enemies that miss shots, but I have never encountered anything like that - all opponents are deadly dangerous. I play this game with pleasure and I will surely do it a couple more times.… Expand
  90. Alexdog
    Sep 8, 2019
    9
    Very fun game, good physics are rare in modern projects, thanks for good time Remedy
  91. Vasot
    Sep 3, 2019
    6
    Overhyped and overrated game with a weird story it's not so interesting. The game has some good visuals but definitely NOT next-gen graphics. Control is overall an OK shooter with demanding hardware requirements the game becomes boring fast and the shooting feels generic and very repetitive after a while also the plot does not make sense until the end. PS: Some idiots that give a 10 scoreOverhyped and overrated game with a weird story it's not so interesting. The game has some good visuals but definitely NOT next-gen graphics. Control is overall an OK shooter with demanding hardware requirements the game becomes boring fast and the shooting feels generic and very repetitive after a while also the plot does not make sense until the end. PS: Some idiots that give a 10 score to this they must be out of their minds...… Expand
  92. Samistoteles
    Aug 27, 2019
    10
    Hands down the best game Remedy has made so far. As a Finn, I gotta give some extra credit for Ahti character.
  93. CharlyPlayman
    Sep 15, 2019
    8
    It reminded me the old superb game "Psi Ops the mindgate conpiracy" but i think although Control is a good game is not so good as that one.
    PROS: easy to control + the abilities makes you feel powerfull + it's much funny to explode things and levitate + detailed and breakeable scenary + nice to play + well done game
    CONS: confusing map (all floors are in one map) and difficult to see    It reminded me the old superb game "Psi Ops the mindgate conpiracy" but i think although Control is a good game is not so good as that one.
    PROS: easy to control + the abilities makes you feel powerfull + it's much funny to explode things and levitate + detailed and breakeable scenary + nice to play + well done game
    CONS: confusing map (all floors are in one map) and difficult to see where are you in it + confusing story + totally manual camera + boss checkpoints a bit far + bad voice spanish actors    … Expand
  94. ustijoz
    Sep 6, 2019
    10
    Love this game. atmosphere is haunting and creepy, story stays pretty vage but i love it for that, the combat is really fun, and there are soo many secrets.
  95. gamerrab
    Aug 31, 2019
    8
    This game is too clean. Its the opposite of Quantum Break which was nice and colourful. Its also very black, grey and white and the world is quite dull and lifeless. From the PC point of view, graphics are great and control -via keyboard of-course- is precise and excellent - WAY better than Quantum Break which had a dire PC control set up. Graphics are crisp an...dull. There's the oddThis game is too clean. Its the opposite of Quantum Break which was nice and colourful. Its also very black, grey and white and the world is quite dull and lifeless. From the PC point of view, graphics are great and control -via keyboard of-course- is precise and excellent - WAY better than Quantum Break which had a dire PC control set up. Graphics are crisp an...dull. There's the odd bit where you break out of concrete into the "real" world of rocks and caves and it feels so refreshing; but its not long before your back into concrete and pipes. The shooting is a bit of a frantic panic - perhaps that's just me - but keep on the move and you'll b ok. Upgrading is the usual frequent need to visit the menu system which I still haven't really sussed out yet. Why they have to make these upgrade menus so complicated defeats me. The boss fights (wow how I hate boss fights) are tedious as usual, their SOLE aim being to slow you down so that the developers say it'll take X hours to play the game, when, without boss levels, you could do it in half the time. However, its a great effort by 505 Games. Gamestyle-wise its a mix of Aiien Isolation (on your own in a pretty life-less world) + Prey (strange shaped alien creatures) and Inception (yes, the film - you'll know what I mean after paying it for 10 minutes).
    Plot-wise - who cares if it doesn't make much sense? The missions are quite clear and progression is obvious. 8/10.    … Expand
  96. Gizilq
    Aug 31, 2019
    8
    Довольно неплохая игра, с несколько репетативным геймплеем. Негативные оценки оттого, что геймдизайн, делающий фокус на окружении и ЛОРе, понравится далеко не всем. некоторым подобное скучно и не интересно. Субъективно, 8 из 10.

    Pretty good game, with a few repetitive gameplay. Negative ratings are due to the fact that not everyone will like a game design that focuses on the    Довольно неплохая игра, с несколько репетативным геймплеем. Негативные оценки оттого, что геймдизайн, делающий фокус на окружении и ЛОРе, понравится далеко не всем. некоторым подобное скучно и не интересно. Субъективно, 8 из 10.

    Pretty good game, with a few repetitive gameplay. Negative ratings are due to the fact that not everyone will like a game design that focuses on the environment and Lore. Some people find it boring and not interesting. Subjectively, 8 out of 10.    … Expand
  97. aralath
    Oct 29, 2019
    8
    Watched through a walkthrough video series. Unique story as always from Remedy.
  98. Himmler1
    Nov 3, 2019
    3
    Remedy, что с вами ?
    После просто великолепного Alan Wake вы выпустили сначала какой-то дешёвый подростковый сериал с элементами научной фантастики. Это я ещё стерпел и кое-как осилил.
    Но теперь вы предлагаете 10 часов бегать по одинаковым офисам и швыряться стульями, приправляя это всё откровенным ничего не объясняющим бредом ? Зачем объяснять всю ту чушь, что уже вывалили на игрока -    Remedy, что с вами ?
    После просто великолепного Alan Wake вы выпустили сначала какой-то дешёвый подростковый сериал с элементами научной фантастики. Это я ещё стерпел и кое-как осилил.
    Но теперь вы предлагаете 10 часов бегать по одинаковым офисам и швыряться стульями, приправляя это всё откровенным ничего не объясняющим бредом ? Зачем объяснять всю ту чушь, что уже вывалили на игрока - лучше навалим ему ещё. А разнообразие геймплея тоже ни к чему. Вот тебе один ствол, вот телекинез. Пройди тысячу одинаковых комнат, а за это тебе будет ещё больше бреда. Нет уж, спасибо. Снёс, пройдя около 80 %.
    Недостойно покупки.    … Expand
  99. MCmetacritic
    Nov 18, 2020
    0
    Never before has such lazy writing been delivered in the form of such mediocre voice acting. It's hard to imagine that there was ever a second attempt at a single line of dialogue. It feels like a high school theater production, but with even more self-involved performers.
  100. Auger
    Aug 28, 2019
    9
    While everyone **** about rtx and egs, this game is actually pretty good.
    Don't expect very deep plot from it, but gameplay-wise it's awesome.
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Awards & Rankings

17
#17 Best PC Game of 2019
14
#14 Most Discussed PC Game of 2019
82
#82 Most Shared PC Game of 2019

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
85

Generally favorable reviews - based on 33 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 32 out of 33
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 33
  3. Negative: 0 out of 33
  1. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Feb 28, 2020
    80
    An audio-visual action banquet that will entertain you with physics and flirting with the supernatural. The story could have been better, the enemy line-up can be quite monotonous towards the end, but the great atmosphere overcomes these shortcomings. And most importantly, the gameplay is great. [Issue#298]
  2. Giant Bomb
    Oct 22, 2019
    100
    Control feels like Remedy firing on all cylinders, resulting in a smart and sensational action-adventure.
    Read full review
  3. Game World Navigator Magazine
    Oct 11, 2019
    83
    Control takes a while to get in gear, but overall it’s one of the most memorable experiences of the year. [Issue#240, p.36]
See all critic reviews »