Spoilers ahead
Control’s Ending
At the center of Control’s story is Jesse Faden and her brother Dylan. Jesse’s search for Dylan led her to the Federal Bureau of Control (FBC) and the Oldest House. As it turns out, both of the Faden siblings were singled out as potential “directors” by the FBC following the destruction of their hometown of Ordinary before the events of Control.As players progress deeper into the bureaucracy of the FBC and the Oldest House, which has been overrun by a supernatural force called “The Hiss,” players learn it’s not a coincidence Jesse escaped the events of Ordinary while her brother was taken by the FBC.
The bureau knew both siblings had the potential to be the director. But similar to a “control” group and test group in scientific studies, the FBC allowed Jesse to live in the world (surveilled by the FBC) while they raised Dylan in custody.
While you wait for photo mode to drop, take a look at these stunning Control screenshots below.Dylan, after years of testing at the hands of the FBC, gets revenge on the FBC by using the Hiss to corrupt the FBC’s previous director, Zachariah Trench. The Hiss caused Trench to lose control and even murder one of his subordinates to fulfill the Hiss’ commands. Dylan may have had a hand in getting Trench in contact with the Hiss, and used him to open the portal created by the slideshow projector, which allows the Hiss to take over The Oldest House.
Control “ends” when Jesse learns about her brother’s role in the Hiss takeover. At first, it seems like Jesse fails to save The Oldest House and becomes corrupted by the Hiss herself. This leads to the first end credit sequence, which leads to an alternate world where Jesse is trapped in the Oldest House as an FBC bureaucrat.
Jesse eventually escapes this nightmare world with the help of her supernatural buddy Polaris and the FBC-overseers, The Board, and she shuts down the projector, closing the connection between the unidentified Hiss realm and The Oldest House.
Jesse officially becomes the new director of the FBC, fulfilling her true potential, which was first discovered when she was a child in Ordinary. Still, the lockdown remains in effect until the Hiss still present in the Oldest House is eradicated. The fact that Jesse and other members of the Bureau are still locked in The Oldest House will likely set up the events for the upcoming DLC.
Altered World Event
Control’s world-building relies heavily on jargon. Characters will often use in-universe terms freely, and it can sometimes get confusing. One of the most prominent terms used in Control is “Altered World Event,” or AWE.Still, the lockdown remains in effect until the Hiss still present in the Oldest House is eradicated.
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And thanks to some in-universe documentation, we also learn that the events of Alan Wake in which a sleepy Washington town was overtaken by the “darkness” are also an AWE. As it turns out, the events of Alan Wake are more relevant to Control than you might think (more on that further down).
OOP and Altered Items
Another term freely used in Control is “Object of Power” or OOP.An Object of Power is a subset of Altered Items, which are things that become affected by AWEs. While OOPs are Altered Items, the distinction is how OOPs are connected to “The Board” and give Jesse her different abilities during her time in The Oldest House. OOPs are usually archetypal objects like telephones, TV sets, and the slideshow projector that put in motion the events of Control.
Check out our Control review below for what we think about this adventure through The Oldest House.This is a pretty ingenious bit of world-building as Objects of Power are used to explain away supernatural occurrences. Haunted houses? OOP. Creepy dolls? Another OOP.
Everyday objects can become Objects Of Power through the Astral Plane. Other items can become “Altered Items” and those are more chaotic and can even harm innocent bystanders.
The Object of Powers’ abilities is sometimes related to their real-world function. The telephone in Control becomes a hotline to messages left behind by Director Trench. And the slideshow projector, for example, can open up portals to alternate worlds depending on which slide is being projected.
The FBC confiscated the slideshow projector following the events in Ordinary, and since then FBC’s Head of Research, Dr. Casper Darling, has been leading expeditions into the slideshow — this is how the FBC uncovered and obtained Hedron.
Hedron/Polaris
Throughout Control, Jesse is seen talking to someone, or something, in her head. At times, it’s almost like she’s talking directly to the player. But it’s the otherworldly entity Jesse discovered when she and Dylan were playing with the slideshow project, an Object of Power, as children.Jesse revealed that most of the things locked within the projectors’ many slides were terrible. The one paranatural entity that wasn’t is something Jesse named “Polaris.” The true nature of Polaris is unclear, but it seems to be some kind of force that Jesse has a psychic connection to. Throughout Control, Polaris serves as Jesse’s protector and guide - often signaling where to go next.
As it turns out, Jesse and Dylan weren’t the only ones to discover Polaris through the projector. Dr. Darling also discovered Polaris but named it “Hedron” based on its shape. Though it’s unclear if Darling had a similar connection to Hedron as Jesse does with Polaris, studying Hedron did seem to alter Darling in some way. Leading up to the outbreak, Dr. Darling’s assistant, Emily, noted his strange behavior. Rather than host a big meeting for his latest invention, Darling hastily passed it out. And down in the maintenance sector, Ahti said Dr. Darling was last seen “ripping off his clothes.” No one has seen Dr. Darling since the Hiss outbreak.
HRAs
HRAs, or Hedron Resonance Amplifiers, were designed by Darling quickly before the Hiss outbreak, and are the invention he handed out with very little detail. These disc-like objects people strap to their chests seem to channel Hedron’s powers and protect whoever is wearing them from becoming corrupted by the Hiss. So if you see someone in the game wearing one of the HRAs, they’re likely not affected by any Hiss disruptions.Jesse already has Polaris inside her, so she has a natural defense against the Hiss’ corruption, even without wearing an HRA. The same probably goes for Darling, last seen ranting about being shown something by Hedron. If Polaris is the true source of power for Jesse, then Hedron and the HRAs are kind of like little satellite outposts of its power.
Jesse and Dylan’s relationship
Jesse and Dylan are siblings who, as children growing up in a town called Ordinary, discovered a mysterious slideshow projector. That projector was an Object of Power that could open gateways into paranormal dimensions. Eventually, opening these pathways led to an Altered World Event, which wiped out every adult in Ordinary and caused the FBC to cover up the incident and launch its investigation.During this time, the FBC discovered Jesse and Dylan were Prime Candidates, meaning they had the potential to become Directors of the Bureau. Dylan was taken by the FBC, while Jesse was left behind but still closely monitored her whole life by the Bureau. Dylan and Jesse were dubbed P6 and P7 by the Bureau, respectively.
Similar to a “control” group and test group in scientific studies, the FBC allowed Jesse to live in the world.
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Unfortunately, while Jesse developed a close relationship with Polaris, Dylan rejected it and blamed it and Jesse for abandoning him with the FBC. In one transcript, Dylan was recorded cursing out a mysterious voice in his head that was likely Polaris.
Ahti
Ahti is a mysterious Finnish Janitor who works for the FBC. By all accounts, he is a real janitor who spends most of his time in the department of maintenance. However, he seems unnaturally attuned to the paranormal events that occur in the Oldest House, seeming more knowledgeable about its mysteries than even Director Trench or Doctor Darling.Ahti constantly refers to Jesse as his assistant, even though she is technically the Director of the FBC. Jesse doesn’t seem to mind and even says that based on her experiences, janitors tend to know more than their superiors. She was even a janitor once, herself. Ahti also doesn’t wear an HRA during the Hiss invasion but doesn’t seem to be corrupted.
The Object of Powers’ abilities is sometimes related to their real-world function.
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Connections to Alan Wake
As revealed in Control’s many supplementary materials scattered throughout the game, Control and Alan Wake are set in the same universe. We know this because the FBC has an actual case file on the events that took place in Alan Wake. The Bureau refers to the game’s setting as an AWE and says the cause of it is related to the story Wake wrote that somehow manifested itself into reality.There’s a real chance Alan Wake will crossover with Control in the future, as one of the upcoming story expansions for Control is called “AWE” and includes a picture of Alan Wake himself. While AWE usually refers to Altered World Event in the game, there’s a chance the AWE expansion could stand for the “Alan Wake Expansion.” So we’ll wait for the expansion before fully diving into how Alan Wake factors into the world of Control, and vice versa.
If you've never played Alan Wake, watch our review below to find out if it's for you.With Control, Remedy created another fascinating game world. But venturing down the rabbit hole reveals elaborate narrative and thematic threads that seem to indicate a far bigger universe than the one present in the game. While the ending closes one chapter in Jesse Faden’s book, there is plenty left to explore in Control and its universe.
For more, check out IGN’s Control review and Control wiki for our complete coverage.
Matt Kim is a reporter for IGN. He's trapped in an AWE known as Twitter.