There's no doubt that the combat of Control is exhilarating. Jesse Faden's Service Weapon combines a broad arsenal of guns into a single firearm, letting players assemble a unique loadout to tear through the Hiss. Gunplay isn't all Control has to offer, of course; combat is also an exercise in mastering Jesse's parautilitarian powers, from the ability to telekinetically launch objects at enemies to conjuring a protective barrier of debris at a moment's notice. Control's combat is demanding, forcing players to fight aggressively in order to heal Jesse, but that high level of challenge ultimately makes the game's combat more rewarding to master.
Notably, though, Control was largely light on non-humanoid basic enemies. For most of the game, players fight former Bureau agents who are now helpless vessels for the Hiss. Certain Hiss have unique abilities and designs, like the Hiss Charged who float listlessly towards the player before exploding, but many Hiss are simply brainwashed humans who attack Jesse with either mundane weapons or newfound supernatural skills. Control 2 is bound to make use of these kinds of enemies again, should the Hiss return, but it should also introduce more abstract and bizarre enemies from other realities to mix up the franchise's combat.
The Case For Eldritch Control 2 Enemies
Control 2 could benefit from more non-humanoid threats to Jesse simply because it results in more striking battlefields. While each corrupted Bureau member can get a very unique skillset from the Hiss, they don't necessarily stand out in a crowd. In contrast, the dense sphere of Hiss-healing resonance called a Hiss Cluster is very striking, appearing as a glowing red orb that darts around the battlefield with uncanny speed and unpredictable movements. Astral Spikes, which appear as warbling, indestructible clumps of the Astral Plane's stone that try to chase Jesse down, are also highly unique and memorable. Strange enemy designs like these give Jesse visually distinct obstacles and objectives that make Control combat encounters more diverse, so Control 2 would be wise to diversify further.
More monstrous or abstract enemies would also play into Control's lore well. Control is all about an interdimensional breach staged by the Hiss, and the Bureau's duty is largely to investigate unknown worlds beyond Earth. It stands to reason, then, that Control 2 will feature new dimensional breaches and send Jesse into even stranger worlds than the Oldest House and the Astral Plane. Bizarre enemies, whether they have classicly aquatic Lovecraftian designs or more abstract resonance-based designs like the Hiss, will go a long way in making each new Control 2 dimension engaging and threatening to explore.
Beyond defining the far reaches of Control lore and shaping new types of battlefields, there are certain types of threats that only non-humanoid enemies could pose. Hiss-controlled Bureau agents might get a number of parautilitarian skills, but the Hiss can't do everything. As more corporeal entities like the Clog and the Mold prove, the Control universe is filled with very different beings from the Hiss, and each has skillsets that the Hiss lacks. Whether they poison Jesse, make her hallucinate, forcibly move her closer to danger, or pose any number of other threats, new Control creatures from other dimensions could enhance combat by introducing new mechanics to the game that the Hiss simply can't offer.
Facing New Threats in Control 2
Control 2's combat will certainly be different from the first game on Jesse's end, whether she gets new forms for her Service Weapon or whether her list of supernatural powers expands significantly. At the same time, Control 2 should tweak the threats that Jesse faces in the next game. Even if the Hiss serves as the primary antagonist again, it just seems inevitable that Jesse will start encountering more and more enemies of the Bureau from across the multiverse, which should inspire Remedy Entertainment to add more foes from far-fetched realities to the game. Control 2 would be all the more exciting for it.
Control is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.