When it comes to breakout IPs from the last several years, Control is one of the most memorable. Jesse Faden's journey into the depths of the Federal Bureau of Control in search of her brother set the stage for a really compelling new world worth exploring in greater depths. It didn't hurt that Control came packed with stunning settings, intense combat, and fun psychic abilities. It's great news, then, that Remedy recently announced it's working on a sequel to Control. Maybe there's another chapter in Jesse's battle with the Hiss that Remedy wants to open.
That's not the only upcoming game in the Control universe. Remedy also says it's working on a multiplayer game that takes place in the same world. Although Remedy hasn't been more specific than that, the game allows up to four players to team up for PvE gameplay. It seems pretty clear what this Control spin-off is about, especially considering the one piece of concept art that Remedy shared. Odds are good that the upcoming multiplayer Control spin-offs casts players as agents of the Federal Bureau of Control investigating supernatural anomalies and battling otherworldly monsters like the Hiss.
Imagining a Multiplayer Control Game
So far, a single image is the only clear hint at what the multiplayer Control game is about. It shows four people in military gear sitting in a waiting area with a body bag at their feet. They're flanked by shelves with paperwork, water coolers, and other decorations in the style of a mid-20th century office space. One of the armored people is looking at a ticket, suggesting they're waiting to check this body in at an otherwise clean or friendly looking office. If there's any doubt about where these people are, the poster over their heads makes it clear by mentioning House shifts, so fans know that these people are waiting to be helped in the Oldest House: the occult setting of Control and the home of the Federal Bureau of Control.
Throughout Control, Jesse can find recordings and documents with accounts of Bureau agents traveling across the United States to investigate reports of supernatural goings-on. The teaser image suggests that's what the multiplayer Control spin-off is all about. Control fans might soon get the chance to play the part of Bureau agents investigating the appearances of monsters and otherworldly forces of all kinds. The game could focus on tackling the Hiss in a new context, or it could focus on a wide variety of new threats to Earth. If there's one thing that Control established, it's that humanity is just one small part of a sprawling multiverse of unfathomable worlds.
A multiplayer monster hunting game facilitated by Control's FBC opens up plenty of game design facilities. For instance, there's already some good player class options in place. Players might be able to choose from various Bureau specialties, from a heavily armed and armored Ranger to a psionically empowered Parautilitarian. Once players build up a team from these kinds of classes, they might be sent all across the United States or even the world to fight eldritch horrors as they break loose from alternate worlds. There might even be cause to do the opposite: maybe Bureau agents can go on expeditions into the Astral Plane and other worlds in search of greater understanding.
How Does the Spin-Off Relate to Control?
One wonders where the multiplayer spin-off falls in the Control timeline if it's canonical. It might actually take place before Control, meaning it's before Jesse Faden took control of the Bureau in the wake of the Hiss attack. Players never really get to see what the Bureau was like before the Hiss attacked, so a game taking place before Control could offer fans a very gratifying peek into the Bureau's history and give them a sense of what it was like to work there. Control's collectible documents actually give the sense that the Bureau was a pretty fun workplace, setting aside the eldritch threats contained within.
Alternatively, Control's multiplayer spin-off could very reasonably take place in a time after Jesse's arrival at the Bureau. Maybe the players will embody new agents being sent on missions under Jesse's guidance, allowing them to see the Bureau change. If Remedy wants the Hiss to remain Control's central antagonist, then it'd make sense for the spin-off to take place in this period. On the other hand, if Control is also getting a direct sequel, then it might conflict for the multiplayer game to take place in the same period. A time period slightly before Control seems to make a little more sense, then. It's a shame to think that Jesse might not affect the multiplayer game much, but it'd also be fascinating to meeting previous Director Zachariah Trench, Casper Darling, and other significant but distant Control NPCs in person.
Control's Future Looks Bright
It's a shame to think that it'll probably be a long time before the new Control games come out. Remedy had very little to say about the games; rather, it directed fans to the screenshot it shared and assured Control fans that the image spoke for itself. Patience and optimism will serve Control fans well. One piece of good news Remedy shared is that the next steps for Control are bigger budget games, which speaks to the success of the first game and Remedy's confidence in its ability to expand the universe.
Remedy will benefit from expanding the Control IP in multiple directions. Control made it very clear that its universe can't be contained or summarized in one story alone. Side quests and hidden areas in the Oldest House hint at the edges of alternate realities, warped dimensions, and forces as formidable as the Hiss lurking just beyond the Earth. Two different games will not only offer more opportunities to understand the world of Control, but will offer two different perspectives on the world. Jesse Faden might be a particularly talented Director, but she's still only one lens for players to look at the world with. Control's potential is as bottomless as its multiverse, and Remedy seems ready to open doors to new worlds.
A multiplayer Control game is in development.