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Control Resonant Reviews: What Critics Say Before Launch
Early reviews are positive overall but not unanimous: critics love Control Resonant’s reality bending Manhattan and level design, while opinions split on whether its melee focused combat stays satisfying through the f... The sequel moves from Control’s shooting led formula to an open ended action RPG starring Dylan...
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Key takeaways
- Early reviews are positive overall but not unanimous: critics love Control Resonant’s reality bending Manhattan and level design, while opinions split on whether its melee focused combat stays satisfying through the f...
- The sequel moves from Control’s shooting led formula to an open ended action RPG starring Dylan Faden, whose powers and shapeshifting melee weapon are central to the new combat system.
- PC impressions are encouraging on desktop hardware, but Steam Deck performance appears considerably weaker; the official PC requirements also call for 16 GB of RAM and 120 GB of SSD space.
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openai.comCreate a landscape editorial hero image for this Studio Global article: What did critics say about Control Resonant after its review embargo lifted six days before its September 24, 2026 launch on PS5, Xbox Serie. Article summary: Early reviews portray *Control Resonant* as a bold, visually exceptional but polarizing reinvention of *Control*: critics widely admire its surreal Manhattan, level design, and lore, while sharply disagreeing over whethe. Topic tags: general, news, general web. Style: premium digital editorial illustration, source-backed research mood, clean composition, high detail, modern web publication hero. Use reference image context only for broad subject, composition, and topical grounding; do not copy the exact image. Avoid: logos, brand marks, copyrighted characters, real person likenesses, fake screenshots, UI text, readable text, watermarks, charts with fake numbers
Remedy’s Control Resonant is shaping up as an ambitious and deliberately different follow-up to 2019’s Control. The early critical picture is favorable, especially for its atmosphere, environmental imagination, and scale—but the game’s melee-first combat has produced a meaningful divide. Reviews went live on September 18, ahead of the September 24 release for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. 4
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The big change: Dylan Faden, Manhattan, and melee
Rather than continuing the original game’s shooter-driven approach, Control Resonant puts Dylan Faden at the center of an open-ended action-adventure RPG set in a paranaturally warped Manhattan. Remedy describes Dylan as emerging from FBC confinement during a reality-bending crisis and confronting a cosmic threat with new abilities. The developer has also confirmed his shapeshifting melee weapon, the Aberrant. 3
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That is a substantial structural and mechanical shift for the series. Xbox’s official combat preview describes the game as an evolution from third-person shooting into a melee action-RPG built around combat customization and experimentation. 15
What critics liked most
The clearest early consensus is that Remedy’s world-building remains the sequel’s greatest strength. Critics repeatedly highlight the distorted New York setting, strange visual ideas, traversal, and reality-warping spaces.
Vice called the game one of the year’s best action games and singled out its level design, arguing that the open-world setting gives Remedy room for spectacular environments without abandoning the authored locations and puzzles that defined the original. 18
Other positive reviews reached similar conclusions. Hey Poor Player awarded a 4.5/5, saying the sequel takes major risks but still feels like Control in the ways that matter. 19 GamingBible rated it 9/10 and described it as one of 2026’s best action games, while TechRadar praised its explorable open world and story.
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The result is a sequel that seems most compelling to players who value atmosphere, exploration, weird fiction, and elaborate spaces as much as pure combat mechanics.
Why the combat is divisive
The critical fault line is the new brawler-like action. Supportive reviewers see a system that gains depth as Dylan’s abilities and build options expand, rewarding players who engage with its customization rather than treating it as simple button-mashing. 15
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More skeptical reviews question whether the core loop sustains the game’s length. CGMagazine gave Control Resonant a 7.5/10, criticizing repetitive gameplay and underwhelming powers, and arguing that the late game loses momentum. 21 TechRadar was more positive overall, but similarly noted that combat can become difficult because enemies feel overly sponge-like.
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That disagreement is important for prospective players: the game’s strongest qualities appear to be its ideas and spaces, while its moment-to-moment melee action is less universally admired than the original Control’s gunplay-and-powers formula.
Review scores show enthusiasm, not a total consensus
The available scores range from very enthusiastic to more reserved:
- Hey Poor Player: 4.5/5
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- GamingBible: 9/10
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- Forbes: 8/10, calling the genre switch effective “most of the time” while noting areas needing more polish
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- CGMagazine: 7.5/10
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- Gamers Heroes: 70%
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Those results point to a well-received sequel rather than a universally acclaimed one. The broad view is that Remedy’s creative leap works for many critics, but the combat and pacing prevent a full consensus.
PC and handheld performance: promising desktop outlook, Steam Deck caveat
Early technical coverage is encouraging for desktop PC players. IGN described the port as close to “picture-perfect” and reported 40–45 fps in an early boss fight at 1080p using the handheld preset with FSR set to Quality. It also reported that stronger desktop systems run the game very well. 36
The Steam Deck is a more cautious proposition. IGN found that it struggled to stay above 25 fps even at 720p with the handheld preset and FSR Balanced. 36 Remedy’s published requirements also specify 16 GB of RAM and 120 GB of available SSD space across configurations.
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What the pre-launch response means
The September 18 review drop gave players nearly a week to assess the game before its September 24 launch. 4
33 The reviews suggest that Control Resonant has a clear audience: players eager for Remedy’s surreal fiction, high-concept locations, and a more exploratory action-RPG structure.
The caveat is equally clear. Anyone hoping for a direct continuation of the original game’s shooting-focused combat should expect a genuine reinvention, not a simple expansion. Control Resonant appears to be at its best when its strange world, traversal, and escalating supernatural ideas take center stage—and most divisive when its melee encounters have to carry the experience alone. 15
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Early reviews are positive overall but not unanimous: critics love Control Resonant’s reality bending Manhattan and level design, while opinions split on whether its melee focused combat stays satisfying through the f...
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Early reviews are positive overall but not unanimous: critics love Control Resonant’s reality bending Manhattan and level design, while opinions split on whether its melee focused combat stays satisfying through the f... The sequel moves from Control’s shooting led formula to an open ended action RPG starring Dylan Faden, whose powers and shapeshifting melee weapon are central to the new combat system.
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PC impressions are encouraging on desktop hardware, but Steam Deck performance appears considerably weaker; the official PC requirements also call for 16 GB of RAM and 120 GB of SSD space.