Control Resonant is officially landing today as of 7am PDT / 10 am EDT / 3pm BST /, with September 24 marking its release across PC and consoles.
Resonant, aka Control 2, is a follow-up to 2019's Control. But as an action-adventure RPG with more of a focus on melee combat, Remedy's latest release shifts up the perspective by putting you in the role of new protagonist, Dylan Faden. As the brother of Jesse Faden who led the first game, you'll be outfitted with a shape-shifting weapon and have some supernatural abilities as you get swept up in a warped Manhattan. If you're still deciding whether to pick this new game up, you can get our verdict in our Control Resonant review.
Or if you want a detailed overview with some helpful guides to get you started, you can learn more more about the kind of experience you can expect, and everything else you need to know, in our breakdown on all things Control Resonant below.
Control Resonant release date
Control Resonant's release date of September 24, 2026 has arrived, meaning you can jump into Remedy's latest adventure at the global launch times of 7am PDT / 10am EDT / 3pm BST.
The release date was first revealed in the June 2026 State of Play. The sequel comes some seven years after first game, which landed back in 2019 and earned a place among the best Remedy games.
For a look back at the first game, you can check out our Control review. Or, if you're about to start Resonant, you can check out our guides further down the page for all the info you need to succeed.
Control Resonant platforms
Control Resonant released on PC (via Steam and the Epic Games Store), PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
In an Xbox Wire post in May 2026, Remedy's Miika Huttunen, Mikael Kasurinen, and Anne-Marie Grönroos spoke on bring Xbox Play Anywhere support to Control Resonant, which allows you to pick up a game and play across PC, Xbox, or on a handheld console. That means the game is handheld optimized, but the Steam page doesn't confirm it's Steam Deck verified, even on launch day.
There's also been no Switch 2 announcement, but given the fact that Nintendo's new console has been getting more heavy-duty titles like Assassin's Creed Shadows and Cyberpunk 2077 added to its catalogue, there's still hope that we'll see Control 2 added to our list of upcoming Switch 2 games post-launch. The first game also landed on the Switch via the Cloud, so there's always the chance we'll see a release on Nintendo's latest console some day.
Control Resonant trailer
Control Resonant story and setting
Control Resonant's story differs from the first game, since this time you will be taking on the role of Dylan Faden instead of his sister Jesse Faden.
Set years after the events of the first game, the Federal Bureau of Control (FBC) has been in a state of lockdown following a Hiss invasion, the sequel deals with the aftermath of all those troubles.
Set in Manhattan, which is on the brink of paranatural annihilation, creative director Mikael Kasurinen said New York "might as well be a portal into an alien dimension" since Dylan is stepping into it after spending years in the Oldest House (the headquarters for the FBC).
After FBC lockdown protocols fail to contain the Hiss from the general public, Dylan must try and locate his sister (the now FBC Director) Jesse Faden, along with combating a mysterious cosmic entity that's now prowling the streets with his newfound powers.
While this is a continuation of events from the first game, Kasurinen assured fans in a press release that you don't need to play Control to enjoy Control Resonant.
"You don't have to know the first game to jump into the sequel; we've made this one easy to pick up and hard to put down," he explains. "We're pushing the scale beyond anything we've done before, elevating combat, exploration, and storytelling into a bigger, more memorable experience. It's ambitious, a little wild, and we can't wait for players to get lost in it."
Speaking with Xbox Wire, Kasurinen said, "I look at these two games [Control and Control Resonant] as siblings, each standing on their own feet, with their own attitude and approach to the world. But it's still the same shared world, in the middle of a new crisis".
With the Faden siblings still "at the center", Resonant shifts the perspective, With Kasurinen adding that the new game's direction "lets us bring a fresh take on the world" and that "there's no pressure" to play the first game since both games "work as their own experiences, each with their own protagonist who's a blank slate".
Personally, though, we'd still recommend playing the first game for the full experience (and also because it's legitimately great) before checking out the sequel. But if you don't find the time, or you'd rather jump straight to Resonant, then you happily can.
Control Resonant gameplay
The Control Resonant gameplay is different from Control since the sequel is an action-adventure RPG.
This means that you have more freedom to explore and pick meaningful choices that will effect the grand scope of the story. Playing as Dylan, you'll have to explore multiple areas of Manhattan and also make decisions that will shape how Dylan's supernatural abilities manifest and grow.
Speaking with Kasurinen during our chat about the main differences between Control and Control 2, he stated that "players can create distinctive builds complementing their gameplay style" when it comes to Dylan's new powers.
With the first gameplay trailer dropping during the PlayStation State of Play February 2026 showcase (which you can watch above), we got to see Dylan in the shifting West Incursion Zone, which is a location that is gradually getting more distorted and it's a place you'll get to go to early on in the game.
A PlayStation blog post from lead gameplay designer Sergey Mohov also detailed that while Control Resonant isn't an open-world experience, it will be built around large expansive zones "filled with side activities, hidden encounters, and optional discoveries".
Control Resonant's gameplay is more focused on melee combat this time around as opposed to its predecessor. Dylan has a shapeshifting melee weapon in his arsenal called the Aberrant, which our very own games Editor Oscar Taylor-Kent got to try out. The Aberrant is replacing the Service Weapon – the Object of Power that Jesse used in the first game, and can transform into different forms on the fly.
Dylan has supernatural abilites, including "Reach", which allows him to "navigate spaces that no longer obey regular rules of physics", alongside a power known as "Shift", which he can activate to redirect momentum and move through Gravity Anomalies that can change our position in the environment. We see, for example, Dylan walk onto a rooftop as it tilts sideways.
Guides and walkthroughs
If you're planning to play Control Resonant yourself (or are already playing it) our guides team have put together dozens of guides to help you get to grips with mechanics, missions, collectibles, side quests and more besides. Whatever you're stuck on, you're bound to find what you need below!
- Essentials and Basics
- Full Control Resonant map: Learn your way though distorted Manhattan
- How long is Control Resonant?: The full time to beat, whether you're a completionist or a casual player
- What to do first in Control Resonant: After the tutorial, the whole city is yours - but where should you go?
- What are the changing symbols in Control Resonant: Have you noticed metal pillars with changing symbols on top?
- What are the spherical Distortions?: If you've noticed pockets of distorted space, those are very important...
- Character options and essentials
- Best weapon and Aberrant Form: Make sure you're wielding the strongest weapon possible.
- Best abilities and powers: Find out where to get every ability, and which ones are strongest.
- Combo Finishers: Round out your attack combos with these powerful additions.
- Reset Items: Find out how to respec with these essential consumables.
- Living Shards: The rarest and best crafting items in the game, here's where to find these powerful items.
- Clearance Keycards: Get access to everywhere in the game
- Collectibles and Major Side Quests
- The Last Taxi locations: Find these hidden taxis and solve the puzzles inside them.
- Mysterious Dog Toy locations: Find the good girl labrador and bring her toy back to her.
- Camera and Instant Photo locations: Find the teleporting camera for the Freeze Frame quest
- Shum Arcade machines: These playable machines hold secret challenges
- Unsupervised Science and Testing Facilities: There are six laboratories hidden around Manhattan
- Puzzles and Walkthroughs
- Power Core Puzzle and Moving the Charge: Power up Downtown in the tutorial
- Radio and Panopticon puzzle: Help Langston with the Panopticon Service Request
- Pattern Break: What are these recurring World Events?
- How to get into the Patterned Factory: Get access to the Central Resonant
- Power Lines: Solve the train station puzzles and get back home
- Karaoke lyrics: When it's time for Karaoke, you need to be ready...
- FBC Terminals: These strange computers will ask you questions...
- Should you Eat the Mold in Control Resonant?: Weird question, but aren't they all in this game?
- Painting puzzle: Solve the Gallery's puzzle and identify all the paintings
- Washing Machine puzzle: Solve the puzzle of the Laundry and get into the Secret Room
- The Complete Set walkthrough: Find all the cursed Speakers and Subwoofers
- Urban Survival walkthrough: Find the Survivalist and help him escape
- New Growth and Underhill choice walkthrough: Find the samples and choose what happens to Doctor Underhill
For more information on new releases, you can check out our guides on all the upcoming PS5 games and upcoming Xbox Series X games on the way.
