Control 2, or as it's now called, Control Resonant, finally has a release date—courtesy of a new trailer shown during Sony's June 2026 State of Play. After its initial announcement from Remedy in 2022, we've were patiently waiting for any sort of update on its development, and now it's finally release year and we've got a lot more information on what exactly Remedy's new game is.
From gameplay, to story, to all the latest trailers, here's everything you need to know about Control Resonant.
When will it release?
Control Resonant will release on September 24, 2026 for PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
There were some rumors that Control Resonant was going to release in Q2 2026, but Remedy's Communications Director, Thomas Puha, took to X soon after these rumors started circulating to reiterate that "Remedy has only ever communicated that the release window of CONTROL Resonant is 2026. Anything else is speculation."
Speculation it was, as we now know the official September 24 date thanks to Sony's June 2026 State of Play.
Control Resonant Trailers
Latest trailer
Hot on the heels of the game's story teaser, we got a brand new trailer at Summer Game Fest. It's narrated by Emily Pope, who reveals she's an acting co-director of the FBC in Jesse's absence. The rest is basically a montage of all the weird and wonderful architecture and enemies we'll be encountering in Control's sequel, including a giant System Shock-like floating head. I'm here for it.
Story trailer
This trailer shows us a dedicated look at Control Resonant's story, with a focus on new protagonist Dylan, of course, but we also get our first look at Jesse's return. But more importantly, Emily Pope is there! Good to see our old co-worker back for the sequel. Simon Arish also makes an appearance, as does Caspar Darling in all his whacky self, at the end of the trailer.
Our Control Resonant preview: still weird
Our own Morgan Park went hands on for two hours in our Control Resonant preview. He reckons that while Resonant's Devil May Cry and Platinum-esque melee combat—with its "hot-swappable" weapons and "dizzying" collection of skill trees—plays nothing like the original Control, the Sinkhole mission he encountered still displayed that signature Remedy style. With a music number accompanying Dylan's journey through a dizzying maze of living rooms, kitchens, and bedrooms.
"It was the longest stretch of the demo where I didn't kill anything, and it turned out to be the highlight."
Control Resonant gameplay
The only snippet of proper gameplay we have comes from a three-minute teaser shown off at Sony's February, 2026 State of Play. In it, we see Dylan Faden (Jesse's brother) on an early mission bonking enemies with his sick melee skills and powers, and using "Shift," which allows Dylan to "move through gravity anomalies to adapt to the world around him." Basically, Dylan's jumping on walls and walking on them, with the perspective shifting to reflect this.
There are some noticeable differences we can dissect from the trailer that will make it play completely differently from the first game. For example, we won't be scrabbling around the corridors of the Oldest House anymore—instead, we'll be set free to romp around New York.
Dylan's penchant for getting up close and personal is the main difference, here. Rather than the third-person shooter setup from the first Control, Resonant looks like a straight-up action RPG. You'll have to get up close and personal with New York's newest creeps, all of which look a lot more surreal in comparison to its predecessor.
Control Resonant will also offer "deep progression systems" which you'll get to unlock as you make your way through the game. These will allow you to define a playstyle that suits you, and make the experience more unique. Robin Valentine got a look at this in our latest Control Resonant preview (more on this below) and reckons it makes the game closer to Diablo than anybody was expecting. Not in terms of the moment-to-moment gameplay, but in how buildcrafting affects your playstyle.
You even get to explore a place in Dylan's mind called "The Gap," which you can jump into instantly at any time and tweak elements of your combat build. Seemingly allowing for a lot of change and experimentation.
It's a big change, but Remedy seems quite confident in its execution. As stated by Creative Director Mikael Kassurinen: "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.”
Our Control Resonant preview: Diablo, is that you?
Robin Valentine had a hands-off look at the game in our Control Resonant preview, and he reckons it's far more of an RPG than most were expecting, with talent trees, stats screens, and build-crafting that wouldn't feel out of place in a Diablo game. It may not be Diablo in practice, but the brief glimpse Robin got showed off just how big of an impact all the buildcrafting has. In Robin's own words:
"In one incarnation, Dylan is a lightning-fast assassin, leaping between enemies and overwhelming them with a flurry of blows. Then I see a build where he's a powerhouse, slamming between foes like a telekinetic wrecking ball. In a third, he's more of a puppet master, summoning a flying minion and a worm-like sentry turret to take the heat and lay down damage while he leaps to higher ground for a safe vantage."
One big question mark Robin was left with though was how it actually felt to play through all these builds, as he didn't get to play around in Remedy's new sandbox himself. Still, the glimpse left him cautiously optimistic, even if he's aware there's a possibility Remedy may have bitten off more than they can chew here.
What's the core gameplay loop?
Weapon attacks on enemies charge up your abilities, which are big, flashy supernatural powers. Those deal lots of "falter" damage, which can leave enemies stunned. Then you can trigger an execution animation on them, taking enemies out and giving you a melee damage buff. This is the perfect time to wail on someone else with your weapon to get your abilities charged up again, and so on. How you execute this loop is where things should get interesting, as every step is customisable.
What weapons do you use?
You weapon is called Aberrant and is fully customisable in Control Resonant, letting you pick a primary form, secondary form, and combo ender. Each form also has its own talent trees for you to pick and choose from.
Here's what weapon forms we know about so far:
- Scythe
- Axe
- Spinning blade
- Hammer
- Drill
- Gauntlets
- Whip
What abilities are there?
Supernatural combat abilities are additional powers you earn by killing powerful Resonant bosses,. Defeating one boss grants one unique ability, but some offer branching choices that "push you toward distinct playstyles."
So far, we know of abilities that can: throw up a telekinetic shield that can then be rammed into enemies; and summon a crackling ball of energy that fires projectiles across the battlefield.
General abilities like dodging, generating health pick-ups, and gaining bonus damage for performing backstabs are kept to Dylan's own personal talent tree.
Everything else
Here's everything else we know about Control Resonant:
- Manhattan is divided into zones, each with its own vibe, encounters, lore and secrets.
- It's the "most open" Remedy has made a game, but it's not a full open-world.
- It has a New Game Plus mode (everything carries over except traversal abilities).
- You can craft Artifacts.
- There's a bounty system.
Control Resonant story and setting
The story of Control Resonant follows Dylan Faden, rather than Jesse Faden, who was the protagonist of the first game. Taking place seven years after where the first leaves off, the Federal Bureau of Control is in a state of lockdown after Jesse mysteriously leaves, and Dylan Faden is being deployed at the peak of a "supernatural crisis".
You'll need to leverage Dylan's ability to use the Abberant—an artifact that can shapeshift into a variety of melee weapons—to take down a huge number of threats throughout the world, all while tracking down Jesse. This story will unravel across multiple areas of Manhattan, rather than the Oldest House, and each area will be brimming with various enemies to hit with your shapeshifting stick.
The world won't look like Manhattan as we know it, either. As the trailer states, these overwhelming forces can alter reality, resulting in the world being broken up into chunks, twisting everything into confusing new forms.
As shared on the Remedy Games website, Control Resonant has been "designed as both a sequel and a new entry point" to the series. Meaning you also don't have to know the ins and outs of the first game to jump right into the action here. In fact, Mikael Kasurinen, the Creative Director of Control Resonant, shared: "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."
Some other things we know about Control Resonant's story include:
- Dylan's handler is an FBC field agent called Zoe De Vera.
- It has a "seamless dialogue system" that allows conversations to unfold during exploration.
- Dylan's Journey is the main story, while world quests act as self-contained narrative stories.
- Jesse isn't playable, but she is present as a major character.
- Emily Pope and Simon Arish return, with Emily the acting co-director of the FBC in Jesse's absence.
