They note that he may be a parautilitarian, but I don't remember anything specific about prime candidate. Then again, it might be implicit since the only parautilitarians we know of (as far as I know) have been the directors and Dylan.
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CONTROL Spoiler Thread
- Thread starter kami_sama
- Start date
They note that he may be a parautilitarian, but I don't remember anything specific about prime candidate. Then again, it might be implicit since the only parautilitarians we know of (as far as I know) have been the directors and Dylan.
Yeah, they explicitly said he was on the list.
But then the situation was presented as Trench desperately looking for candidates because he didn't even have a single viable one. You can even get considered for directorship just for selling some dubious sensory deprivation tapes...
Can we talk about the secret room with the live action Alan Wake? I never even played Alan Wake and man was that awesome. It's on the 5th floor of the upper panopticon in a hole you can float to left of the forklifts.
the live action alan wake is a finnish actor, they could film a fmv of the two meeting with Alans lines ADRd afterwards
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A minor one eatchildren missed is sometimes langston will complain hes stuck in the lockdown and missing the new Alex Casey movie
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I had a screenshot about that, it was so glorious moment for me as i finished Alan Wake, even short music was from Alan Wake.
http:///CVDd.png
Just want to say thanks to everyone who is fucking smart enough in this thread to have figured all of this shit out. Even if it is you just read it on a reddit thread or some shit. I appreciate all of you.
This is easily my GOTY, and I had not put together even 10% of the shit that has been mentioned in this thread.
Still have plenty of side missions, but will revisit them in a few weeks. Looks like that DLC is going to take awhile to get here so better to space it out some.
This is easily my GOTY, and I had not put together even 10% of the shit that has been mentioned in this thread.
Still have plenty of side missions, but will revisit them in a few weeks. Looks like that DLC is going to take awhile to get here so better to space it out some.
I'm honestly not too hot on Jessie and Alan crossing paths. I really like the idea of the two titles being explicitly connected, but feeding off each other passively to expand upon each others own narrative, of which remains unique to their relative protagonist's experiences. The Alan Wake stuff in Control, in all its multiple glories, is great because it expands both narratives. It obviously deepens the implications and context of Wake's experience, Bright Falls as a location, the clicker, and so on. Particularly in the concept of other dimensions and worlds, and Wake's adventures through places like the Oceanview Motel. But it also expands Control's own lore passively. Tying in the Bright Falls events as an AWE expands upon the concept of what an AWE is, and what implications there are on people and the physical world.
What I mean by this is the context and link between the two series is very different for the protagonists of each story and us the player. We are given extra context for Alan's journey, but Alan's character stays limited in their worldview and scope. Same for Jessie; we can see the important correlation to an event like Bright Falls AWE, but she doesn't understand the intricacies of Wake's experience.
And given the totally subjective mystery behind each AWE and object of power, only ever hearing part of a story, and that in of itself adding to the creepiness, I'd kinda like it to stay that way. That each series operates independently, but part of a greater whole. I don't need Jessie and Alan to meet, or to join together in a big story. What I'd love to see is Jessie continue a story in Control as a series, and Alan to continue through Alan Wake, and the ties obvious and detailed to us, the player. But in the grand scheme of things both still have their own journey, not reliant on or involving the other too dramatically.
What I mean by this is the context and link between the two series is very different for the protagonists of each story and us the player. We are given extra context for Alan's journey, but Alan's character stays limited in their worldview and scope. Same for Jessie; we can see the important correlation to an event like Bright Falls AWE, but she doesn't understand the intricacies of Wake's experience.
And given the totally subjective mystery behind each AWE and object of power, only ever hearing part of a story, and that in of itself adding to the creepiness, I'd kinda like it to stay that way. That each series operates independently, but part of a greater whole. I don't need Jessie and Alan to meet, or to join together in a big story. What I'd love to see is Jessie continue a story in Control as a series, and Alan to continue through Alan Wake, and the ties obvious and detailed to us, the player. But in the grand scheme of things both still have their own journey, not reliant on or involving the other too dramatically.
Finished the game just recently and still have to read through the entire thread, so my apologies if this has already been addressed, but I wanted to share that Jesse has new lines of dialogue when visiting some locations after finishing the campaign.
I've come across two instances of that: one when going through the HRA Lab, and one when going through the NSC Power Plant. On those occasions, she offers some extra insight on Hedron/Polaris and the meaning of NSC.
I know this is the spoilers thread, but I'll still include the explanation inside a spoiler tag, for those who want to find out by themselves:
I thought that was something very interesting to add for the post-game, and wonder if there are more locations that prompt hidden dialogue.
I've come across two instances of that: one when going through the HRA Lab, and one when going through the NSC Power Plant. On those occasions, she offers some extra insight on Hedron/Polaris and the meaning of NSC.
I know this is the spoilers thread, but I'll still include the explanation inside a spoiler tag, for those who want to find out by themselves:
At the HRA Lab, Jesse mentions how Hedron is different than Polaris, something that isn't made clear during the main story. Hedron (an "it", not a "she", as Jesse calls it) unlocked Polaris, which was already inside of Jesse.
As for the NSC, it stands for "Northmoor Sarcophagus Container". That's right, the power source inside the generator (you can see pictures of it in a few monitors, clearly showing a Hiss-corrupted human) is no one other than the former Director of the FBC, Northmoor himself. Jesse points out that the two previous Directors succumbed to paranormal forces, and that she won't let that happen again.
As for the NSC, it stands for "Northmoor Sarcophagus Container". That's right, the power source inside the generator (you can see pictures of it in a few monitors, clearly showing a Hiss-corrupted human) is no one other than the former Director of the FBC, Northmoor himself. Jesse points out that the two previous Directors succumbed to paranormal forces, and that she won't let that happen again.
I thought that was something very interesting to add for the post-game, and wonder if there are more locations that prompt hidden dialogue.
Neat little detail I noticed on my replay. It's made pretty clear that the Oldest House has an aversion to any and all modern technology, and reacts rather violently towards it. But the Communications department found a way around that...
Each networked computer is surrounded by a container of Black Rock, which renders them relatively safe. I can just imagine some dude logging into Facebook, only to get blown up when the House shifts and damages one of the containers.
I love the attention to detail in this game. G fucking G, Remedy.
Each networked computer is surrounded by a container of Black Rock, which renders them relatively safe. I can just imagine some dude logging into Facebook, only to get blown up when the House shifts and damages one of the containers.
I love the attention to detail in this game. G fucking G, Remedy.
How exactly does the Hotline contact Trench and Darling? Trench is dead, I think (I've presumed suicide under Hiss influence), and Darling's fate isn't quite so clear. Are they explicitly dead or do they still exist in some form in the Astral Plane? Can the Hotline contact all dead people or just those with some nebulous connection to the Astral Plane?
The game implies Darling ascended somehow so that would explain him being able to contact you via the Hotline.
I think it's mentioned somewhere in the game that the Hotline helps you understand Trench's last thoughts as the previous Director, but I can't remember where or if I am just making this up.
I didn't notice this in my playthrough but I just saw it on SBF Pat's stream just now.
So The Oldest House is probably Yggdrasil right?
So The Oldest House is probably Yggdrasil right?
I would (personally) say it's not 100% the world tree, but likely one of the 'roots/branches' which connects to the multiverse - the oldest house has too many 'non' Asgard/Norse references to be truly a 1-1 analogue, imo.
Regardless, it definitely has a link there, as going off of the basement/secret chamber that leads from the quarry, where the janitor goes to 'vacation'.
Jesse and Pope theorize that the director shooting himself in the head allows for an 'echo' to be present in the service weapon itself - of which the hotline helps you form a better/more solid connection, since only the director(s) can use it - of which, the board presumably has a repository of said thoughts.
Somewhat relatedly, maybe I missed it in the fake-out ending with Trench's dialogue looping, but once the big 'reveal' happens with the Hiss corrupting Trench, the opening sequence gets a bit wonky with him killing himself....
Did the Hiss 'convince' Trench to kill himself? Or did the service weapon itself turn on him once it was clear he'd been corrupted?
And if it's the latter....would the board, having a link to the service weapon, not have known and warned Jesse/the player about it earlier?
IMO in a story like this being an analog might as well mean it's the thing.
I think the service weapon has a mind of it's own and decided at that point to "fire" Trench.
The Board probably didn't care to explain anything to Jesse and just "hired her" to fix the mess.
I see what you did there chaos, very good.
I just finished the game myself earlier today, only been able to play in small spurts last few weeks. Lots of great evaluations in this thread, didn't know about the fire tvs and the furnace thing, found some of them and didn't know they had a function.
One thing that has been in my head is the water imagery when you are going to Ahti for the walkman. Yes, he's on vacation at a beach house. But water erodes. The Foundation is tree roots. The world tree icon near the checkpoint and the fact the area looks like a modern urban drainage system. I don't know, there's something there I think.
So I haven't read the entire thread yet, and this is just me spitballing, but has anyone considered re: the Yggdrasil illustration that maybe it's not the Oldest House which serves as the World Tree, but the Oceanview Motel? Do we know much about the Oceanview Motel? It seems like much more of a sort of a liminal between-space than the Oldest House is; maybe the Oldest House is one of the branches that connects to it? Others might be Ordinary and Bright Falls.
EDIT: Also, I almost feel like the AWE expansion being about Alan Wake is too obvious. Maybe Remedy are pulling a bait & switch and it will actually end up being an excursion to find Dr. Darling to help Jesse & co. rid of the Hiss once and for all?
EDIT: Also, I almost feel like the AWE expansion being about Alan Wake is too obvious. Maybe Remedy are pulling a bait & switch and it will actually end up being an excursion to find Dr. Darling to help Jesse & co. rid of the Hiss once and for all?
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During Trench's rant in the Office Nightmare scene, he talked about a dream he had of an old man.
Sometimes that man is a plumber, sometimes he's an old god.
In the dream that old man put in fish in the sink to try to plug the waste from coming through.
Take that however you will.
Did they cleared the air about what exactly is Polaris ?
during my playthrough I wrongly assumed Polaris to be a 4th wall breaking effect. That Polaris is the player controlling that version of director. And I was kinda convinced when we had to fight multiple Jesse.
during my playthrough I wrongly assumed Polaris to be a 4th wall breaking effect. That Polaris is the player controlling that version of director. And I was kinda convinced when we had to fight multiple Jesse.
That's true. I didn't take what Trench said so literally, he seemed to be using it as just one of many examples. How Ahti would fix or leave issues depending on either his judgement or mood and what the FBC needs. In this case though, I guess we are the fish that Ahti uses to stop/plug the hiss up.
Just finished it and LOVED the game. I know it has been mentioned by a lot of people but the Ashtray maze section was just sublime.
As a long time Alan Wake fan I adored the references dotted throughout. Remedy basically remain untouchable in my eyes, this will probably be my GOTY.
As a long time Alan Wake fan I adored the references dotted throughout. Remedy basically remain untouchable in my eyes, this will probably be my GOTY.
So this is how I remember it:
I think Polaris is supposed to be another kind of resonance, one that isn't hostile like the Hiss. Hedron seems to be a conduit through which it can protect people from the Hiss, and the amplifiers... amplify that effect. Presumably Polaris needs Hedron and the amplifiers as it is cut off from wherever it comes from, whereas the Hiss have an open door through the projector and (I reckon) can use its hosts as a way of spreading and amplifying itself, possibly though the inane chattering they all do. After Hedron was destroyed, Polaris was channelled by Jesse to break the Hiss' influence over her. I assume Jesse now acts as Polaris' conduit in place of Hedron.
I think how exactly Jesse manages to "replace" the Hadron is not very clear. I have not reached this part yet but I want to pay more attention to this in my current playthrough. My doubt is if Jesse is simply a conduit for Polaris or if there is a Jesse version of Polaris inside of her. Something beyond simply being a conduit.
Just like to say that I agree with all of this. I don't mind them referencing each other, but each should stand on its own. I think having an entire DLC devoted to Alan Wake stuff feels too fanservice-y and kind of boring. There's so much possibility with what they can do with the Control universe, so retreading AW feels like a waste.
Unsubtle theory from my ass (that someone somewhere has probably already proposed): I would bet cash-money that at one point in the conceptual stages of development Jesse Faden was Alice Wake tracking the Bureau down for what they might know about Alan's whereabouts.
Quite like the game overall. Fell out of the total love I was in with it a week ago as I eventually found it padded—some of the side stuff is really eh and the upgrade system is clicker as fuck, but it's still my favorite AAA game in roughly a couple years.
Quite like the game overall. Fell out of the total love I was in with it a week ago as I eventually found it padded—some of the side stuff is really eh and the upgrade system is clicker as fuck, but it's still my favorite AAA game in roughly a couple years.
It's funny, for me I see the fish as Hedron being use to plug the waste that is the Hiss from coming in.
It's probably not meant to be literal, just a possible interpretation of the situation
Yeah, can definitely work as Hedron being the fish too. Or in Ahti's case, a literal actual fish.
Also, anyone know anything about the whiteboard in the mail room, near the checkpoint, that has a long passage about gold helmets? There's also a note from another writer on it telling the person to go see Darling. Haven't seen any discussion about it yet, difficult to google for it as well obviously.
There's also a bottle in the Director's office with a moving dark blue object. It looks like some black rock sample, there are tons of trays around the office with smaller chunks, but it's hard to get a clear look.
Just finished the game, loved it. A few things I haven't figured out yet.
Is Hedron just a different name for Polaris? That's what I thought at the end but the FANDOM wiki says they're two different things. Yet when Jesse talks at the end about the sphere being empty and 'her' being dead it sounds like they're the same entity.
Is Hedron just a different name for Polaris? That's what I thought at the end but the FANDOM wiki says they're two different things. Yet when Jesse talks at the end about the sphere being empty and 'her' being dead it sounds like they're the same entity.
Don't count on any wiki or fan site to be accurate for Control, it's very open to interpretation. Hedron and Polaris work both ways, as separate entities and as the same thing really. As Darling says, Hedron isn't a source but is a catalyst for Polaris. I take it that Polaris is the resonance itself, and Hedron is a way to amplify it. In the moment when Hedron falls apart Jesse is taken by the Hiss, but eventually harnesses Polaris herself by basically serving as Hedron 2.0. Hence the Jesse Polaris entity in the motel. Some have said, Hedron is what implanted a small piece of itself in Jesse back in Ordinary, and that piece is Polaris. It really can work either way.
After what Trench said about a Director's job being "to keep the lights on" and the fact that Northmoor himself is powering the Bureau's generator, I'd take everything he said very literally, lol.
Remedy only recently reacquired the rights of Alan Wake, so Control probably started as a completely separate project (like Quantum Break), with the possibility of vinculating it to AW as much as possible as long as they finished the deal in time. No wonder the planned "AWE" DLC is going to be the last one to arrive. They were counting on buying back the rights to be able to do that (kinda like the Spidey MCU situation pre-Civil War).
Check out this post of mine from above:
Good point. I remember Darling saying something about Hedron dying but for the life of me I can't find the doc or tape it came from.
Also, the Astral Spikes, is there some way or mention in game as how to get rid of them? It'd make exploring the archives a lot easier if could get rid of them.
Ah that's a good find, Eek9x, about Jesse's clarification on Hedron and Polaris. Haven't revisited all areas of the game yet to get the new dialogue.
I think I heard you can stun the Astral Spikes and an interact/cleanse prompt can show up if you get close to them. Haven't tried it myself yet, but I doubt it. Forgot where I read that, but I think the spike was just near an elevator button or something and the person mistook it. Otherwise, they seem invincible.
I failed the protect personnel in the quarry every time so far because while I'm clearing out Hiss one of them rolls up on the FBC soldiers and just wipes them.
I think I heard you can stun the Astral Spikes and an interact/cleanse prompt can show up if you get close to them. Haven't tried it myself yet, but I doubt it. Forgot where I read that, but I think the spike was just near an elevator button or something and the person mistook it. Otherwise, they seem invincible.
I failed the protect personnel in the quarry every time so far because while I'm clearing out Hiss one of them rolls up on the FBC soldiers and just wipes them.
Thanks for pointing that out. Popped back into the game to go hear that clip. Also found an after the game conversation with Emily and Jesse in the board room that also confirms this (the heading is HRA failure). Consider me another happy camper glad to have that cleared up.
I wish I understood the narrative better /=
I just finished the main storyline and it ended rather hollow to me. Can anyone recommend a concise article that explains just what was going on?
I just finished the main storyline and it ended rather hollow to me. Can anyone recommend a concise article that explains just what was going on?
What didn't you get? Jesse is the new catalyst for Polaris and can power the HRAs and is cleaning up the FBC from Hiss, mold, and other threats. Dylan is still in a coma after his attack on the Board was stopped by Jesse. Trench is gone. Darling is most likely in another dimension. Marshall is missing still. That covers most of the threads at the end. Oh and Ahti is most likely an Elder God of sorts.
I'm not sure I even know what Polaris is /=
I didn't feel rising action towards the end of the plot... What was the flashback to Jesse working in the office all about? What was the finale of this story? What action put Dylan in the coma?
The storytelling in Control was interesting but it failed to let me become emotionally invested. I was never really on board and kept hoping I would have an organic understanding of just what was happening without having to Google anything.
It does rely on you caring about Jesse and her psychosis and her quest to find her brother to emotionally pull you in. For most in this thread, they came to Control for the nu-weird SCP style writing and David Lynch-ian supernatural elements. Not many were looking for a riveting emotional roller-coaster is what I'm saying.
I'm not saying you are looking for the wrong thing either, just want to emphasize it's not something Control is really touting. But with that said, I can try to explain some stuff.
Polaris is a resonance from another dimension, it's the antithesis to the Hiss, another resonance. Hedron was another entity that served as an amplifier/catalyst to Polaris, but it is defeated. Upon that defeat Jesse is overtaken by the Hiss, and that's the office section. It's not a flashback, it happens right after Hedron goes down. Eventually, Jesse fights back the Hiss in her head, makes it to Oceanview, and realizes she has internalized the power of Polaris. That's why you see 'Jesse Polaris' at the end of the segment, you are Hedron 2.0 and can act as a source of hindrance to the Hiss. Then you wake up in the Director Office (EDIT: or i think the game puts you right in front of Nostalgia Section entrance?) and in the time you were under Hiss mind control, Dylan activated the slide projector to kickstart a full assault on the Board in the Astral Plane, which is the Hiss's ultimate goal, or at least what we think it is. You chase and cleanse Dylan, but he's in a coma from it.
The whole climax starts once you get the walkman from Ahti to me. From there it's set piece after set piece. Yeah, there's no mega single final boss or anything, but the run to Dylan in the Hiss infected Astral Plane is really cool.
I suggest you re-read the documents you found and you can also go through the mission summaries again to get a bigger picture. Also, most of the videos and hotline calls have longer versions in menu. Control is also a game that doesn't make things clear, it's vague and weird deliberately.
Yeah, I don't think it was for you. Hedron was the source of the resonance that kept the Hiss at bay, through Jesse and the HRA devices. Polaris is a part of Hedron that watches over Dylan and Jesse. The bureau sequence wasn't a flashback, but the Hiss trying to break into Jesse's mind after Hedron died. The finale was when the Hiss used Dylan to break into the Astral Plane and attack the Board. When Jesse cleansed Dylan from the Hiss, that's why he went into a coma. Other people just died when she tried that.
All of this was made pretty clear. The story's quite trippy, but definitely not badly told.
Just finished. What an amazing game. Still not totally sure about everything, but I think that's sort of the point.
After the real credits roll and you're back in the director's office, I headed back to the safe area with all the NPC's, and one of them (can't remember if it was a nameless NPC or Arish) is talking to another NPC, and they talk about how Northmoor's files don't list a date of death. So is he the energy source for The Oldest House? Really curious about him.
Also curious about some of the stuff that happened during the Ordinary AWE. Obviously we get the story of Dylan, Jesse and the Slide Projector, but now I want to know who or what the hell was Not-Mother and her "Dung Monkeys".
After the real credits roll and you're back in the director's office, I headed back to the safe area with all the NPC's, and one of them (can't remember if it was a nameless NPC or Arish) is talking to another NPC, and they talk about how Northmoor's files don't list a date of death. So is he the energy source for The Oldest House? Really curious about him.
Also curious about some of the stuff that happened during the Ordinary AWE. Obviously we get the story of Dylan, Jesse and the Slide Projector, but now I want to know who or what the hell was Not-Mother and her "Dung Monkeys".
Along with what the others said, the Jesse in the office part is foreshadowed when you talk to Dylan while he's still in containment. If you talk to him, he tells you about his 'dreams' that he has now that he's let the Hiss in. In fact Dylan is actually in that office watching Jesse during that whole segment.
Just looked up a hint and went back to it in-game.
"It's the director's job to keep the lights on"
Now I'm even more interested. How the shit is Northmoor powerful enough to do all that.
Just looked up a hint and went back to it in-game.
"It's the director's job to keep the lights on"
Now I'm even more interested. How the shit is Northmoor powerful enough to do all that.
He bound himself to too many objects of power and it changed him, corrupted him, I think.
But supposedly Northrmoor "reluctantly agreed". Makes you wonder how that went down.
Also, has anyone found Marshall post-game? After the credits, Arish mentions that she went off on her own again and that he last saw her near Maintenance, but I haven't seen any trace of her.
Sort of feels like she's betting set up as an antagonist with all the mentions of her shadily moving around The Oldest House on her own and unchecked. Or maybe she's working on something in secret and in the end trying to protect the rest of the Bureau, sort of like Darling with the HRA's.
The first dlc will have her play a big part, as well as the jukebox in executive. It'll probably tie into the quarry and other connections in the Oldest House. But yeah, her absence at the end is a missing thread. I don't think she's quite like Darling though, she was Trench's right hand person after all. She could be starting a scheme Trench told her to do when he was Hiss infected, and maybe she doesn't know.
So I was lost in the plot about Trench and his motive to use the projector. Was Dylan or him that let the hiss in? Why Trench used the proyector? Is Darlin dead?
Trench went on the expeditions into the slide with Darling and others. The slide is silent because Hedron was keeping the Hiss at bay, and they're sound based entitites. But Trench heard something that no one else did in the slide. That was the Hiss infecting him first. They corrupted him over time and made him paranoid of the people around him and threatened by Darling's work with Hedron who was an enemy of the Hiss. So he was convinced the only way to save the world from Darling and everyone else around him was to let the Hiss in. He used another slide that he had pocketed that was burned but still usable to let the Hiss in.
As for Darling, they left that one more vague. He might not physically exist anymore but his consciousness might still be out there. Sounds like some kind of ascension after communing with Hedron or something.
Most of this is contained in the last video files plus Trench's monologue when you're an infected office worker. And you can talk to Pope about what she thinks about where Darling is after the credits.