Control

Control

Developers
	Remedy Entertainment
GOG.com	General Arcade
Publishers
	505 Games
Engines
	Northlight
Release dates
Windows	August 27, 2019
Reception
Metacritic	85
OpenCritic	84
IGDB	83
Taxonomy
Monetization	One-time game purchase, Expansion pack
Microtransactions	None
Modes	Singleplayer
Pacing	Real-time
Perspectives	Third-person
Controls	Direct control
Genres	Action
Art styles	Realistic
Themes	Sci-fi, North America

Control is a single-player third-person action game developed by Remedy Entertainment and published by 505 Games.

The game was first released DRM-free on Epic Games Store on August 27, 2019, followed by its availability on GOG.com and Steam a year later. On January 21, 2021, the game became available on Microsoft Store, included with Xbox Game Pass for PC.

General information

Official support page

Control subreddit

Official Discord server

GOG.com Community Discussions

GOG.com Support Page

Steam Community Discussions

GeForce graphics and performance guide

Availability

Source	DRM	Notes	Keys	OS
Official website		Ultimate Edition.
Epic Games Store		DRM-free after installation. Ultimate Edition also available.
GamersGate
GamersGate		Ultimate Edition.
		Ultimate Edition.
GOG.com		Ultimate Edition.
Green Man Gaming
Green Man Gaming		Ultimate Edition.
Humble Store		Choice between Epic Games Store and Steam versions. Ultimate Edition also available.
Microsoft Store
Steam		Ultimate Edition.

Version differences

The Ultimate Edition includes The Foundation and AWE expansions, otherwise available as DLC.

The Ultimate Edition install is 42.83gb, while the Standard edition is 49.58gb despite Steam naming it incorrectly as "Ultimate Edition"

Monetization

DLC and expansion packs

Name	Notes
Season Pass	The Foundation and AWE expansions.
Tactical Response Gear	Pre-order bonus outfit.
Crafting Resources Pack	Pre-order bonus resources.
The Foundation	First expansion set in a new location, containing new missions, a new enemy type, abilities specific to the story, and in-game mods.
AWE	Second expansion set in a new location, containing new missions, a new enemy type, an unlockable weapon form, and in-game mods.
Isolation	Side mission exclusive to the PlayStation 4 Digital Deluxe Edition. See Unlock PlayStation 4 DLC to access the content.
Astral Dive Suit	Bonus outfit exclusive to PlayStation 4. See Unlock PlayStation 4 DLC to access the content.
Urban Response Gear	Bonus outfit exclusive to the PlayStation 4 Digital Deluxe Edition. See Unlock PlayStation 4 DLC to access the content.

Essential improvements

Skip intro videos

To also skip the launcher, use the -dx11 or -dx12 command line arguments to launch the game in the desired DirectX version.

Download and extract this mod into the game folder.

Modify a game file
Open <path-to-game>\data_packfiles\ep100-000-pc.rmdp in a hex editor (e.g. HxD). Search for the following as hex 00 58 02 00 00 10 FC 00 00 58 02 Replace it with 00 03 00 00 00 10 FC 00 00 03 00 Save the changes.

Game data

Configuration file(s) location

System	Location
Epic Games Launcher	<path-to-game>\renderer.ini %LOCALAPPDATA%\Remedy\Control\Default-Epic-User\preferences\
GOG.com	<path-to-game>\renderer.ini %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Control\Saves\preferences_data
Microsoft Store	%LOCALAPPDATA%\Packages\505GAMESS.P.A.ControlPCGP_tefn33qh9azfc\SystemAppData\wgs\
Steam	<path-to-game>\renderer.ini <Steam-folder>\userdata\<user-id>\870780\remote\preferences_data
Steam Play (Linux)	<SteamLibrary-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/870780/pfx/

Only renderer.ini is in plain text.

Save game data location

System	Location
Epic Games Launcher	%LOCALAPPDATA%\Remedy\Control\Default-Epic-User\
GOG.com	%USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Control\Saves\
Microsoft Store	%LOCALAPPDATA%\Packages\505GAMESS.P.A.ControlPCGP_tefn33qh9azfc\SystemAppData\wgs\
Steam	<Steam-folder>\userdata\<user-id>\870780\remote\
Steam Play (Linux)	<SteamLibrary-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/870780/pfx/

Save game cloud syncing

System	Native	Notes
Epic Games Launcher
GOG Galaxy
OneDrive		Requires enabling backup of the Documents folder in OneDrive on all computers.
Steam Cloud
Xbox Cloud

Video

Display settings

Graphics feature	State	Notes
Widescreen resolution
Multi-monitor		Use this PCGW community modified dll or this PCGW community patcher.
Ultra-widescreen		Hor+ scaling over 16:9, pillarboxed FMVs, menu and loading screens. Locked at a max of 21:9 by default, streched after that: use this PCGW community modified dll (which also fixes other UW issues) or this PCGW community patcher for higher aspect ratios.
4K Ultra HD
Field of view (FOV)		Use this cheat table.
Windowed
Borderless fullscreen windowed
Anisotropic filtering (AF)		As Texture Filtering. Low, Medium, High.
Anti-aliasing (AA)		TAA always on unless forced off with this cheat table. Up to 4x MSAA, or DLSS on compatible hardware.
Vertical sync (Vsync)		Always enabled in menus. Double buffered in fullscreen mode under DX11.[citation needed]
60 FPS and 120+ FPS
High dynamic range display (HDR)		See the glossary page for potential alternatives.
Ray tracing (RT)		Limited to the DirectX 12 mode.
Color blind mode		Enemy health bar color choice between orange and yellow.

Depth of Field

Turn depth of field off
Download this file. Copy renderer_rmdwin7_f.dll and renderer_rmdwin10_f.dll to <path-to-game>.

Input

Gameplay settings

Controls settings

Keyboard and mouse	State	Notes
Remapping
Mouse acceleration		No acceleration.
Mouse sensitivity		0-100 in increments of 1. Aim mode sensitivity slider is also available.
Mouse input in menus
Keyboard and mouse prompts
Mouse Y-axis inversion		Vertical and horizontal inversion options.
Controller
Controller support
Full controller support		For the Big Picture mode of Steam, add <path-to-game>\Control_DX11.exe or <path-to-game>\Control_DX12.exe to it to bypass the game launcher.
Controller remapping		Also includes an option for sticks swapping.
Controller sensitivity		Vertical and horizontal sliders, with additional sliders for aim mode.
Controller Y-axis inversion		Vertical and horizontal inversion options.

Controller types

XInput-compatible controllers
Xbox button prompts
Impulse Trigger vibration

PlayStation controllers		Requires an XInput wrapper, see the glossary page for applicable tools.
PlayStation button prompts		Set Options > Interface > Controller Button Layout to PS.
Motion sensors support
Light bar support
Adaptive trigger support
DualSense haptic feedback support
Connection modes	V2 tested with wireless, Bluetooth, and cable.

Generic/other controllers		See the glossary page for potential workarounds.

Additional information
Controller hotplugging
Input prompt override
Haptic feedback		Vibration strength is adjustable.
Simultaneous controller+KB/M

Audio

Audio settings

Audio feature	State	Notes
Separate volume controls		Music, Effects, Dialogue.
Surround sound		7.1
Subtitles		Size, background, and speaker name display options. Option to translate in-game signs also available.
Closed captions
Mute on focus lost		Pauses and mutes on focus lost during gameplay, but not at the Loadout menu.

Interface settings

Localizations

Language	UI	Audio	Sub	Notes
English
Arabic
Simplified Chinese
Traditional Chinese
Czech				Fan translation.
French
German
Hungarian				Fan translation.
Italian
Japanese
Korean
Polish
Brazilian Portuguese
Russian
Russian				Fan translation by GamesVoice. Considered to be a high quality one and more faithful to the original storytelling in comparison to the official localisation.
Spanish

VR support

3D modes	State	Notes
Native 3D
Nvidia 3D Vision		See Helix Mod: Control - 3D-Vision-Ready-Fix - Losti.
vorpX		G3D, Z3D Officially supported. See the official vorpX game list.

Issues unresolved

Crashes with ray tracing enabled on GTX cards

Having any of the Ray Tracing options enabled in the game may result in crashing on Nvidia GTX graphics cards. Unchecking each related box in the settings solves the issue.

Downgrade the Nvidia display drivers to 431.60

Crash to desktop when fighting Anchor boss

Fighting the optional Anchor boss may result in a crash once it starts its first attack or later during the fight.

In Display options menu, disable and lower every graphics quality setting, as well as the main and render resolutions.
When disabling VSync, make sure to also limit the frame rate to keep the GPU usage low.

In Gameplay options menu, enable Assist Mode and activate One-Hit Kills.

Stuttering when opening the map

Accessing the map after using the mouse to interact with inventory items such as loadout entries or collectibles may result in stuttering. Using the keyboard or a gamepad does not trigger this effect.

Open and close the pause menu with Esc to stop the stuttering until the inventory is accessed again.

Issues fixed

SSE4.2-supported CPU required

The game will not start on a system with a CPU that does not support the SSE4.2 instruction set, but the check can be bypassed.

A CPU with no support for the instruction set is below the system requirements of the game, and likely to cause poor performance.

Remove the SSE4.2 check by modifying a game file
Open the game renderer library file in a hex editor (e.g. HxD) DirectX 11: <path-to-game>\rl_rmdwin7_f.dll DirectX 12: <path-to-game>\rl_rmdwin10_f.dll Search for the 0FBAE114730A hex value. Replace it with the 0FBAE1149090 hex value. Save the changes.

Hiss voices are in a different language

The Hiss incantation language spoken by the floating bodies is tied to that of the operating system, not the in-game audio settings.

Change Windows regional format
On Windows 10, open Settings > Time & Language > Region. Change the Regional format to a supported audio language - for example, English or German. The change is also reflected in the epilepsy warning shown at the start of the game.

No choice of DirectX 11 or 12

Use the -dx11 or -dx12 command line arguments to launch the game in the desired DirectX version.

Blurry textures

High-resolution textures may not load immediately, resulting in signs, posters, portraits, and other objects briefly appearing blurry when nearby.

Adjust texture streaming behavior
Download and extract this mod into the game folder. To apply the optional config that increases the texture pool by 1 GB and loads high-resolution textures sooner, do the following: Remove <path-to-game>\data\globaldb\tweakables.xml Rename <path-to-game>\data\globaldb\tweakables_high_quality.xml to tweakables.xml Note: This fix may only work on the Ultimate edition of the game.

Ray tracing options unavailable

Windows 10 version 1803 and higher required
From the Start menu, click on Settings. Click on Update & Security and Check for updates. Go through with the process and restart the system at prompt.

Other information

API

Launcher options

Technical specs	Supported	Notes
Direct3D	11, 12	Selectable through the launcher or by using command line arguments.

Executable	32-bit	64-bit	Notes
Windows

Middleware

	Middleware	Notes
Physics	PhysX
Audio	Wwise
Interface	Coherent UI
Cutscenes	Bink Video

Visual tweaks cheat table

A cheat table with various visual tweaks is available - including FOV adjustment, free cam, depth of field, bloom, screen space anti-aliasing, object highlights and HUD toggles.

Use Cheat Engine to open the table

Download and install Cheat Engine. Download the cheat table by right-clicking and saving the page containing the code. Launch Cheat Engine and the game. From the File menu of Cheat Engine, click on Open Process. Select the game process and click on Open. From the File menu, click on Load (Ctrl+O). Locate the downloaded cheat table and click on Open. Follow the instructions in the bottom area of Cheat Engine to activate any of the various tweaks with hotkeys or manual value changes.

Unlock PlayStation 4 DLC

PlayStation 4 versions of the game included two exclusive outfits, an exclusive mission and two rare mods.

Modify the game executables to unlock the content

Depending on the preferred DirectX version, open <path-to-game>\Control_DX11.exe or <path-to-game>\Control_DX12.exe in a hex editor (e.g. HxD). Modify the file: In the Epic Games Store version of the game, Search for 40 84 ED 75 07 as hex. Replace it with 40 84 ED EB 07. In the Steam Humble Bundle version of the game, Go to offset 1BBB7B (Ctrl+G in HxD) Change values 8B 4B 04 8D 41 01 83 F8 03 77 12 to B8 01 00 00 00 89 43 04 EB 06 90. Go to offset Base Decimal: 1345162 Change values 40 84 ED 75 07 to 40 84 ED EB 07 Go to offset Base Decimal: 2793073 Change values C7 81 30 01 00 00 00 to C7 81 30 01 00 00 01 In the Steam or GOG.com version of the game, Go to offset 145B09 (Ctrl+G in HxD) and change 75 to EB. Go to offset 145BA8 and change 75 2F to 90 90. Alternatively, follow the Epic Games Store instructions, search forward for 75 2F as hex and replace the first found instance with 90 90. Save the file. Side mission "Dr. Yoshimi Tokui's Guided Imagery Experience" can be picked up in the Extrasensory Lab of the Research sector. Additionally unlocks the pre-order DLC of the PC version.

Use the FearLess Cheat Engine Cheat Table for Control to unlock any outfit.

System requirements

Windows
	Minimum		Recommended
Operating system (OS)	7		10
Processor (CPU)	Intel Core i5-4690 AMD FX-4350		Intel Core i5-7600K AMD Ryzen 5 1600X
System memory (RAM)	8 GB		16 GB
Storage drive (HDD/SSD)	42 GB
Video card (GPU)	Nvidia GeForce GTX 780 AMD Radeon R9 280X 2 GB of VRAM DirectX 11 compatible		Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 AMD Radeon RX 580 4 GB of VRAM DirectX 12 compatible
Other			GPU feature level 12. Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 for ray tracing.

A 64-bit operating system is required.