Before launchingAlan Wake 2in 2023, Remedy gave us 2019’s Control. The title turned into a hit for the studio and proved its viability as an independent developer after leaving Microsoft following Quantum Break’s 2016 launch. With the incredible fanfare around Alan Wake 2’s launch, we think it is only appropriate to compare it to Control and see which one is the better game.
They are both fantastic in their own way, but only one can be victorious. Their strengths are in different areas of game design, and what you value in a game will ultimately determine which one you personally like more.
Compare ourreview of Alan Wake 2by Jade King and ourreview of Controlby Eric Switzer to also find out which one we preferred.
9Plot - Alan Wake 2
The Story Is More Nuanced
Alan Wake 2 had a lot to live up to for fans who waited 13 years for a follow-up to the debut entry’s cliffhanger ending. By all accounts, it succeeded fantastically.
The game does a great job at making what could have been a confusing and convoluted plot clear while still leaving so much room for questions the way all the greatest supernatural horror stories do. Control is all about the supernatural too, but it is more focused on building a world than it is on nuance.
8Gameplay - Control
Much Smoother
Control simply feels great to play, from the movement and navigation to the combat and shooting. Combat encounters take place in open areas where enemies come at you from all directions. Every battle sees parts of the oldest house fly about the environment as you use your powers to destroy the Hiss.
Alan Wake 2 purposefully feels heavier, and you generally fight just a few enemies at a time. It establishes a tone, but it makes it less fun to simply walk around. The shooting is still solid, however.
7Use Of Live-Action Footage - Alan Wake 2
It Takes It To Another Level
Remedy has been using live-action footage in its games since Quantum Break. You can go back even further and use the photos used as comic book panels in the Max Payne game as an even earlier example. Control was on the right track in its clever mixture of live-action footage with gameplay, but Alan Wake 2 took it to a new height.
Entire scenes are portrayed in live-action in the Dark Place, heightening the settings' otherworldly nature. It goes against all expectations to use live-action footage to make an area feel less realistic, but it adds a distinctly surreal quality to the chapters that take place in the Dark Place.
6Side Content - Control
More Fleshed Out Side Quests
Alan Wake 2 is a fairly straightforward journey despite the explorable environments. You find collectibles that expand the narrative, but none of them are essential to understanding the full plot. The Old House in Control hasnumerous side queststhat reveal more about the way the Federal Bureau of Control operates and the people who help it run.
This also gives you more choice as the player for who you want Control to be. You can run through the main story pretty quickly or do all the side quests for a beefier campaign.
5Characters - Alan Wake 2
Characters Are More Compelling
It only makes sense for us to know so much about Alan Wake as the titular character, but everybody in Alan Wake 2 feels fleshed out. You could point to any of the supporting cast and talk about their function, desire, and conflict in the story. The meta aspects of the game make certain characters like Alex Casey a stand-out addition to the cast.
Control is more focused on world-building and establishing the Remedy Connected Universe. We like Jesse Faden and Director Trench, but you aren’t able to look at them through a magnified lens the way you get to with the heroes in Alan Wake 2.
4Tool Progression - Control
Control Has Better Upgrades
Control sees Jesse Faden go from a fairly regular human being to the superpowered director of the FBC. You are given just enough time to become comfortable with basic shooting and movement before being given more interesting tools like telekinesis and levitation.
While you earn weapon upgrades and boosts in Alan Wake 2, nothing is quite as consequential as the upgrades in 2019’s Control. Alan Wake and Saga feel largely unchanged by the end of the game even after finding upgrades.
3Playable Characters - Alan Wake 2
Two Playable Characters Makes For A More Interesting Structure
The two protagonists in Alan Wake 2 make for a unique storytelling and gameplay opportunity. Though both characters control similarly, they have some mechanics that affect their journey through the plot.
Saga’s Mind Place slowly pieces together the mystery while Alan’s Writer’s Room changes the Dark Place on the fly. Regardless of which order you play the two stories, the parallel narratives make you think about the idea of time in the plot and what it means for the strange happenings around Bright Falls.
2Pacing - Control
Less Of A Slow Burn
You have to go through a solid two to four hours of Alan Wake 2 before events really ramp up. The first chapters are spent mostly walking through story beats. While this is engaging, it won’t grab you if you are a gameplay-first kind of player.
Control throws you into the action almost immediately after Jesse Faden enters the Old House. It manages to do without sacrificing the story. The slow burn in Alan Wake 2 pays off, but you have to stick with it, where Control feels immediately gratifying.
1Winner - Alan Wake 2
Nothing Else Like It
Most of the points in favor of Control talk about its gameplay. This isn’t enough to give it the win over Alan Wake 2, however. Any complaints about Alan Wake 2’s slow start and heavier controls are easy to ignore once the plot gains momentum and takes you on one of the wildest rides of this generation.
There is so much to discuss about the story, and it all elevates the excitement for the future of the series and the developer. Alan Wake 2’s win is also a victory for Control, since they both come from the same developer and take place in the same continuity, and it’s exciting to think aboutt what both series have to offer in the future.
NEXT:TV Shows And Movies To Watch If You Liked Alan Wake 2
