One of the biggest surprises at E3 2018 was Remedy Entertainment`s new PC, PS4, and Xbox One game, Control. Due to release next year, Remedy`s latest project is an action-oriented game that focuses on environmental destructibility and supernatural powers, but it`s the source of those powers and how they physically transform the game`s setting that stood out the most. As discussed in an earlier article, the demo I saw was beautiful, haunting, and filled with strangely alluring touches that beg for explanation. During my interview with director Mikael Kasurinen, he compared Control`s atmosphere to that of Annihilation, a book (and a Netflix film) that purposefully obscures cause-and-effect dynamics to keep you guessing.Shortly after the demo, I also had the chance to speak with Sam Lake, the creative director at Remedy who`s had a long and interesting career working on Max Payne, Alan Wake, and prior to Control, Quantum Break. I reviewed Quantum Break, and while I didn`t fall in love with its story or the experimental TV-show structure, I did enjoy its combat mechanics and visual presentation. By all appearances, Control seems like an extension of the great work done in those two areas, but otherwise it seems like a very different beast. Given the opportunity to chat with Lake, I had to know: is there something fundamentally different about this project, and if so, what does that mean to him and the rest of the team? Like Kasurinen, Lake`s answers didn`t disappoint.GameSpot: Judging by the demo I just saw, Control seems, in a positive way, unhinged. It doesn`t seem like there are any creative barriers. Is that the case? How does that feel?Lake: For this---and don`t get this wrong because I`m really proud of what we achieved with Quantum Break--but intentionally from the beginning, with Quantum Break, we wanted mainstream appeal, a big blockbuster thing. Because, creatively, you want to keep things fresh and interesting and get excited about it. It`s kind of a pend ...
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