‘Alan Wake Remastered’: Remedy Entertainment Slipped In a ‘Control’ Easter Egg — Did You Spot It?
The connection between Alan Wake and Control has just gotten stronger. When Remedy Entertainment released Control back in 2019, many players noticed references to the studio’s hit 2010 video game, thus beginning the Remedy Connected Universe. Remedy even took things a step further by creating an Alan Wake-themed expansion for Control. Now, with the release of Alan Wake Remastered comes a Control reference that has left some fans elated. Did you catch it?
Remedy hid ‘Alan Wake’ Easter eggs in ‘Control’
Control follows the Federal Bureau of Control (FBC), an organization dedicated to studying people and incidents that defy the laws of reality. Players act as Jesse Faden, the new FBC director, and use special powers to defeat an entity called the Hiss. Throughout the game, players find Objects of Power, which contain traces of paranormal energies.
Meanwhile, Alan Wake follows a writer named Alan Wake as he visits Bright Falls, Washington, with his wife, Alice. However, the trip quickly turns sour when Alan goes unconscious for a week and awakens to find Alice missing. In his quest to find her, Alan discovers that a dark presence from his latest novel, which he apparently wrote during his week of unconsciousness, has taken over the town. He must fight to survive as several possessed figures attempt to kill him.
Given Alan Wake’s popularity years after its release, it came as no surprise to see several Easter eggs hidden in Control. For starters, players can find thermoses from a Bright Falls diner. Additionally, one Altered Item in Control is a typewritten page, which Alan used to write his sinister novel. In the AWE expansion for Control, players can also explore an FBC investigation of Bright Falls and even see Alan Wake himself.
‘Alan Wake Remastered’ players have found a reference to ‘Control’
The tables have turned, and now it’s Alan Wake referencing Control. Many players of the newly-released Alan Wake Remastered have noticed an interesting letter in chapter 2. As a Reddit user noticed, Sheriff Sarah Breaker’s office contains a document addressed to Sarah’s father, Frank. Once a cop in New York, Frank moved to Bright Falls and became the sheriff before his daughter took over.
Fans of Control’s lore might recall that Frank also once held a position at the FBC. He acted as an agent working under Director William Kirklund. Interestingly, the letter in Sarah’s office came from Kirklund.
Now, as Stevivor points out, the timeline is also interesting. Chapter 2 takes place on Sept. 9, just four days before Kirklund becomes aware of the AWE in Bright Falls. Frank Breaker is also the one who informs Kirklund of the activity in Bright Falls. The Easter egg might not mean much, but it does add an interesting detail to the connecting stories.
Remedy has created a ‘connected universe’ with its games
These Easter eggs in Control and Alan Wake Remastered contribute to Remedy’s goal of creating a universe for its video games. As Remedy’s creative director, Sam Lake, wrote in a blog post, the AWE expansion in Control was only the first step.
“For over 10 years, we’ve had a crazy dream,” Lake explained. “The idea that the tales told in some of our games would be connected to each other, a connected world of stories and events with shared characters and lore. Each game is a stand-alone experience, but each game is also a doorway into a larger universe with exciting opportunities for crossover events.”
Alan Wake Remastered is available now on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
