Control is one of those games that leaves you absolutely wanting more. It's scary, action packed, bizarre and a total blast. It was like the internet's popular SPC stories spilled into an episode of The X Files. I discovered Control a few years after it's release. I came into it without having played Alan Wake. I had no idea the 2 games were connected in any way. If you find yourself in the same boat, then please let me preach to you the gospel of Remedy, the developer making the weirdest and scariest games out there. And with all of the horror-inspired games currently out there, that's saying a lot!
While it isn't a direct sequel in a traditional sense, it's tough to discuss FBC: Firebreak without discussing Alan Wake and Control. The games share a universe. In both Control and Alan Wake 2, there have been entire story DLCs dedicated to each other. FBC: Firebreak is a sort of stand alone sequel to Control. It's right there in the title. FBC stands for the Federal Bureau of Control, the magic and monster hunting organization you find yourself entering into in Control. Firebreak is a different animal entirely though.
While Control is about stepping into the shoes of the Federal Bureau of Control's Director, FBC Firebreak places you in the shoes of one of the bureau's Firebreak Containment team members. Control's protagonist, Jesse Faden, is an absolute power house able to bind anomalous objects of power to gain new "parautilitarian" abilities. This is the in world lore given for your paracausal abilities like levitation, telekinesis and various others. The Beauty of FBC Firebreak is that you're not some godlike director throwing pieces of the building into monsters and flying around like Superman. You're a completely average employee of the bureau. You wade into combat wearing armor that looks like it was built in a garage and using firearms from previous eras. There is a brilliant in game explanation for this. Both Control and FBC Firebreak take place almost entirley inside of The Oldest House. This towering piece of brutalist architecture resides in New York. If you didn't know it existed, or if it didn't want you to, you would never even be able to see it. The Oldest House acts as the FBC's headquarters, and during the events of Control, it is forced into lockdown from an interdimensional threat. The threat is a resonance called The Hiss. This resonance infects people and turns them into something else entirely. While the events of Control neatly end the interdimensional link to the Hiss resonance, there's still clean up to be done in the potentially infinite space inside the Oldest House. This is where you come in!
FBC: Firebreak places you in the shoes of an FBC Firebreak containment team. You and two teammates will take on one of three roles. While the weapons you carry are your own choice, it is recommended to diversify your kits. Instead of the traditional classes or heroes, FBC Firebreak opts for crisis kits. These are items you can equip before setting out on jobs. Each kit has it's own special purpose and perks. You are able to select which crisis kit you'd like to use between jobs in the loadout menu. Some jobs even have instances where you can change your kit on the fly as needed. The three crisis kits are the Splash Kit, Fix Kit, and Jump kit.
While using the Splash Kit you are able to have a portable fire extinguishing water cannon. This has multiple useful purposes like extinguishing flames to gain entry to new areas, splashing enemies to make them more vulnerable to electricity, or soaking certain enemies to stun or slow them. The Jump Kit is used to jump things off. It sends out jolts of electric energy that can be used to restart generators, power up objects and shutters, improve healing and ammo stations and electrocute enemies. The third and final kit, for now, is the Fix Kit. This kit provides an alternate melee in the form of a massive wrench. It also allows the user to more rapidly repair downed machinery, avoid negative effects of broken machines, like shock or burns, and even build turrets. You will use your kits in tandem with your teammates to complete objectives, make repairs and eliminate hostile threats. Your gear is constantly being upgraded through use with requisition points. You can earn requisitions to gain more powerful versions of your weapons. It's not all outdated firepower and makeshift sci-fi gear. Objects of power make a return from Control. Objects of power are objects under lock and key by the FBC for their paracausal nature. In FBC Firebreak objects of power can appear randomly and act as modifiers. These modifiers will work to empower enemies, weaken the player characters, or generally make things as chaotic as possible. From the worlds most dangerous game of red light, green light to a piggy bank that explodes on contact, FBC Firebreak has no shortage of oddities to keep upping the scares and keeping the action tense.
FBC Firebreak shines as a multiplayer shooter with friends. While it lacks the lofty story telling and incredible character depth of its Remedy Shared Universe cousins, it's a really fun objective shooter with incredible ambience and funny dialogue. Being one of the maintenance guys going to reapir a fan may not sound like a fun gameplay mechanic, but doing it while fending of hordes of Hiss infected thralls and paracausal mutants is a good time. The game achieves a lot with it's combat. While simple, the combinations of kits with teamwork and old school guns are tons of fun. Dousing a large mob of enemies with the Splash Kit and then lighting them up with the Jump Kit is an absolute blast every time. These little crossovers in abilities and teamwork are truly the games brightest point. Varied enemy design will keep players on their toes. Just about the time you get used to dispatching swarms of Hiss thralls, a heavily armored and heavily armed variant will arrive. Oh, your team is dealing with the Hiss threats effectively and moving effortlessly through objectives? Hold on, check out these humanoid monsters made (entirely?) of sticky notes. Better have a splash kit handy if you want to effectively stop their sticky assault.
FBC Firebreak may be light in the story telling department, but fans of this shared universe are in for tons of Lore tidbits and Control 2 set ups. The loading screens contain documents detailing something of a break in the FBC leadership. Not all of the Beareau is happy with the leadership of Jesse Faden or her handling of the Hiss crisis. Alan Wake 2's Lake House DLC has some dire warnings about the Hiss infestation spreading into New York City. As Firebreak Containment teams work around the clock to repair the Oldest House's infrastructure and eliminate what remains of the Hiss invasion, something dark is growing in the depths of the seemingly magical facility.
The wait for Control 2 is going to be a long one. Remedy announced last year it was in full development after the release of the final Alan Wake 2 story DLC. FBC Firebreak is as different from it's predecessor as Control's frenetic and constant 3rd person action is from Alan Wake's survival horror vibes. It is first and foremost a cooperative shooter. It's a game where you're objectives include things like repairing generators, fixing exhaust fans and searching sealed safe rooms for survivors. It's not just any day at the office though. These objectives can be hindered by terrifying monstrosities, weird creatures made of sticky notes, Hiss infected thralls with rifles and tools, and so many more weird and creepy enemies. With at least 2 more jobs coming this year as free DLC, this game is shaping up to be the "Remedyverse" bridge gap we need for the wait. Only time will tell if FBC Director, Jesse Faden shows up in the game or if more directly related content to the story of Control is added, but for now this game is doing an admirable job of carrying the torch. There may not be enough gameplay here for the sweaty crowd, but fans of Remedy games and class shooters have an incredibly fun and quirky horror gem on their hands if they give it a chance. While other horror gaming franchises seem to be ending against fan wishes, Remedy seems to have plenty planned for us for years to come. FBC Firebreak is available on PC, Xbox Series S/X and PS5. Currently the game is available on Gamepass.