The Unraveling Mystery of The Board’s Communication in Control Resonant
- The Board, an enigmatic entity in Control Resonant, communicates in a distinct, unintelligible manner.
- Audio lead Lucas Pierrot states the dialogue consists largely of gibberish, allowing players to interpret its meaning personally.
- Control Resonant has achieved rapid success, reaching 1 million sales faster than any previous game by Remedy.
Control and its sequel, Control Resonant, feature a notable design choice in how The Board, an alien entity shrouded in mystery, communicates with players. The exact nature, morals, and motivations of The Board remain intentionally unclear.
Developer Remedy designed The Board’s vocalizations with a specific auditory aesthetic in mind. While players have various interpretations of what The Board is saying, many theories exist, fueled by the unique sound quality of the audio.
Lucas Pierrot, the audio lead for Control Resonant, clarified that The Board’s speech is essentially gibberish and does not correlate with any known language. “An important part of the design is that The Board is basically gibberish, not affiliated to any language,” Pierrot explained to Gamespot. “So, when you hear a word, you tend to hear what you want to hear… and that’s pretty neat in terms of audio design, as players can fulfill their fantasies.”
The Board employs a bass-heavy voice that complicates comprehension. The game’s subtitles offer interpretations of the audio, but they often switch words for similar ideas, further obscuring the intended message. According to Pierrot, “You want to hear The Board praising you for performing an Execution? You can! Maybe you hear them saying ‘Absolute cinema, Combo!’ etc., but if you prefer to think they’re arrogant and only feel disdain for slaying a weak enemy… you can hear that too!”
This unconventional way of communication is designed to elicit a range of emotions—embracing feelings of fear, unease, and even humor. To enhance the delivery of specific phrases, the audio team incorporated techniques such as adding a “pulse” sound and a “low, soft kick” to certain words, creating an impactful rhythm and flow in the dialogue. “I used this to give weight when necessary to have a nice flow. You can see it as some sort of trick to articulate sentences. It gives rhythm and punctuation,” Pierrot noted.
Control Resonant has garnered significant commercial success, achieving the impressive milestone of 1 million sales faster than any other game in Remedy’s history, even amid a crowded release window. For those looking to delve into the game, Eurogamer offers a Control Resonant walkthrough that can aid players with upgrade choices and activity prioritization.
News Courtesy of Eurogamer
