Architecture Critic on Control - it's more than Brutalism!

Join Ryan Scavnicky (Scav) in the Extra Office to talk about the architecture of Control!

This video was made possible by support from Kent State University College of Architecture and Environmental Design through the specific efforts of James Moss and Sam Gifford.

Control was developed by Remedy Entertainment.

All footage, including the soundtrack, has been edited, remixed, and transformed with the intent of teaching architecture for the purpose of education as outlined by the Fair Use policy.

[ctmalloy]

I was sent here from Kotaku. Control is one of the rare games that (for me) transcends the line between art and entertainment. The architecture in the game is a huge part of the experience and the art and to see it dissected and analyzed was very informative and entertaining. Bravo

[baitposter]

10:38 Definitely not a coincidence. It seems pretty implicit (and probably explicit somewhere in documentation) that the Oldest House has the quality of containing impossible geometry; impossibly larger on the inside, a House of Leaves-esque building.

[FoldingScreenMonkey]

The non-euclidean floorplan, refusal to center and line up elements of the walls, etc reads to me as the Oldest House developing itself as a character that very deliberately breaks the rules placed upon it as an object and a building. Similarly in the ashtray maze, when you first enter it seems like some sort of puzzle room that you can dive into if you figure out the right actions to make it shift the way you want it to. Only after giving up and coming back later do you realize that it's not a puzzle at all but rather one of the best run and gun sequences in the history of video games

[LiquoriceNut]

I am rooting you bud. Im an architect that sees this beautiful potential in video games, of storytelling and world building, and defamiliarizing at the very least. it's people like you that are helping architecture in video games become more significant. I love your analysis and can't wait to catch your stream. Best of luck.

[shadeofsound]

I would love it if you reviewed the architecture in ECHO

[jonathanlanglois]

Brutalism is a style that does have a tendency to be found in structures of the institutional type and that's no accident. The massive scale of many structures that hail from brutalism meant to impress, create awe, convey power. There are quite a few great exemples of this in Montreal.

[darthmamdouh]

I have absolutely zero knowledge of architecture, yet throughout my hours upon hours of playing Control, I had the distinct feeling that the Oldest House's architecture was something that left little to chance. Your analysis has been eye-opening and fascinating, thank you so much for it!

[tristanb]

Even though I don't know anything about architecture, I found myself captivated by this ! Thank you so much, it has been very interesting !

[CrisMertens]

I'm obsessed with every facet of this game. Thank you for taking me on such architectural deep dive of this beautiful masterpiece!

[TheHonorlord]

I have probably watched this video 10 times now. You are such a great teacher. Why did you stop making these videos? You have introduced me to many great architects and make me want to learn more, so much so that I research the different things you bring up and have purchased a few books on architectural design. I haven't found a single channel on video game architecture that even scratches the surface of your channel.... If you read this comment, I pray you will post more videos soon

[BaronLarke]

Another really lovely touch is that when you look at Central Executive from that elevator, the flooded white light really looks like a mimickry of the Astral Plane with the Board enclosed by familar reality. Effectively a shorthand reminder of where you are - because as far as the Board is concerned, this is their space, connected to your world.

[razorboy]

This was amazing and you got yourself another subscriber! I'm a total novice when it comes to architecture and only came here for Control but you sent me down a whole rabbit hole of ideas to explore!

[vinapocalypse]

Great video! I've been interested in Control specifically because of its architectural influences, but I've not played it. As I understand it there are supernatural aspects tot he game, so that the floor plans don't fit within the confines of the real building as seen from outside seems plausible, in a sort of Tardis manner.

As for the etc you noted, it seems it could just as easily be intended as not. Game architecture so often seems to take shortcuts when being designed, but a game like Control where so much thought was put into it, and where the architecture is so central, it would make me surprised if it really was unintentional.

[tatumdesign]

Brilliant analysis. I am going to be looking at the Oldest House a lot differently as I finish my second playthrough. Thanks for doing this incredible game

[BlazingOwnager]

The most amazing thing is a building full of concrete where virtually the entire game takes place is so memorable, I recognize every single room with perfect clarity and marvel at nearly ever area's design. What should have been a repetitive endless maze of indistinguishable locations ends up being stunning in the most unexpected way. I have a lot of nice things to say about control, but hats off to the level designers - these might be the best interior game world ever to exist in videogaming. Virtually no two rooms are truly alike across the entire game, excluding the bathrooms.

[elphantasmogoro]

Came here through the Kotaku funnel. Excellent work. Liked and subbed.

[Babatz]

I was waiting for that ! I am going to enjoy every second of this video. Thanks man !

[booksandocha]

Super cool video, linking both my fascination in architecture and my love for Control. Following the channel with deep interest, keep up the good work!

[nvd_jsm]

Fantastic video! I am currently writing a paper for university titled "architecture as visual narrative" and Control was the immediately the first video game example I knew I would write about.

[milkshakelake]

Starting around 9:30, the scales in those visualizations are off. For example, NSC Power Plant and Black Rock Quarry are bigger than the building itself. These things would be way, way bigger than the buildings presented. I think that the NSC Power Plant is bigger in length/width dimensions than 33 Thomas St, NYC.

Thanks for the visualizations though. It definitely helps ease the weirdness and scale I felt when playing the game.