I’m still working my way through Control Resonant, taking my time because I’m enjoying the exploration so much, and Remedy has already released Game Update 1.40 a week after launch. The biggest addition is New Game++, which Remedy promised for October in its first post-launch community update last week. At launch, New Game+ only allowed one additional playthrough, but New Game++ now lets players start an infinite number of runs. Remedy also adjusted rewards so maxing out every Zone in New Game+ is a bit easier, and the main menu now holds seven save slots instead of five.
Several quality of life changes focus on progression, starting with the Build Power number, which now appears on the Loadout screen instead of being buried in the Stats & Effects menu. Remedy points out that players below the enemy level will have a tougher time in combat, so it recommends side quests and exploring Manhattan to level up. The HUD shows a notification icon when there’s something new to buy or upgrade in The Gap, and pinned upgrade materials appear on a Vendor’s map icon when that Vendor has them in stock. Over in the Unknown Zone, Remedy has cut the overall amount of combat and intensity by 10 to 15 percent.
Assist Mode, which replaces traditional difficulty levels in Control Resonant, picks up two new options. The first is a Power Core Charge Duration multiplier that ranges from 100 to 300 percent, and the second refunds one dodge and one jump after an air execution if you’re out of both. When Remedy laid out its Assist Mode approach last month, I said its design was obvious, since the studio would rather you adjust the rules and keep playing than put the controller down and give up.
Audio got plenty of attention in this update as well, starting with a separate volume slider for radio dialogue that lets players balance their speakers or headphones against the DualSense speaker. A new “Mute copyrighted music” option turns off Apocalyptica’s “Upperhand” during the intro credits, though Remedy jokes that the track is too good to mute. The update also fixes audio cutting out on XBOX Series X, along with an audio desync bug that Remedy says also haunted Alan Wake 2.
Game Update 1.40 shows up as version 01.400.000 on PlayStation 5, 1.4.0.0 on XBOX Series X|S, and 1.4.0 on PC. It includes crash fixes on every platform, plus performance optimizations aimed mainly at PC minimum and recommended specs. PC players can now use V-Sync with DLSS Frame Generation, the Steam Controller reconnects properly after losing its connection, and Razer peripherals get haptic feedback for events like melee attacks and taking damage. For AMD users, Remedy recommends the optional Adrenalin Edition 26.9.2 driver, which improves performance and fixes several crashes in the game.
