I tried Control and found it, well, eh. It does nothing new (that’s worthwhile) with either its writing or its gameplay, so it feels by the numbers.
And a good shooter either needs to do one or the other. Control’s shootbang is competent, but the added differentiation mechanics don’t really elevate it beyond ho hum, while I found the story largely unengaging - its setting, characters and plot overall kind of just there and not really speaking to me. I also found myself noticing the awful facial animations more than actually taking things in.
All that said, it’s not Remedy’s worst. That has to be Quantum Break - that game was just a chore.
Cross that with Gears 5, which I have been enjoying the shit out of. For that, as per Gears, the shootbang element is really enjoyable and they do things with the gameplay rote that spices it up.
I probably won’t bother grabbing Control once it hits Steam.