Control (2019)
Enemy Design in Control
There are various enemies in the game of Control which I want to highlight a select few. These enemies include
1. Hiss Charged
2. Hiss Distorted
3. Former
Hiss Charged
Enemies corrupted by the Hiss in Control have a visual indication of glowing red within their design to indicate to the player that this is an enemy. Though the Hiss Charged are simple in behaviors, these include
1. Alert player in the form of a scream
2. Slowly approach player silently and since they spawn in groups, they congregate forming a unit which when they are in proximity of the player, they explode, dealing decent damage depending on enemy level.
3. Due to their explosion attack, it is encouraged to avoid melee attacks as these will serve to damage the player. It is encouraged to use ranged attacks (Service weapons and launch attacks) to create distance due to...
4. When Hiss Charged die, they explode on death which in turns creates an AOE attack, they can damage fellow Hiss Charged which could help in cutting down enemy numbers
One major reason I enjoy combat against the enemy is due to the visual eye candy created from the constant explosions. Having multiple Hiss Charged in the same proximity of one another and killing them creates consecutive cool explosions. It serves to further amplify the chaotic nature of personnel corrupted by the Hiss.
This chaotic frenzy also amplifies a feeling of strength for the player as they're able to be enthralled in the rush of explosion after explosion
Hiss Distorted
The Hiss Distorted is a controversial enemy for me. Readability is an important design choice because the moment players feel they took damage or died without indication of some kind (visuals, sound etc), it results in dissatisfaction.
At the 0:07 mark of this video, the hiss distorted disappears and is invisible as they follow the player with a distortion trail which is slightly visible. There were times in the games I was dealt significant amounts of damage from this enemy due getting caught by surprise by attacks from the enemy. I believe this is an issue when you have multiple enemies surrounding the player in an enclosed dark environment which makes it hard to track the enemy. I believe having some brief sound accompanying the enemy as they follow the player can notify the player of the enemy's proximity.
This God of War GDC video has a great solution in solving the cons of offscreen attacks that is bound to occur when facing this enemy when in battle against multiple enemies
Former
In the context of chess play, I enjoyed this boss battle 95 percent of the time. The mood is eerie, the design of the boss is the most interesting as you wonder the origins of the boss in relation to the Board. It is abnormal compared to the creatures of the Hiss.
​
Using the dash and telekinesis mechanics to counter play the boss throwing gravity balls and evading his large hitboxes of attacks is a great way to increase tension as his attacks increase in rapid succession as his health depletes.
​
What I believe the designers should have factored in, is the floor that the boss destroys under the player is not visually presented so there's a good chance the player falls through the player because they aren't aware of the environmental damage. With the player constantly having to look up at the enemy, they fall through the floor which is instant death.
​
I believe having the floor glow before it shatters notifies the player to evade and jump to the next floor tile. I died numerous times during this boss because of this issue and it became frustrating to play. An additional sound to accompany the 'soon to crash' floor is fine as well.
