Grab two friends, and save the Oldest House.
Fans of Control and of Remedy’s larger connected universe have anxiously been awaiting more details on FBC Firebreak, a co-operative shooter set within the Federal Bureau of Control’s headquarters, the Oldest House. Spinning up 30th anniversary celebrations for itself, Remedy recently provided Stevivor with a hands-off presentation detailing what to expect.
“So… the Oldest House was under assault by the Hiss, which are these kind of nasty resonance monsters from another dimension,” game director Mike Kayatta said, recapping the events of Control. “The FBC decided to lock the doors to keep the Hiss from escaping into the world, but also that locks the FBC and all of the people who are unfortunate enough to be inside that building inside with that invasion.
“So now we fast-forward six years,” Kayatta continued. “The doors to the Oldest House are still locked. Supplies are now running low: food, water, ammunition, tons of other things. It’s terrifying, and exterminating the Hiss has proven to be completely impossible.
“So what happens when the Federal Bureau of Control actually loses control?”
Enter Firebreak, a volunteer operation comprised of those within the Bureau that want to help out. Comprised of anyone still alive and willing — trained Rangers, bureaucratic middle managers, and even secretaries — Firebreakers are “first responders who get sent into all the sort of weird and dangerous crises that are cropping up” within the ever-changing Oldest House.
“The FBC hands [Firebreakers] some special equipment [and] a little bit of on-the-job training, which basically means kicking them out of the elevator into the crisis and [hoping] that they will survive,” Kayatta said.
A first-person, three-player co-op shooter, FBC Firebreak unleashes your team of into myriad operations called jobs. The one shown in today’s new trailer, Paper Chase, is a great example of one; in it, the Firebreakers must first destroy a set number of post-it notes that are replicating around the Oldest House.
It’s not that simple, of course, as the Hiss attack your group in numbers that far exceed those in Control… and, eventually, the post-its gain sentience and start gathering and attacking as monsters themselves. According to Kayatta, the absurdity of terrifying post-its meets one of Firebreak‘s — and dare I say Remedy’s — core pillars: gameplay you’ll only find within Control.
“Anytime that we had an idea that we wanted to pitch out to the others in the team, [we would ask,] ‘is this something that only us weirdos on the team were willing to put into a game with the Remedy label?’,” Kayatta explained. “If the answer was yes, then we thought we were on the right track. And if the answer was no, we typically went back to the drawing board and tried to find something that felt more hooked into the world [of Control] and into who we are as a studio.”
This is all happening in an environment that will be decidedly familiar to those who’ve played Control. From crisp and clean FBC office hallways to stone back quarry walls, the Firebreakers will take it to shielded Hiss, flying Hiss, Hiss with firearms of their own, and even those annoying Hiss that float above the ground in chairs.
While you don’t possess the skills (or Service Weapon) of FBC director Jesse Faden, Firebreak will arm you with your choice of one of three special service kits. While the kits seem to focus on different elements like water or electricity, each kit also comes with a special Altered Augment — an Object of Power, yet not, that gives you some semblance of superpowers.
For example, one Fire breaker with a decidedly melee-style build wielded an altered piggy bank that explodes when activated, offering up an area of effect attack for a short period before someone reestablishing itself on the end of your weapon. Said Firebreaker also possessed a rush skill that let him or her get up close and personal with the Hiss in order to deal those melee attacks, and an auto-turret that needed a little maintenance to fire up after it was initially deployed.
In extended play, I witnessed an electrically charged weapon that was useful for powering up circuit boards in order to provide light to an area. The same weapon was useful for Hiss crowd control and, perhaps most importantly, could also be used as a sort of rocket jump boost to reach higher ground.
Remedy continues to focus on accessibility through customisable threat and clearance level settings. Threat settings will focus on combat intensity — the different types, numbers, and aggression of enemies — while clearance settings will dictate the number of zones your specific job will allow for.
The higher the clearance level, the more objectives you’ll have to meet; a higher level will also increase the likelihood of running into corrupted items within the job, though Remedy was keeping tight-lipped as to what that meant.
“We wanted to make something that players could enjoy on their terms, not ours,” Kayatta said in respect to accessibility and enjoyment. “What that means is ditching the engagement stress that you find in a lot of live service titles. We are definitely not about things like daily check-ins, monthly grinds, [fear of missing out]… in other words, we don’t give anybody a second job.”
According to Kayatta, Firebreak is designed to be as pick up and play as possible, ditching an overarching story and constantly offering new jobs to be managed in your attempt to keep the Oldest House running. Post-launch content will be free as to not dilute its player base, though Firebreak will have in-game cosmetic purchases to help keep Remedy’s wallet full.
“Co-op is a tough thing to get right,” Kayatta explained. “You’ve got to find the balance between empowering the individual player while still making sure that cooperation is meaningful.
“It shouldn’t ever feel like another player’s bad decisions, or kind of troll behaviour, or griefing can actually ruin your run.”
That doesn’t mean Firebreak will be a walk in the park — especially if you don’t want it to be.
“One of the hard truths about being a Firebreaker is that the FBC doesn’t really expect you to survive,” said community manager Julius Fondem.
“When you complete the objectives of a job, the FBC considers that a success whether you make it out alive or not,” Fondem continued. “And that success is rewarded with XP for your career at the FBC and your proficiency with the kits you [possess].
“But if you want currencies which give you access to new gear, upgrades, and cosmetics, you need to find them and escape the job with them,” he explained. “Ultimately, Firebreak is about efficiency.”
Said efficiency will go a long way in your quest to take on higher challenges; at their highest proficiencies, individual perks can be shared with your teammates. Examples of perks include one that will restore missed shots to your clip, or another that will stop you from burning to a crisp simply by jumping; who needs a water-based kit?
Efficiency will also mean you’ll have an easier time in each job you partake, Fondem said.
“You can’t fail objectives,” Fondem confirmed, “but the longer you spend doing them, the more and more Hiss will show up to stop you increasing the chance that your crew dies on the job.
“That means the longer you spend exploring for currency, the more risk you’re inviting and the harder it will eventually become to make it back to headquarters in one piece.”
FBC Firebreak is planned for a mid-2025 release on Windows PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X, and PS5. It’s also part of Xbox Game Pass, PC Game Pass, and PlayStation Plus Deluxe, Extra, and Premium. If you want more set in the world of Control before sequels to it and Alan Wake proper are released, this is a no-brainer.
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FBC Firebreak17 June 2025PC PS5 Xbox Series S & X
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