If you only follow Control’s objective marker, you’ll miss the Luck and Probability puzzle, the Mirror of Self-Reflection, Shum’s arcade challenges, an optional Former encounter, and several rooms that reward exploration with outfits, mods, lore, and altered-item fights. On PC, the trick is to revisit sectors after unlocking Launch, Levitate, and the right clearance level rather than treating the Oldest House like a straight corridor.
This list focuses on the secret locations and Easter eggs that are genuinely worth the detour. I’ve included the exact sector, access route, reward, and the abilities or weapon forms that make each discovery easier. You can also compare your setup with Steamoz’s secret-location guide for Everspace 2 if you enjoy games that hide their best loot off the critical path.
Start with the Luck and Probability puzzle
In the Research Sector, travel to the Luck and Probability room near the Synchronicity Lab. The room contains a roulette table, a horseshoe, a cat figurine, a four-leaf clover, and several desk objects that look like ordinary research clutter. They aren’t. The Bureau has been testing whether luck can be measured, and Jesse can manipulate the experiment.
First, interact with the roulette table. Then turn on the desk lamps in the correct sequence: the lights should display three lamps on the left and one on the right, matching the nearby research notes. Make sure the horseshoe is upright, move the cat so it faces the table, and place the four-leaf clover in the plant pot. The exact visual arrangement matters more than the order in which you inspect the objects.
Return to the roulette table and spin. A successful result teleports Jesse into the reward area and unlocks the Golden Suit, one of the most distinctive outfits in the game. The puzzle also provides a high-level personal mod. If the room doesn’t trigger, reload the checkpoint and recheck the lamp arrangement; Control can occasionally fail to register a prop after rapid interactions.
The reward isn’t just cosmetic bragging rights. The Golden Suit is tied to the hidden puzzle and gives completionists a permanent reminder that the Oldest House has rules outside the mission script. Don’t confuse this with ordinary luck mechanics: the roulette result is determined by the room’s environmental setup, not by Jesse’s skill points or Service Weapon mods.
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View on Steammoz Store →Find the secret rooms hidden behind the map
Control’s best hidden spaces usually sit behind weak walls, above obvious routes, or inside rooms that appear to be dead ends. When you gain Launch, throw objects at suspicious concrete panels. When you gain Levitate, look upward in every large chamber. Several secrets are deliberately positioned where a normal ground-level scan won’t reveal them.
Dead Letters and the hidden office
In the Executive Sector’s Dead Letters area, explore the side offices rather than heading directly toward the main mission route. Some rooms contain documents, source notes, and chests tucked behind movable furniture. The important habit is to use Launch on wall sections with different textures. Control’s destructible surfaces don’t always look damaged beforehand, but a clean concrete panel in an otherwise cluttered office is often a clue.
The Black Rock Quarry shortcut
In Maintenance, the Black Rock Quarry contains a large furnace and raised platforms that become much easier to reach after Levitate. Search the upper ledges around the quarry instead of staying on the conveyor-belt route. You’ll find chests and collectible material, including resources used to craft and upgrade Service Weapon forms. The side route also gives you a safer angle on Hiss Rangers because Launch can remove them before they get a clear shot.
The Luck and Probability observation room
Don’t leave the Research Sector after solving the roulette experiment. The surrounding observation rooms contain more documents and a clear look at the Bureau’s obsession with altered luck. Control frequently hides lore in plain sight: a collectible isn’t always a red-glowing pickup, so sweep desks, shelves, and side rooms with the scanner-like camera movement you’d use in an immersive sim.
| Secret area | Sector and access | Best ability | Reward or payoff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Luck and Probability | Research, after reaching the lab | Interact with room props | Golden Suit and high-level mod |
| Black Rock Quarry ledges | Maintenance, upper quarry platforms | Levitate | Chests, materials, documents |
| Dead Letters side offices | Executive, office corridors | Launch | Collectibles and hidden chests |
| Oceanview-adjacent routes | Executive and Investigations revisits | Clearance 5 and Levitate | Extra lore and mod drops |
Play every Shum arcade challenge in AWE
The Shum machines are hidden in the Investigations Sector during the AWE expansion. Find the arcade cabinets in the room near the AWE Transit corridor, then interact with them to launch replayable versions of Control’s combat and traversal scenarios. Shum 1 and Shum 2 are not simple minigames; they remix encounters and let you test builds without replaying the whole campaign.
The challenges include combat-focused modes, timed movement sections, and a boss-rush-style option. Their value is practical: they let you practice Launch juggling, Levitate control, and Service Weapon swapping while the game tracks a compact objective instead of burying you in a full mission. Completing the required Shum activities unlocks the Jukebox side mission chain, where tokens send Jesse into Expeditions.
Expeditions are among the toughest optional activities in the base game. You enter the Formation through the Jukebox in the Executive Sector and must clear islands under a time limit. Bring Launch with at least three upgrade points, a reliable energy-focused personal mod, and the Grip or Homing form for distant Hiss. Shatter can delete armored enemies at close range, but its short reach is risky when the island spawns Elevated enemies.
The best rhythm is simple: open with Launch, use Grip to finish exposed targets, and save Seize for weakened Hiss Rangers or Distorted enemies. Don’t burn all your energy before an island’s final wave. Expeditions punish players who chase kills instead of using cover, and the timer is generous enough for a controlled approach.
Enter the Mirror of Self-Reflection
In the Synchronicity Lab, Research Sector, find the sealed mirror area and begin the Self-Reflection side mission. You’ll eventually enter the Mirror of Self-Reflection, a reversed version of the lab where the layout and encounter logic deliberately feel wrong. The mirror is one of Control’s clearest examples of an altered item turning an ordinary Bureau room into a hostile puzzle box.
Before entering, upgrade Jesse’s health or launch damage if you’re still early in the campaign. The mirror sequence includes Hiss combat in tight spaces, and the reversed geometry can make familiar cover feel unreliable. Keep moving around the central lab instead of standing in the doorway. Launch is especially strong here because the mirror’s furniture provides a constant supply of ammunition.
The mission leads to esseJ, a hostile reflection of Jesse. The fight is more manageable when you destroy the reflection’s cover and keep the boss in the open. Grip works well for sustained damage, while Launch is your emergency tool when esseJ closes distance. Completing the mission rewards a mod and additional lore about the mirror, but the real Easter egg is the Bureau’s deadpan treatment of Jesse literally meeting herself.
Challenge The Former in the Foundation
The Former is an optional boss encountered during the Foundation expansion, and it’s easy to miss because its appearances are tied to side missions and altered-space exploration. The creature is a giant floating eye with tentacles, explosive projectiles, and a habit of attacking the arena itself. If you’ve already played the base-game encounter, the Foundation rematch still deserves attention because it changes the arena pressure and rewards exploration.
The boss’s most dangerous telegraph is the tentacle slam. The floor flashes before the strike, giving you a brief window to Levitate or dash sideways. Never hover directly above the central platform for long: the Former can punish predictable vertical movement with multiple projectiles. Use Launch on the floating objects around the arena, then swap to Grip while your energy regenerates.
Keep one eye on the floor. Holes and falling sections can remove your safe route, and panic-jumping often sends Jesse into the abyss. The best sequence is Launch, two or three Grip shots, a lateral dodge, then another Launch when the arena provides ammunition. Don’t waste Seize on the boss; save it for any Hiss that appears and threatens your positioning.
| Boss threat | Telegraph | Counter | Recommended tool |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tentacle slam | Floor flash beneath Jesse | Levitate or dodge sideways | Levitate |
| Explosive projectile | Projectile hangs before launch | Break line of sight or strafe | Launch debris |
| Falling arena floor | Platform cracks and drops | Move to intact outer ground | Levitate |
| Additional Hiss | Spawn audio and red distortion | Seize weak targets immediately | Seize |
Don’t miss the Bureau’s strangest Easter eggs
Control is full of references that reward players who stop treating documents as optional flavor. The Threshold Kids videos are the most obvious example: they present surreal Bureau concepts through a bizarre children’s television show. Watch them whenever you find them, because their cheerful explanations make the game’s dangerous thresholds even funnier and more unsettling.
The Vending Spree side mission is another excellent missable encounter. In Investigations, report the suspicious altered vending machines and chase them as they relocate. The machines move between areas, so don’t assume the first sighting is the final fight. Destroying enough of them triggers a fast, chaotic battle against hostile objects. Bring Launch and keep your aim low enough to hit the moving machine without wasting energy on nearby scenery.
Then there’s the Benicoff TV altered item in Investigations. The floating television projects a distorted image and must be cleansed through the usual interaction sequence. Its presentation is pure Control: a harmless household object becomes a supernatural threat, while the Bureau handles it with paperwork and containment language.
The Ashtray Maze is technically part of the main route, but its design is also one of the game’s greatest Easter eggs. The maze rearranges itself around Jesse, changes music and enemy flow without warning, and temporarily turns the Service Weapon into a constant-action power fantasy. Equip your strongest Launch and weapon-damage mods before entering. The sequence is linear, but its shifting walls make it feel like a hidden reward for surviving the Bureau’s strangest logic.
Use the right PC settings for secret hunting
Control’s ray-traced reflections can make the Oldest House look incredible, but they’re not essential for finding hidden rooms. On mid-range PCs, prioritize stable frame pacing over maximum reflections because stutter can make Levitate landings, projectile dodges, and fast room scanning feel worse. The PC version supports extensive graphics options, and Remedy’s official Control page remains the best source for the game’s technical background.
| Setting | Recommended value | FPS impact | Visual note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ray-traced reflections | Off on mid-range GPUs | High | Big performance gain in reflective offices |
| Volumetric lighting | Medium | Medium | Preserves atmosphere without heavy fog cost |
| Screen-space reflections | High | Low to medium | Keeps floors and glass readable |
| Texture resolution | High if VRAM allows | Low | Sharpens documents and room details |
| Film grain | Off for clean searching | Negligible | Makes collectibles and edges easier to spot |
| Motion blur | Off | Negligible | Improves clarity during Levitate and dodges |
For troubleshooting, Steam’s Control Ultimate Edition page is useful for confirming DLC ownership and PC requirements. If your game is crashing or hitching, Steamoz’s guides to PC crash fixes and FPS-focused settings cover the same practical checks: update the GPU driver, verify files, disable overlays, and test fullscreen versus borderless mode.
The best order for a full secret sweep
Don’t try to clear everything during the first story pass. Finish enough missions to unlock Launch, Levitate, Seize, and Clearance Level 5, then revisit the Executive, Maintenance, Research, and Investigations sectors from their control points. This order keeps backtracking efficient and prevents you from repeatedly staring at doors Jesse can’t open yet.
| Stage | What to revisit | Why now | Priority reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| After Launch | Dead Letters and Maintenance | Break suspicious walls and reach ledges | Chests and lore |
| After Levitate | Research and Black Rock Quarry | Reach upper platforms and hidden rooms | Golden Suit route and materials |
| After Seize | Investigations and Expeditions | Control dangerous extra enemies | Jukebox challenges |
| After Clearance 5 | Mirror area and locked offices | Open late-game side routes | Mods and altered-item lore |
| With AWE installed | Shum and Vending Spree | Unlock arcade and altered-object encounters | Replayable challenges |
Control’s secrets work because they rarely feel bolted on. A roulette table becomes a research experiment, a vending machine becomes a roaming enemy, and a mirror turns Jesse’s own identity into a boss fight. Revisit every sector with new powers, inspect anything that looks too ordinary, and use Launch on walls before assuming the map is finished. That’s how you find the version of the Oldest House hidden behind the mission markers—and it’s far stranger than the campaign alone suggests.