TL;DR
- Control Resonant has no Easy / Normal / Hard. Instead it uses Assist Mode with 11 individual settings.
- You can turn it on or change it at any point during your playthrough.
- Using Assist Mode does not block trophies or achievements.
- Some settings can also make the game harder — it works both ways.
- Best approach: identify the one thing causing problems and change only that setting.
- Presets available: Custom, Field Agent, Strategist, and Ranger.
Most games give you Easy, Normal, and Hard. Control Resonant doesn’t do that. Instead, Remedy built a fully customizable Assist Mode system that lets you adjust individual combat mechanics rather than changing the whole game at once.
Struggling with dodging timing but fine with everything else? Change just that. Getting surrounded by too many enemies? Lower aggression only. Want a harder challenge? Push the settings the other way.
This guide covers every Assist Mode setting, what it actually does, when to use it, and how to access it. We also cover the presets and every other accessibility option the game includes.
If you’re new to Control Resonant, our Control Resonant beginner tips are a good read alongside this. And for a full take on the game, see our Control Resonant review.
How to Enable Assist Mode in Control Resonant
You don’t need to select anything before starting a new game. Assist Mode can be accessed and changed at any time during your playthrough.
To get there:
Pause / Menu → Options → Gameplay → Assist Mode
From there you can choose a preset or manually adjust individual settings. Remedy designed the system to be changed mid-game, so there’s no penalty for experimenting as you go.
Does Assist Mode Disable Trophies or Achievements?
No. Remedy has confirmed that using Assist Mode does not block or disable trophies or achievements in any way.
You can use any setting — including Immortality or One-Hit Kills — and still earn all in-game rewards normally. There’s no reason to avoid Assist Mode for completion purposes.
All 11 Control Resonant Assist Mode Settings
1. Enemy Aggression
Controls how aggressively enemies push and attack Dylan. The options are Low, Medium, and High. Medium is the default untouched setting.
This is one of the least disruptive settings to change because it doesn’t directly touch Dylan’s damage or health. If crowded fights are the main problem — enemies rushing from multiple sides without giving you a moment to breathe — lower this first before adjusting anything else.
2. Perfect Dodge Window
Changes how forgiving the timing is on Perfect Dodge. A higher value gives you more room for error. A lower value makes the timing tighter and more demanding.
This is the right setting to change if you understand when an enemy is about to attack but can’t consistently hit the dodge in time. Rather than making Dylan tougher overall, it just adjusts the timing requirement on one specific mechanic. Remedy also lets you push this in the harder direction if you want dodging to be more precise.
3. Enemy Projectile Speed
Controls how fast enemy ranged attacks travel toward Dylan. Lowering it gives you more reaction time to see and dodge incoming fire.
This is especially useful in fights with multiple ranged enemies firing at once. If you can see the projectiles coming but they’re already hitting you before you react, this is the setting to adjust.
4. Incoming Damage
Controls how much damage Dylan takes from enemy attacks. Lower it to make combat more forgiving. Raise it to make hits more punishing.
This works independently from Outgoing Damage, so you can make Dylan more durable without making him deal more damage. Useful if you understand the combat mechanics fine but individual attacks are simply deleting too much of your health bar.
5. Outgoing Damage
Controls how much damage Dylan deals to enemies. Increase it to clear fights faster. Lower it as a self-imposed challenge if the default combat feels too easy.
Again, this is completely separate from Incoming Damage. You can mix and match — more durable Dylan with normal damage output, or standard durability with stronger attacks — without changing anything else.
6. Outgoing Falter
Controls how quickly Dylan builds up an enemy’s Falter or posture meter. Breaking an enemy’s posture opens them up for executions and creates windows to control the fight.
If your main frustration isn’t killing enemies but getting them into a vulnerable state, this is the setting to raise. Remedy deliberately separated Outgoing Falter from Outgoing Damage so both can be adjusted independently.
7. Power Recovery Speed
Controls how quickly Dylan’s Power resource recharges. Power fuels his supernatural abilities, so this setting directly affects how often you can use them in combat.
If you constantly want to use an ability but it’s always on cooldown, raise this. It’s a standalone setting that doesn’t touch damage or health — just ability uptime.
8. Enhanced Melee Magnetizing
Adds positional assistance to melee attacks, making it easier to connect with nearby enemies even when positioning isn’t perfect.
This helps most in close-quarters fights where enemies are moving unpredictably, or if melee attacks keep missing targets that look like they should be in range. It’s a targeted fix for one specific problem rather than a general power boost.
9. Immortality
Prevents Dylan from being killed in combat. Full stop.
This is the most straightforward option in the list. If your main goal is experiencing the story, exploring Manhattan, finding secrets, or solving optional puzzles like the Control Resonant Konstig Painting Puzzle without combat stress, Immortality removes the obstacle entirely.
10. One-Hit Kills
Dylan defeats enemies with a single hit. Dramatically reduces combat length and is intended for players focused on exploration and story over combat challenge.
Also useful if you’re replaying a completed section and don’t want to sit through fights you’ve already cleared.
11. One-Hit Falters
Enemies reach their Falter state after a single hit, making posture breaks trivially easy. Unlike One-Hit Kills, enemies aren’t necessarily dead — they’re just immediately vulnerable.
This is useful if you enjoy the execution and posture system but find building Falter too slow or inconsistent.
Control Resonant Assist Mode Presets
If you don’t want to manually adjust every slider, Assist Mode includes four presets to get you started quickly.
Custom
The configuration you build yourself by adjusting individual settings. Once you change any single option manually, the mode switches to Custom.
Field Agent
Designed for players who want to focus on story and exploration. Combat is less dangerous in this preset, keeping the experience accessible without removing it entirely.
Strategist
Designed around fast, lethal combat where precision matters more. Suits players who want a responsive, punchy feel to fights.
Ranger
Designed to let Dylan absorb more punishment and stay in fights longer, trading some survivability against offensive pressure. Good if you prefer a slower, tankier playstyle.
Can Assist Mode Make Control Resonant Harder?
Yes — and this is one of the most interesting things about how Remedy designed the system.
Assist Mode isn’t just an accessibility tool. Several settings can be pushed in the direction of a harder challenge:
- Increase Enemy Aggression
- Increase Incoming Damage
- Increase Enemy Projectile Speed
- Reduce the Perfect Dodge Window
Remedy explicitly describes the system as working in both directions. So if the normal experience feels too comfortable, the same settings used for accessibility can be turned the other way to make Manhattan considerably more hostile.
Which Assist Mode Setting Should You Change?
The best approach is to identify the specific problem first and change only that. Here’s a quick reference:
- Too many enemies attacking at once — Lower Enemy Aggression
- Perfect Dodge timing is too tight — Increase Perfect Dodge Window
- Projectiles are too fast to react to — Lower Enemy Projectile Speed
- Dylan dies too fast — Lower Incoming Damage
- Enemies take too long to kill — Increase Outgoing Damage
- Can’t break enemy posture — Increase Outgoing Falter
- Abilities always on cooldown — Increase Power Recovery Speed
- Melee attacks keep missing — Enable Enhanced Melee Magnetizing
- Just don’t want to die — Enable Immortality
- Want to skip combat quickly — Enable One-Hit Kills
- Want easy posture breaks — Enable One-Hit Falters
This is the philosophy Remedy built the system around — change the mechanic that’s causing the problem, leave everything else alone.
Other Accessibility Settings in Control Resonant
Assist Mode isn’t the only thing worth checking in the options menu. Control Resonant has a solid range of accessibility features across every category.
Controls
- Full controller and mouse/keyboard remapping
- Horizontal and vertical inversion
- Mouse and controller sensitivity
- Hold/toggle options for inputs
- Adaptive trigger and haptics volume controls
Graphics
Several visual effects can be disabled individually. If fast movement makes the screen hard to read or causes discomfort, these are worth turning off:
- Motion Blur
- Depth of Field
- Lens Distortion
- Film Grain
- Vignetting
For more on getting the best visual setup, our Control Resonant best PC settings guide covers the full picture for PC players.
Audio
- Master, Effects, Speech, and Music volume controls
- Night Mode and Dynamic Range options
- Mono Audio
- Hyperacusis Filter — reduces higher-frequency sounds for players sensitive to them
- Bass and Treble adjustment
Interface
- Subtitle size and speaker name display
- Color-blindness and color compensation options
- HUD customization
- Quest tracking options
- Controller icon selection
Shift Tunneling
This one deserves a specific mention. Using Shift (Dylan’s rapid movement ability) creates a strong visual effect that some players find uncomfortable.
Shift Tunneling adds a visual vignette during the movement to reduce the effect. You can also adjust its intensity. If fast Shift movement causes any discomfort, enable this alongside turning off Motion Blur — the combination makes a noticeable difference.
What Happens After You Unlock Clearance Levels?
As you progress through Control Resonant, keycards and clearance levels open up more of Manhattan. Our guide on the Control Resonant SR Keycard clearance level explains what unlocks and when. For endgame content, check the Clearance Level 6 keycard guide as well.
If you’re still working through the central checkpoint puzzle earlier in the game, our Control Resonant Central Checkpoint power puzzle guide covers the full relay route step by step.
And for cosmetics, all active Control Resonant skin codes are listed and updated in our dedicated guide.
Control Resonant is available on the official Control site, Steam, Epic Games, PlayStation Store, and Xbox Store.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Control Resonant have Easy, Normal, and Hard difficulty?
No. Instead of a traditional difficulty selector, Control Resonant uses Assist Mode — a system of 11 individually adjustable combat settings. You choose what to change rather than picking one global difficulty level.
Can I turn on Assist Mode after starting the game?
Yes. Assist Mode can be enabled or changed at any point during your playthrough through Pause → Options → Gameplay → Assist Mode.
Does using Assist Mode lock trophies or achievements in Control Resonant?
No. Remedy confirmed that Assist Mode does not prevent any trophies or achievements, including when using Immortality or One-Hit Kills.
What is the easiest Assist Mode setting in Control Resonant?
Immortality is the most direct — it prevents Dylan from being killed. One-Hit Kills and One-Hit Falters also dramatically reduce combat difficulty and are worth using if you just want to focus on the story and exploration.
Can Assist Mode make Control Resonant harder?
Yes. Enemy Aggression, Incoming Damage, and Enemy Projectile Speed can all be raised, and the Perfect Dodge Window can be tightened. Remedy designed the system to work in both directions.
What Assist Mode setting should I use if I keep dying?
Start by lowering Incoming Damage before jumping to Immortality. If enemies are overwhelming you from multiple directions, also lower Enemy Aggression. Change only the mechanic causing the problem and leave everything else at default first.
What is the best Assist Mode setting for dodging bosses?
Increase the Perfect Dodge Window. This makes the timing more forgiving without changing Dylan’s damage, enemy health, or any other part of the combat system.
What does Shift Tunneling do in Control Resonant?
Shift Tunneling adds a visual vignette effect during rapid Shift movement to reduce the strong visual effect it produces. You can also adjust its intensity. It’s useful if fast movement causes visual discomfort, and works well alongside disabling Motion Blur.
