Self-Reflection Guide – Control Side Quest

Control’s shifting halls and cryptic secrets are hallmarks of its haunting atmosphere, but few missions encapsulate its surreal charm like the “Self-Reflection” side quest. This Self-Reflection guide will help you navigate the depths of the Ritual Division, where this challenge tasks you with confronting a twisted mirror-world and battling your own sinister reflection. Below, we dissect every step of this mind-bending journey—from solving its optical puzzles to surviving the brutal boss fight against esseJ—so you can emerge victorious (and sane).

The Setup: Entering the Synchronicity Lab

The quest starts in the Ritual Division, a maze-like part of the Oldest House filled with strange energy. Go west to the Synchronicity Lab, a clean, sharp-edged room packed with weird experiments. The real secret is behind a locked door (Level 6 Clearance) that takes you to the Mirror Testing Lab.

How to Unlock:

• Progress through the main story until you earn Level 6 Clearance (obtained after completing “The Face of the Enemy”).
• Return to the Synchronicity Lab and unlock the locked door.

Stepping inside triggers the quest, where a glowing mirror beckons—but reaching it demands solving a shutter puzzle that’s equal parts logic and illusion.

Cracking the Shutter Puzzle: A Test of Perception

The Mirror Testing Lab’s central chamber houses the prize: a mirror locked behind shutters on both its north and south walls. To open the chamber, manipulate the shutters as follows:

• North Wall:
  • Open the leftmost shutter.
  • Keep the middle and right shutters closed.
• South Wall:
  • Open the two leftmost shutters.
  • Close the rightmost shutter.

This configuration aligns the light paths, unlocking the mirror. Interact with it to plunge into a reflected dimension—a warped version of the Synchronicity Lab where gravity and logic twist.

Inside the Mirror: Exploration and the esseJ Encounter

The mirror world is a confusing copy of the real one. Your job is simple but creepy: find and touch three glass cells around the lab. Each time you touch one, it glows strangely. After all three, esseJ appears—an evil twin with your powers who tries to kill you.

Boss Fight Breakdown: Defeating Your Dark Twin

esseJ’s fight evolves in three escalating phases:

1. Phase 1 (100–66% Health):
   • Attacks: Standard gunfire and object throws.
   • Strategy: Use cover and counter with precise shots.
2. Phase 2 (66–33% Health):
   • New Ability: Deploys a energy shield.
   • Tactic: Bait her attacks, then strike during her shield’s downtime.
3. Phase 3 (33–0% Health):
   • New Ability: Levitates, raining down rapid projectile barrages.
   • Win Condition: Stay mobile! Use Launch to disrupt her attacks and chip away at her health.

Victory rewards the “Altered Manifestations May Occur” trophy/achievement and unlocks deeper lore about the Bureau’s experiments.

Completing the Quest: Cleansing the Mirror

After beating esseJ, return to the mirror and cleanse it to exit the dimension. The quest concludes with Ability Points, mods, and unsettling insights into the Hiss’s influence.

This quest isn’t just a combat gauntlet—it’s a narrative gem that echoes Control’s themes of identity and duality. The mirrored world and esseJ’s relentless aggression reflect Jesse’s internal struggles, making the encounter as philosophically rich as it is challenging.

Now that you’ve mastered the mirror realm, dive into other enigmatic challenges: Untangle the fungal chaos of What a Mess: Talk to the Plants, take command of shifting environments in Take Control, or unravel the explosive finale of Finish Tango.

Have you battled esseJ? Did the mirror dimension’s warped reality leave you spellbound? Share your triumphs, theories, or lingering questions in the comments below—and remember: in the Oldest House, even reflections bite back.