While Control is generally considered to be a great game and a step up in terms of quality from the not-bad-not-mindblowing Xbox exclusive Quantum Break, many fans of the game still have issues with the world and the narrative of the game. However, one thing that most fans agree on is how good the Ashtray Maze sequence is towards the end of the game.
Not only is the Ashtray Maze one of the most unique areas of the FBC, but it also heavily features the amazing song Take Control by the-universe band Old Gods of Asgard, which is itself an alternate name of the Finnish rock band Poets of the Fall. Despite how much many players will want to rush to this sequence, there are a few things that players should know before jumping into the end-game of Control.
7 It Was Created By An Object Of Power
While the exact number of Objects of Power found inside the FBC isn't known, what players do know is that there are, at least, 22, as the Home Safe that grants Jesse her Shield ability is labeled in memos as OOP22-KE. The Ashtray and Cigarette Object of Power, labeled OOP11-KE, is, during the events of Control, bound to the former Director of the FBC Zachariah Trench and is the reason for the Ashtray Maze's existence. The location of the Ashtray and Cigarette aren't known during the events of the game, though it may be the same ashtray in Trench's office and the cigarette that he is often seen smoking in the Hotline cinematics.
6 You Can't Enter It Before The Story Allows It
Players are able to reach the exterior of the Ashtray Maze in the early hours of the game, though they will quickly discover that they will simply be sent around in circles and won't be able to progress through the area. Once Jesse discovers what is on the other side of the maze, she will be given a "Pony" walkman from Ahti that will allow her to traverse the area and continue the story.
Either the walkman, or the song Take Control, seems to have some effect on the person in possession of it, as Ahti has been noted to have appeared on the other side of the maze despite not being authorized by Trench, leaving many FBC employees very confused as to who or what he is.
5 It Leads To The Dimensional Research Sector
The main reason why players will want to progress through this area, aside from the sequence itself, is to reach the Dimensional Research Sector where Trench and Darling hid the Slide Projector Object of Power from the rest of the world. This was apparently a good idea since the Slide Projector allowed the Hiss to invade the FBC despite being separated from the rest of the building by the maze itself. It also made it much harder for Jesse to find the Slide Projector when she needed to cleanse it herself. That being said, it seems as though Trench wanted to hide the Slide Projector for his own use, as he became infected by the Hiss shortly after using it and was the sole reason why the Hiss were able to invade in the first place.
4 There Will Be Many Powerful Hiss Inside
As the Ashtray Maze traversal takes place late in the game, it should be no surprise that the area is crawling with many powerful Hiss, including the Hiss Elevated that have similar telekinetic powers to Jesse after finding the Floppy Disc Object of Power. Thankfully, by this point in the game, Jesse should be more than capable of taking care of a swarm of Hiss-infected FBC employees, though caution should still be taken as it is quite a long sequence if players die and need to repeat the area over again.
3 "Take Control" Will Keep Playing As Long As You Are Inside
The album version of Take Control isn't a short song by any means, coming in at around 8 minutes long. However, the song used in the Ashtray Maze sequence is a little different and will continue playing even if you haven't reached the end in time for the song to conclude.
This also means that, if players are able to finish the area fairly quickly, that the song may abruptly end if they reach the Dimensional Research Sector before the song has a chance to loop the instrumental sequence, which can be somewhat jarring if you have listened to the song before.
2 Subsequent Runs Will Be Much Faster
Many players will be itching to do subsequent runs through the Ashtray Maze in order to relive the height of that level. But if players attempt to go through the maze again after having completed it once before, they will instead be transported to either end of the maze, depending on which side they started on. However, this can be worked around by using the Mission Select option in the main menu, which allows the player to play through the mission "Polaris" over again and experience the mission in its entirety.
1 Ahti Is The Only Other Person Who Can Traverse The Maze
For the most part, the only person who can traverse a maze created from the Ashray and Cigarette Object of Power is the person who it is bound to, as well as anyone that particular person wished to be able to. Since Trench is dead from the beginning of the game, this makes the maze apparently impossible to traverse, though Ahti proves this to not be the case. By the end of the game, it is fairly obvious that Ahti isn't a human and there are many memos around the FBC that point to him having inhabited the Oldest House before the FBC took it over as their base of operations. Since Trench is dead and Ahti is the only other person who can traverse the maze, the only way anyone else is getting into Dimensional Research is if Ahti allows it or if Jesse lends someone else his walkman.