Combat Abilities are the special skills that Dylan can unlock and use in Control Resonant. To earn them, you need to defeat special and optional enemies in the game’s different locations. Once you do, you’ll have Parautilitarian abilities at your disposal, which will range from summoning strange creatures to putting yourself on fire for extra damage. However, you can only select one skill from each boss you defeat. So, which Combat Abilities are the best?
To learn what each Combat Ability does and which ones are best for you, keep reading this IGN guide for a full list.
How to Unlock a Combat Ability
You’ll earn your first Combat Ability after defeating The Artist, the Resonant from the prologue. You’ll have to choose only one between three abilities, and you can test them against a regular enemy in the Gap, the special interdimensional place that only Dylan can access.
However, keep in mind that once you exit the Gap, you won’t be able to swap your Combat Ability. To do so, you’ll have to use a Reset Item, which you get from Vendors (it’s expensive, though: 5,000 Source) and by defeating other Resonants.
Speaking of Resonants, these are labeled as “optional bosses” in the game, but you’ll definitely want to beat all of them as soon as possible, since they will always add new Combat Abilities and increase your protagonist’s repertoire. There’s one Resonant in every Zone, and you'll always have to choose which Combat Ability you want from them.
The Artist’s Combat Abilities
The Artist is part of the game's prologue, and you can't miss the fight. It will give you one of three possible Combat Abilities.
Barrage
- Effect: Sends projectiles hurtling towards a target.
If you like throwing stuff, Barrage is a simple yet useful ability to have. It deals significant Falter (stun damage) when you throw many projectiles in a row, and it's always good to have a long-range option against enemies — every weapon in Dylan's arsenal is either close or medium-range.
Volatile Anomaly
- Effect: Summon an ally that can be thrown and detonated - does more Damage if the ally has low health.
This small ally is not only useful because it throws projectiles on its own and you make it explode, but also because it takes enemy aggro. If you think you'll have too much trouble during your first hours and prefer to have a sidekick, it's not a bad choice. Plus, there are Talent upgrades that can increase its health and add other properties.
Shield
- Effect: Shield absorbs damage. Its durability is equal to the Power meter.
An excellent ability against some annoying moves from early Hiss, like the flying creature that shoots a laser. It's also neat that you can use this shield offensively by dashing in front of an enemy. It will consume your Power Gauge quickly, though, so it might not be a great one to have at first.
The Dancer's Combat Abilities
The Dancer is the Resonant available in the West Incursion Zone. When you defeat it, you'll receive one of two Combat Abilities.
Push
- Effect: Sends enemies flying backward. Push them off ledges and into hazards for more Damage.
This can be a good defensive or offensive ability depending on your context. For example, most of your first battles will be on the streets, so there is not much you can do besides pushing enemies away — which is great for catching a break! But if you fight frequently on rooftops (or later in the game, in areas with big falls), you can automatically kill many types of enemies by throwing them into the abyss.
There's also a neat upgrade that lets you pass the affected status you applied to one enemy (such as Infected or Burn) to others near it.
Ground Slam
- Effect: Slams enemies from above. The area of effect and amount of Damage can be boosted if executed from higher up.
A big slam. There isn't really anything more than that. It's a good battle starter, though, especially when you are on high ground.
The Deserter's Combat Abilities
The Deserter is the Resonant located in Central. It will give you one of two Combat Abilities when you defeat it, and they are based on fire.
Ignite
- Effect: Melee Attacks and Barrage, Shield, and Volatile Anomaly do Fire Damage that applies Burn.
A simple but really useful boost to your moves. Now every melee attack you use will inflict Burn, and when the enemy's Burn Gauge is full, they will start losing health over time, and you'll deal more Damage and Falter. Plus, you can combine this with other Combat Abilities, but keep in mind that Ignite already drains your Power Gauge when used.
Inferno
- Effect: Generates increasingly intense Fire waves applying Burn that builds up.
In essence, this works like Ignite, but instead of imbuing your already known attacks or moves with Burn, it gives you unique attacks. They do more Damage and Falter, but they also consume your Power Gauge faster.
The Collective's Combat Abilities
The Collective is the Resonant located in the Park. Defeat it for one of two possible Combat Abilities — both let you build Infected, a status ailment.
Spore Burst
- Effect: Rapidly fire Mold projectiles at a target, building up Infected.
Charge your shot, and you'll fire a line of Mold Projectiles against one or multiple targets. It's strong because you only need one barrage of projectiles to infect any enemy, and you can infect multiple weaker ones at once.
Growth
- Effect: Summon a Mold Ally that shoots spores at enemies. These spores build up Infected over time.
Another summon ability. It does the same thing as Spore Burst, with the key difference that your Mold Ally takes aggro. Plus, you can unlock a Talent that lets you have more allies.
The Physicist's Combat Abilities
The Physicist is the Resonant located in The Underpass. It gives you one of two Combat Abilities, and both feature Astralized — Astralized enemies will suffer more from Burn and Infected.
Spike
- Effect: Summon an Astral Spike to attack enemies. It can also be directed to attack and knock down a target. Builds up Astralized.
The third and last Summon ability. Spike is the best of the bunch because Astralized is a strong status ailment that you should prioritize, and it has great health. It might not deal a lot of damage, but it will tank any enemy distracted by it, so you don't need to worry about it.
Astral Rebuke
- Effect: Unleash a homing spike that erupts beneath enemies and throws them in the air. Applies Lifted and builds up Astralized.
Some of Dylan's Aberrant Forms can lift enemies, which is a great tool because they are vulnerable for a few seconds and can't do anything while lifted. If your favorite weapons don't do that, however, don't panic: you can pick up Astral Rebuke and let it do it for you. Just keep in mind that it is better used while you lock on to an enemy, since it can track unwanted creatures when the camera is free.
Both Combat Abilities are great. In fact, I used my Pope Research's special reward to have both unlocked at the same time.
The Co-Director's Combat Abilities
The Co-Director is the last Resonant you can find in Control Resonant. It's located in The Unknown, and it will give you only one ability.
Command
- Effect: Take over an enemy's mind and turn them into an ally.
Yes, now you can control an enemy (or a couple) in every battle. It doesn't matter if it's small or big, but you need to have Command Charges (found in the levels). However, you can drastically improve this Combat Ability with many Talents: you can increase your total Command Charges, make it easier to find them, turn defeated enemies on your side, and also make fallen Commanded enemies explode.
It's clearly a late-game Combat Ability that feels overpowered and doesn't have many downsides. Plus, you don't need to waste one slot to equip it; it has its own ability slot and button. Have fun!
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