Control guide: Ashtray Maze

Control’s Ashtray Maze is one of the game’s most interesting parts and intriguing puzzles. It’s also one of the game’s most confusing conundrums.

In this guide, we’ll tell you how get through the Ashtray Maze, but we’re only going to do that after a long image to avoid spoilers. Because the answer will spoil things.

Here’s the short version: If you’re confused and running in circles, feel free to walk away. Go do something else, and return later. There’s not advantage that we can discern from being there now — and we can say that with confidence even if we don’t know where you are in the game. Trust us on that.

Ready for the longer, spoilerly answer? Scroll down to find the answer beneath the image.

Remedy Entertainment via Polygon

You can’t solve the Ashtray Maze until you get an item from Ahti, Control’s strange “janitor.” You’ll get those headphones as part of a main story mission near the end of the game. Then and only then will you be able to navigate the Ashtray Maze and play what might be the best — and certainly most ludicrous — part of Control.

And we won’t spoil that part, either.