Highlights
- The popularity of shared universes, like the Marvel Cinematic Universe, has become more undeniable in the last decade or so, extending beyond movies to video games like Titanfall and Control.
- Control, a game by Remedy Entertainment, successfully implemented a connected universe by referencing its own past projects and establishing a connection to Alan Wake, creating intrigue for future Remedy titles.
- Titanfall 3 has the potential to take advantage of the concept of a connected universe by including crossover characters from Apex Legends, creating a stronger connection between the two games and their respective narratives.
In the last few years, connected universes seem to have become all the rage. While crossovers are nothing all that new to the entertainment industry, with popular horror icons having clashed together for decades, it's definitely become more prevalent in the last decade or so, and that's mainly due to the extreme popularity of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Now, a shared universe is a common element across entertainment, with even video games like Titanfall having a universe connected across multiple games.
Both Titanfall and Titanfall 2 had some pretty great world-building, featuring a ton of unique factions, a good handful of interesting characters, and a general outline of what Sci-Fi shenanigans were plaguing the galaxy. Then, in early 2019, Apex Legends took that world-building a bit further, expanding on the universe's factions and lore in a different setting. But if the heavily rumored Titanfall 3 ends up being reality, it has the potential to take this world-building to the next level, just like Remedy Entertainment did with Control.
Titanfall 3 Should Lean All the Way Into its Connected Universe Just Like Control Did
Remedy Entertainment has had a long history of putting Easter eggs and references in its games, some of which have referenced popular movies and TV shows, and some of which have referenced the studio's own past projects. The first Alan Wake, for instance, had a ton of Easter eggs in store, with a handful being not-so-subtle references to Remedy's original Max Payne series. But while these were just harmless, fun references, Control took things to the next level.
Heavily inspired by supernatural thrillers like Twin Peaks, Control sees players make their way through the titular Federal Bureau of Control as they face off against a number of strange Sci-Fi threats. Along the way, they'll learn that the FBC is in charge of covering up phenomena known as Altered World Events, shortened to AWEs. During Control, players can find a piece of in-universe documentation that states that the events of Alan Wake actually occurred in the same universe as Control, and is listed as one of these AWEs. This was further expanded on in the Control AWE DLC, where Alan Wake himself is seen in the Dark Place, and it's widely assumed that fans will see some sort of connection to Control in the upcoming Alan Wake 2.
Though it hasn't resulted in any major payoff just yet, the Remedy Connected Universe is off to an intriguing start, and it lays a great groundwork for future Remedy titles, a groundwork that Titanfall itself also has access to. The connection between Titanfall and Apex Legends isn't too major in its current form. While there's some crossover with factions, weapons, and a character or two, they're both pretty self-contained. Further, much like other live-service multiplayer games, Apex's story isn't really at the forefront of the experience, so there are many fans that probably don't even know the two series are directly connected.
If the rumors about a potential Titanfall 3 are true, then it has the perfect opportunity to really double down on this hot concept of a connected universe, just like Control did a few years ago. There are quite a few different ways in which Titanfall 3 could achieve this, but the easiest would probably be the inclusion of characters that cross between both games. While Titanfall 3 could see an iconic Apex Legends character appear during its campaign, Apex could see a brand-new Titanfall 3 hero come to the battle royale, firmly connecting the two games.