How to Increase Anomaly Power
Published 2026-09-254 min read
How to increase Anomaly Power in Control: Resonant: weapon form and combo finisher upgrades, material sources and how to read enemy level matchups.
Anomaly Power is the single stat that decides how much damage Dylan deals in Control: Resonant. It sets the raw output of every weapon form and combo finisher, and by extension whether a given enemy can actually be killed at all. If fights feel unwinnable, the usual cause is Anomaly Power sitting below the level the area expects.
What Anomaly Power does
- It is shared across the whole arsenal. Upgrade it and the damage of every weapon form rises together, not just the weapon currently in hand. You can read the current value on any weapon form or combo finisher panel in the Dream Hollow.
- It drives the stagger system — the yellow bar under an enemy's health. Higher Anomaly Power fills that bar faster; when it maxes out, normal enemies drop into an instantly executable state and bosses are stunned for several seconds. Executions then briefly boost Dylan's damage, so a higher value makes the entire loop snowball in your favor.
The only way to raise it
Every point of Anomaly Power comes from weapon upgrades. Unlocking a new node on any main form, side form or combo finisher adds to the total — even on weapons you never plan to swing. Materials for those upgrades drop from enemies and chests, and each purchase also costs the Source currency.
Step by step
- Open the mutation menu and select the main weapon form. Unlock every available upgrade node to push its number up.
- Repeat for the side forms and the combo finishers. Because all upgrades feed one shared value, spreading your investment across forms still raises total damage.
- Return to the Dream Hollow and check the Anomaly Power figure on your weapon forms. If the number went up, the upgrades took effect.
Skills are a separate system
Skills never increase Anomaly Power. They provide conditional passives — bonus damage from hitting enemies from behind, or from striking status-afflicted targets — which belong to a different layer entirely. Anomaly Power is the unconditional base-damage stat underneath everything.
Paying for the upgrades
Every weapon upgrade consumes both crafting materials and Source. Materials are tied to specific enemy factions, so killing the right enemies is the main supply line — mold-type enemies, for example, drop Edible Clumps — and region merchants sell them too if funds allow. Source itself accumulates fast if you ignore the critical path for a while and sweep map icons and side content; fully clearing one region's activities is usually enough to push Anomaly Power to the top of the late-game curve.
Reading enemy levels against your power
Enemies display a single-digit level next to their name, which looks odd next to your three-digit Anomaly Power. Compare by multiplying the enemy level by ten:
- A level 5 Hiss should be read as Anomaly Power 50 — bring at least 50 to match it.
- For comfortable fights, aim to sit roughly 10 points above the enemy's equivalent value.
- When an enemy vastly outclasses you, the level number is replaced by a skull icon. Skull-marked enemies are not strictly unkillable, but their damage is extreme and the risk is enormous.
Warning: the Resonant raises the whole world
Defeating the Resonant — one of the game's key bosses — permanently raises the Anomaly Power of enemies across every zone and introduces new enemy types into areas you have already cleared. The change is one-way: zones that felt easy become harder and stay that way. Before challenging a region's Resonant, finish the side activities and collectibles you want there first, banking materials and Source while the local enemies are still weak.