Control
Play on
Both terms in one sentence
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Obviously, since this play on words doesn't work in English, the translators renamed the latter ability to "ghost" in English, and "trick" has been repurposed for the power to manipulate those objects, simply ayatsuru (manipulate, control) in Japanese.
Source: Video Game / Ghost Trick - In Warlords Battlecry 2, when you play on the Campaign Map initially you control armies from the same race with your hero, but by taking over enemy capitals you can control armies from those capitals.
Source: Defeat Means Playable -
In a play on the trope, it was not his replacement doing the killing in order to advance his career, but Senator Arnos seeking to make sure that he had somebody in the position he could control.
Source: Literature / Codex Alera
Cite this Source
Play on and Control. (2016). Retrieved 2026, August 16, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/control/play_on
Control & Play on. N.p., 2016. Web. 16 Aug. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/control/play_on>.
Play on or Control. 2016. Accessed August 16, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/control/play_on.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "control" and "play on" have occurred on timeline