When the first Moss was launched, more over four years ago, the PSVR’s environment was drastically different. Its community was then thriving and lively. It seemed like an exciting new era of gaming was practically birthing right before our eyes, with many new releases giving a wide range of experiences every week.
The PSVR storefront’s bustle is long gone these days, and good new releases—hell, even terrible to mediocre releases—are hard to come by. Owing to the short lifespan of virtual reality games overall and the frequent release of fresh experiences, it’s reasonable to assume that many people’s PSVR headsets have been collecting dust for some time. Mine has, for sure.
It’s likely that the lack of games is a result of the PSVR 2’s upcoming release. It seems fair to assume that developers would be getting games ready for launch with that instead of pandering to a headset that is about to become outdated, especially because its new controllers and camera-free tracking promise a far better experience overall. For this reason, Moss: Book 2 feels like it came out with less of a bang than it deserved. Even among VR enthusiasts, the announcement of its release hardly raised an eyebrow. It’s the follow-up to one of my all-time favorite VR games.
The tale continues where the first game left off, following a brief synopsis from the narrator in the same enormous library. Once again, you, the Reader, are at Quill’s side in her valiant battle to save the country of Moss from the wicked Arcane. Quill is a brave warrior mouse. This return to Quill not only provides a wonderful recall of the meticulous attention to detail that pervaded the first film, but it also offers a tantalizing glimpse at what lies ahead in terms of presentation.
The first section takes place inside the walls of a dilapidated castle courtyard. Through gaps in the walls, God’s beams illuminate little dust particles that softly descend towards the enormous corpse of Quill’s first-game opponent. Quill emerges from the shadows, and you are surrounded by gray walls with tiny details like protruding bricks and intricate carvings. The paving slabs are covered with weeds and moss and are arranged haphazardly on the floor. The meticulously crafted diorama exudes a sense of realism, living, and most importantly, livability. I’ve played a lot of VR games that are simply so bland—they have flat visuals, lifeless interiors, and an immersion that drains the experience like air from a space station. But this time? This virtual environment is so well-designed that everything just melts away and the outer world is swiftly forgotten. Everything just explodes with life and energy here.
This degree of immersion continues throughout the whole game. Although Quill is first exploring well-known territory, the journey quickly branches out into regions with distinct themes, such as flaming mines and frozen mountains. Every section in the first Moss seemed like you were sitting next to or inside a tiny miniature model hamlet, and initially, Book 2 is no different. But as the game progresses, these self-contained dioramas are frequently swapped out for what appear to be little outdoor levels that are perched above breathtaking vistas that provide expansive panoramas or nauseating plummet.
The only negative aspect of this is that Quill, who is once again animated with the flowing flair of a high-budget Pixar film, is sometimes overlooked in favor of these vistas. Her motions are incredibly genuine, and her expressive body language reveals a startling level of emotion. Speaking of shocks, there were a few significant plot points that were actually touching in this movie. Although there weren’t many surprises in the first Moss narrative, Book 2 does have a few extremely intriguing turns. We are left with a mouthwatering hint as to where the series may go after this.
In addition, Book 2 looks to focus more on action than the first, favoring battle over riddles. The various trinkets that you can only locate if you lean in and look into the many nooks and crannies of the level are still there, as are those delightfully tactile brain puzzles where you have to reach into the levels and push and pull at items. Though it’s unfortunate that there is only one new opponent type in the game, the addition of two new weaponry ensures you’ll spend just as much time fighting as thinking.
The two most impressive weapons in Quill’s new armory, the enormous hammer and the throwable glaive, are her other weapons in addition to her sword. Every weapon has a unique feature that aids in both fighting and the solution of some of the trickier riddles in the game. While the glaive may be used to open doors by being linked to walls and then summoned back to Quill’s hand in the manner of Thor’s hammer, the sword enables Quill to execute a dash attack that can assist her reach out-of-the-way regions. However, the hammer gives you the ability to use motion controls to engage in battle significantly more actively than in the previous game, where you essentially played as Quill’s healer.
Even for an experienced helmet enthusiast like myself, the way it interacts with size, light, and color produces so many “wow” moments. There’s this amazing, iconic scene in a later level in particular when size plays a grand yet ominous role.
It wasn’t always a fairy tale for me with Book 2, though. I found a number of issues throughout my 7-8 hour playtime, ranging from the rare, forgiveable graphic glitch to an uncollectible item and, worst of all, a level where a succession of fading platforms failed to reappear after Quill met her untimely end. Checkpoint resets were ineffective in fixing either of the flaws, and in the case of the latter, the only way to get past the difficult riddles and finish the level was to replay it from beginning to end. To Polyarc’s credit, a developer saw my complaints on Twitter and was able to replicate and fix the flaws after receiving the relevant video. Hopefully, this will result in much more reliable playthroughs in the future.
Moss: Book 2 also reminded me of the limits of the PSVR after I had been away from it for so long. The sooner the PSVR 2 is out and the awkward camera tracking is eliminated, for example, the better. The dualshock 4’s thumbsticks and face button allow for flawless control over Quill, but the light bar tracking for the readers’ ball of energy is constantly dependent on the PSVR camera’s range of vision. Your energy ball will vanish into the distance if you lean in and move the controller too close to the edge of the viewing cone. You must then bring the light bar back into view. Place the controller right in front of the camera to avoid obstructing its view of your headset, which might make the surrounding level jerky.
With the exception of these shortcomings, Quill’s journey serves as an excellent introduction to virtual reality magic for those with little to no expertise. Even for an experienced helmet enthusiast like myself, the way it interacts with size, light, and color produces so many “wow” moments. There’s a particularly amazing, unforgettable scene in a later level when scale plays a spectacular but ominous role, suddenly adding a feeling of dread to the proceedings. Though there were many moments in the beginning when I thought I’d seen it all before, particularly in regards to the enemies, Book 2 is largely a safe sequel. However, the emotional turns and new gameplay elements that are introduced later on make sure that I’m left wanting more by the end.
Moss: If you like the first game as much as I did, then Book 2 is definitely one that you should play. Even if I wouldn’t blame you for hanging out for a PC VR or Quest release—or some sort of package for the launch of PSVR 2—its breathtaking beauty is incentive enough to dust off your PSVR for one final trip before the PSVR 2 comes out. Though I believe Quill is deserving of and capable of embarking on an even more grandiose adventure, both of the Moss games are as brief and charming as their adorable heroine.