izigame.me

“The greatest adventure is what lies ahead.
Today and tomorrow are yet to be said.
The chances, the changes are all yours to make.
The mold of your life is in your hands to break~ 🎶”
~Jules Bass, The Ballad of The Hobbit

Do you like fairy tales as much as I do? Seriously, in my opinion, the one just can't be too old for a good fairy tale. Exactly the opposite. We all need one from time to time. And that's, ladies and gentlemen, is exactly what we've got here. A carefully crafted fairy tale made with a lot of love. Which is... kinda surprising. I mean, even though Moss is Polyarc, Inc.'s very first game, the guys are far from being amateurs. Exactly the opposite. Polyarc is a small team that started with some ex-BUNGiE employees. Moss is a child of Richard Lico, who's known for 3D models he made for games like HALO 3: ODST, HALO: Reach and Destiny series. Talking about Destiny, by the way. A lot of Destiny guys here. Chris Alderson, Mike Jensen, Corinne Scrivens, James Yavorsky, Stephen Hodde, Tam Armstrong, Danny Bulla, Tam Armstrong, Brendan Walker... They're all here. Graphic designers, 3D artists, sound designers, programmers...
Don't expect Moss to be anything like Destiny, though. Or like any other BUNGiE title out there. Like I said, Moss is a fairy tale. Remember when Ron Gilbert and Shelley Day quit LucasArts to start telling kids their own stories in games like Putt-Putt, Pajama Sam and the others? That's pretty much what we have here. Some big guys quit BUNGiE to tell us a fairy tale. While controlling a young mouse called Quill, we should face a lot of dangers in order to save our uncle. And the atmosphere-wise? It's brilliant. Imagine Hanna-Barbera's Once Upon a Forest mixed with the prologue part from Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and a slight aftertaste of Majora's Mask. That's pretty much how Moss feels. Sure, there isn't much going on in this game, but the attention to details? It's absolutely fantastic. Quill is an incredibly cute character and thanks to how she's perfectly animated... No, seriously, she's so cute you'll want to hug her. Wait... you actually can! Thanks to how Moss is a proper VR title, you can actually pet Quill, give her high fives and so on. Cuteness overload!
But of course, it isn't just about Quill. I don't know about you, but personally, I always had a very special place in my heart for stories about tiny creatures in the big world. Books, cartoons, video games... Everything – from Astrid Lindgren's Nils Karlsson Pyssling to Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers and Pikmin. I love it all. And Moss? It captures that certain atmosphere perfectly. I didn't mention Once Upon a Forest for nothing. Moss is a game about unlikely little hero in a big world full of dangers. For me? It's more than enough to enjoy this game. But honestly, the good things don't end here.
Every level in this game is like a tiny little diorama that comes with a puzzle to solve and a secret or two. Reminds me a little bit of Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker. I mean, even though gameplay-wise, Moss is (way) closer to what we had in CAPCOM's Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros' Treasure, every screen here looks like a handmade diorama you're free to explore. Doesn't sound that special and technically, it isn't (especially levels here are really, really tiny), but as usual, VR makes everything better. See, VR here isn't only about juicy 3D with particles and stuff. In this game, you'll be able to look at diorama-like levels from different angles. And it's a very nice touch, since from time to time, you'll actually need to change the angle, since some things here will be hidden behind the others.
Don't expect Moss to be too hard or complicated, though. Technically, it's even more simple than Zack & Wiki. It's a very basic game that the entire family will be able to enjoy. It's pretty short too. Well, not too short (four hours of gameplay is not really that bad for $29.99 VR title), but still, it's short and the latest update that added some sort of a hidden levels that you can access by finding secret entrances, doesn't really help much. My biggest complain, though, is the fact that... this game ends with the cliffhanger. Sure, Polyarc are already working on the next chapter (you can easily find its trailer on YouTube), but honestly, “to be continued in the next game” is not... what I like seeing in $29.99 game that doesn't even have “Episode I” in its title. Doesn't look fair to me. Especially since there's no 100% guarantee that the sequel won't end up being a lifetime PlayStation exclusive (I'm not trying to say that there's something wrong with the exclusives, but buying yet another helmet just to be able to learn about how things end is not... really a good idea). I can deal with the short game, but at least, give me a proper finale, will you?
And still, Moss is a beautiful game. And while it's far from being the most complicated VR experience I ever had (the entire game is just that – a set of cute, yet basic puzzles, mixed with some Zelda-like battles), it's sure one of the cutest ones. Probably the cutest one. That certain feeling I had when I saw Link waking up at stormy night, hearing Princess Zelda calling for him, asking him to save her from evil Agahnim, who trapped her in the castle's dungeon? That certain feeling is totally here, in this game. Moss is cute, Moss is charming and all in all, Moss is, like, a perfect fairy tale for the entire family.
P.S. A couple of technical details. Steam version of the game supports three different headsets – Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and Valve Index. But if, like yours truly, you have HTC Vive, you're out of luck. Don't get me wrong, though. The game will work totally fine and you'll still be able to enjoy it, but it looks like controls here were made for something more gamepad-like. Which means that Oculis Rift and Valve Index with their sticks would probably feel way better. It's not like Moss is unplayable with HTC Vive controllers, but... you know how it is. Those feel a bit messy in this game and you'll have a little bit more problems than needed with some achievements. Like the one that requires you to do things without dying. Again, it's impossible to die in this game completely (you have infinite tries and therefore can die as many times as you want), so, messy controls won't affect your playthrough that much, but as long as you have a choice – go for something with sticks.
This game is also fully integrated into SteamVR environment and finishing it will award you with a cute little Quill prop. Personally, I love such stuff. Always thought that it deserved more attention. I mean, come on, Valve! SteamVR desperately needs an update! With more props, better UI and more showcases! One way or another, though, since I think I can call myself a fan, I was really glad to put Quill statue on my virtual shelf. Thanks for giving this game a proper treatment on PC, Polyarc! Can't wait for a sequel.