![]() Astro Bot Rescue Mission (2018) had a simple mechanic where each level had a nearly-invisible creature hidden within it, which was effective at encouraging me to revisit levels and look in places I might not have thought to look on my first pass. There are some hidden collectibles but they were generally too obvious to really encourage the player to breathe in each scene as a work of art. In fact, the scenes are so rich with detail that I actually wish the game provided more reason for players to look around the environment-if you stay purely focused on getting Quill from A-to-B, you’d be missing out on a significant part of the game’s charm. Each segment is a beautifully detailed diorama with masterful attention to lighting and composition. Polyarc has upped the visual ante, even against the already impressive scenes of the first game. Moss: Book II is split up into small segments in which Quill usually crosses from left to right over the course of a few minutes. ![]() The story picks up immediately where the original Moss left off, so if you haven’t played it yet, you’ll certainly want to start there. Using the orb you can reach into the world to move specific puzzle objects, heal Quill, mind-control enemies, and more. The player plays seated using the PS4 DualShock 4 controller (PS5’s DualSense isn’t supported), and controls Quill with the thumbsticks and buttons, but also has some direct influence over the world thanks to a floating orb that represents the position of the player’s controller. The player controls Quill, an adorable and capable little adventurer, through platforming, light combat, and puzzling. Moss: Book II builds on the same underlying gameplay formula that made the first a great game. The bulk of this review still accurately portrays our experience with the game on both platforms (including the score), but at the bottom of this article you’ll find our thoughts that are specific to a review of Moss: Book II on Quest 2. Update (July 21st, 2022): Moss: Book II is now available on Quest 2. While the game doesn’t think too far outside the box compared to the original Moss, developer Polyarc has refined the best parts of the game to deliver a satisfying direct continuation of Quill’s story. When a giant hand reached upwards to gather a hammer at the end of the gameplay demo, I was surprised to learn it wasn't The Balrog.A whopping four years after its opening chapter, Moss: Book II is finally here to continue the story of Quill, a tiny adventurer destined for an epic journey. While the lush green courtyard with a castle looming in the background and plenty of colourful flowers felt safe and similar to the first game, the second dungeon area felt mechanical and scarier for its tomb-like structure. The two areas I got to see featured starkly different art directions and gave off entirely different feelings. The hammer was shown in puzzle scenarios and a combat room where Quill had to take on enemies with hard shells that needed to be cracked with the powerful hammer strike before getting her regular hits in for the knockout. The player can reach in and tap Quill's hammer and leave a shock wave effect ready to activate at the player's touch. However, what makes it unique is that this is Moss: Book II and player interaction in the game world is essential. In the second area, which seemed like a dank dungeon, or a boiler room, Quill gets access to a hammer, one of a few weapons she'll discover in the game. It all looked like straight-forward puzzle solving, but an element added with the tangibility of performing all of these actions in VR always elevates the simplistic nature. Another time the player knocks out a mechanical bug and winds them up to shoot them into a half-pipe right onto a button that opens a nearby locked gate. This includes pulling out items in the way and connecting new paths by selecting two ends of a broken vine. ![]() At the same time, the player, aka The Spirit Reader, must work with Quill to traverse through the environment. It sounded like they set out with a mission to build upon the massive snake battle that ended the first game and introduce more high cinematic moments like that for the second game.Ī moss-covered castle exterior was where the gameplay I was shown started with Quill taking on a few easy enemies. Polyarc teased several big boss battles coming for players. Quill is being hunted in this game by some winged creature, and although it's easy to assume what it probably is, we didn't see the creature. The story of Moss: Book II picks up right where the first game left off, but Polyarc made it clear you wouldn't need to have played the first game to enjoy Moss: Book II.
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