One of the most serene VR titles shown at the PlayStation conference this year at E3 was Polyarc's Moss.
With a small mouse named Quill, you traverse a lush jungle, we see a fairy-tale world come to life, complete with rich colors and vibrant effects. Quill is a mouse with dreams of greatness, and goes on an epic journey through forgotten realms with the guidance of player. The player controls an orb guiding her throughout the world, solving puzzles and fighting against enemies and other obstacles.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_TTBaNw6Eek
The player's abilities are complementary to Quill’s, combining classic, action-adventure controls with a world that responds to your touch. The goal, according to Polyarc, is to work together to accomplish Quill's hero's journey.
"We are designing Moss with the fundamentals that we know make a great action-adventure game while at the same time considering every decision with the unique strengths and opportunities VR offers fully in mind, ' stated Tam Armstrong, co-founder and CEO of Polyarc in a press release. "As a studio dedicated to the new medium of VR, our goal is still the dream we've always had as game developers- to create engaging worlds and share them with everyone."
The trailer is short, but provides a good window of what to expect from Moss, a mix of action and puzzle gameplay that can only be showcased on the PlayStation VR.
Moss is scheduled for a holiday 2017 release.
Quick Take
Moss looks really good as a PSVR title. I am a sucker for story-book style fairy-tales, especially ones that are basically trying to recreate the Hero's Journey. Moss also reminds me of Mouse Guard and Secret of Nimh a bit, those fantasy-styled media that always used mice and other anthropomorphic animals as their primary protagonists.Out of all the PSVR titles, Moss was the only one that really captured some of the magic I would expect from a VR experience. It does look like a different style of game compared to the others. Hopefully Moss is financially successful as well, PSVR needs some unique titles that don't focus too much on first-person shooting, so hopefully the puzzles and action in the game gel together.
What are your thoughts on Moss? Please leave your comments below and please check out the rest of our E3 coverage at our E3 coverage hub.
