Moss

Moss casts the player as a silent guardian who, from a first-person perspective, watches over and influences the adventure of a tiny mouse named Quill in a fairy-tale, hand-painted world. Quill herself is controlled with an analog stick like in a classic third-person platformer, while the player simultaneously acts as a kind of invisible deity who can, using the Move controller, manipulate levers, move platforms, or temporarily control magical objects in the environment. This combination of two layers of control – direct control of the character and indirect influence over the world around her – is the core of the game's originality. Quill handles combat against goblins and other enemies herself with her own sword and acrobatic jumps, but the player often helps from behind by pinning an enemy in place with a magic field or opening the way to further progress, turning combat into the shared work of two participants.

The dioramas through which Quill moves are designed so the player feels they are looking into a real, tangible model of a medieval fantasy landscape full of moss, stone ruins, and glowing mushrooms. The visual style is detailed and cozy, the music supports a fairy-tale, at times melancholic atmosphere, and Quill's animation ranks among the most distinctive characters VR offered on PSVR – her expressions and gestures could evoke strong empathy in players, even though she doesn't speak a single word throughout the whole game. The player can also pet or greet Quill with a hand gesture at any time, and she reacts to these small gestures, which deepens the relationship between character and player in a way classic on-screen controls can hardly offer.

Moss was praised at release as one of the best proofs that VR need not be limited to first-person action experiences, but can also work as a thoughtfully designed narrative platformer with puzzles. Studio Polyarc built a reputation through the game as one of the most capable smaller teams in the scene, and the title became a model for later games that combine direct character control with spatial puzzles solved from an observer's perspective.

Proč hrát: For a thoughtfully designed narrative platformer with puzzles solved from an observer's perspective, Moss offers proof that VR doesn't have to be just about first-person action.