Back in the heyday of the PlayStation VR, when Sony wasn’t treating that amazing system as a more embarrassing stepchild than the equally underrated Vita, Moss was one of the visor’s first killer apps. It was one of the first “non-experience” VR games for the system; a full-fledged game that proved that third-person platformers were a perfect fit for VR, presenting itself in a quasi-diorama way. It was also nausea-free, a crucial element on the early days of VR, with tons of newcomers trying out the technology for the first time. It took developers Polyarc many years to release its sequel, but I think it was worth it, with one big advantage. Moss: Book II isn’t out solely on PSVR, but on its competitor (and vastly superior machine): the Quest 2.

At first, Moss: Book II doesn’t look any different from its predecessor, with the exception of some slightly sharper visuals, which is further proof that the Quest 2 can handle graphically intensive games with relative ease. It’s still heavily story-driven, with very long cutscenes, and presented as a narrated fairy tale, with the player themself being an active character in the story, the divine force helping out adorable protagonist Quill solve puzzles with the mystical powers of motion controls. It also takes place immediately after the end of the first game, which is a bit confusing for newcomers, but a treat for veterans. The game does explain everything that happened in the first game for the uninitiated however, so don’t fret.

In terms of gameplay, Moss: Book II is more Moss. It’s more of that entry-level VR magic that’s perfect for newcomers to the technology, all thanks to its simple controls and sickness-free gameplay. The game is still a third-person platformer, in which you control both Quill with the analog sticks, as well as the divine force of the Narrator with the motion capabilities of your controller, moving around objects in each static map in order to solve puzzles and such. Even though it’s more of the same, two things in particular make Moss: Book II stand out. Both of them are tied to the system I tested the game on.

Playing Moss: Book II on the Quest 2 felt a lot better than playing Moss on the PSVR. The first reason is the fact that you have two controllers at your disposal, allowing for faster and more intuitive puzzle-solving. The second reason was the sole fact that the Quest 2 is a more intuitive and user-friendly system than the PSVR in general. Booting the game up without having to worry about setting cords up or being in front of a camera allowed me to properly explore each beautifully-crafted diorama with ease. The game also loads slightly quicker than Moss did on the PSVR, all thanks to the Quest’s usage of more modern storage devices.

In most cases, a game being “more of the same”, not being THAT different from its predecessor, would be considered a disappointment. In the case of Moss: Book II, however, being more of what made that 2018 game so special isn’t bad at all, since that title left us wanting more upon beating it. I liked it more than its predecessor not only because of the slightly better design, but also due to the improved controls, courtesy of the Quest’s hardware. What was once a killer app for the PSVR is finally able on the more accessible VR headset out in the market, and I couldn’t be happier about it. If you own a Quest, do yourself a favor and pick Moss: Book II up immediately.

 

Graphics: 8.5 Moss: Book II is proof that the mobile hardware of the Quest 2 is more than capable of rendering beautiful and detailed worlds with the smoothest of framerates.	Gameplay: 9.5 The biggest game changer in Moss: Book II, namely in the Quest 2 version in particular, is being able to handle two items at once with each of the Quest’s controllers, resulting in a much more user-friendly experience.
Sound: 8.0 Not very different from the original Moss, but that’s not an issue. No need to fix what wasn’t broken. The occasional music sample coupled with fine sound effects and excellent voice acting result in a pretty good package.	Fun Factor: 9.0 It isn’t THAT different from the first game. It’s more of what you loved four years ago, but bigger and better. In short, it’s exactly what a sequel like this game in particular needed to be. Most of what makes it better than the original is a consequence of the Quest itself.
Final Verdict: 9.0

Moss: Book II is available now on PSVR and Meta Quest 2.

Reviewed on Meta Quest 2.

A copy of Moss: Book II was provided by the publisher.