While Cosmoscouts – the small indie dev team behind Moon Mystery – is thrilled with comparisons to Starfield, it’s perhaps an easy connection to make. Since Starfield arrived, most any space game now has parallels drawn to the Bethesda hit, when, in fact, it’s important to judge new space games on their own merit.
First off, consider that Moon Mystery is made by a far smaller team. What Cosmoscouts achieves in comparison is a moving, densely narrative-driven RPG full of mystery and intrigue. A more linear game, which is no bad thing, Moon Mystery finds you, Sam, stranded on the moon with the endearing AI TOBY as your only companion.
Very little is revealed in the early game about what’s going on, and you’re left to explore the moon’s surface in a satisfyingly intriguing and immersive way. There’s minimal interference on screen, with a small health HUD and compass being the only things in your vision. There’s no ugly location marker on your interface, either, as your target is again only shown on the compass. This is what you want from a narrative in which you’re alone on a foreign planet with no way of getting home. There’s more at play here, with the mystery gradually revealing itself as you progress.
It’s hard, then, to talk about the story without revealing anything, and we want to let you discover that for yourself as was intended, but it is worth mentioning that there are some real-life influences at play here – almost an alternative reality, perhaps. But, naturally, there are references to the 1968 moon landing and the American politics of the time, and what you’re unraveling feels believable. This mysterious story and minimal UI show real thought and consideration for the design of Moon Mystery and how it feels to play, with a first-person perspective to boot.
Aside from being just a story game, there are clever puzzles scattered throughout your adventure – and they aren’t easy, either. Again, as with most of the rest of the game, there is little to no explanation of what you need to do, and you have to just figure it out yourself. This furthers that isolation and immersion of actually being the person stuck in a strange place with no outside help, and we love that – more games need that.
Then, there’s your space buggy. Sure, Starfield might have added vehicles after the fact, but, in Moon Mystery, they’re baked into the story. Driving on the moon as represented here feels believably tricky to control, but still smooth and enjoyable at the same time. There’s even an RC car that you use to gather resources. On the subject of movement, there’s your own personal gravity, which you can feel change when you leave the station and set foot on the surface of the moon. All these small things not only help make the game feel more realistic but highlight how much love Cosmoscouts has poured into this project.
It’s clear that the team are space nerds themselves, and want to impart some knowledge to their players. In fact, instead of gameplay pointers, every loading screen features little facts about space. Every day is a school day, gamers.
And of course there’s plenty of combat in Moon Mystery as you explore other stations, and they and their hostile residents weave themselves into your own story. This combat isn’t difficult, at least to start with, but that doesn’t matter, as this isn’t just an FPS game. That said, just when things do ramp up and you can no longer defend yourself with a handgun, a handy loadout system comes into play. This weapon-crafting machine allows you to manufacture not only your favorite weapons but also the attachments to go with them: optics, muzzles, and more. The best part about this is the fact that you can’t access it whenever you want, again feeding back into that realism. You can only add to your loadout when you come across one of these machines.
There’s a skill tree in here too, but trust us when we say this is no game of all trades and master of none. Moon Mystery, with its carefully thought out structure, appearance, and features, somehow checks the RPG, FPS, space, and story game boxes with ease, and nothing feels like it’s done for the sake of it, or with little effort.
Moon Mystery’s beautiful soundtrack also stands out. In battle, audio clues reveal whether there are still enemies standing, and the combat music is pounding and intense. Meanwhile, in more emotional scenes or explorative sections, a slow and soothing soundtrack takes over that’s peaceful and yet somehow haunting, elevating that feeling of loneliness.
Finally, and perhaps the most important thing of all, is that the characters are charming, enhanced by the excellent voice acting. Of course, you’re ‘alone’ here, but you start with TOBY, who, as we mentioned, is utterly enchanting. Later, there are more characters to meet and even befriend, like Pal, who is just the sweetest. These characters introduce some emotional depth to keep the story grounded, such as TOBY learning empathy while your player character misses his family on Earth.
All of these things come together to make Moon Mystery more than a simple space exploration game. It has heart, warmth, and myriad gameplay styles that all feel fully realized. Cosmoscouts has achieved what many triple-A teams have struggled to do, proving that passion and integrity make all the difference in game development.