Parents' Guide to Cosmonious High

The first day at a new school is always stressful. But the first day at an intergalactic school where everything seems to be breaking down, all while going through the alien equivalent of puberty and growing into a new assortment on quirky abilities? Well, that's just another day at Cosmonious High. The game's bright and colorful, with a quirky sort of style and personality that would feel more at home on a kids' show for preschoolers. The characters are an odd mix of cheery and oblivious, which makes for a strong disconnect when they want to carry on happy conversations while the school hallways are literally burning down around them. In fact, for all their bubbly enthusiasm and friendly smiles, the characters are little more than set dressing, providing the occasional distraction between solving puzzles.

In a lot of ways, Cosmonious High feels like an unpolished tech demo, meant to show off the range of activities available in VR, but in a disjointed and half-finished way. Some things work great, like being able to quickly swap between abilities by taping a button on the back of your glove or reaching behind you to grab your backpack and search through your collected items. Other actions, though, are frustratingly clumsy and awkward. One puzzle, for example, requires players to connect a set of colored terminals to their respective matches. Simple enough in theory, but not in practice. Step too close and the terminals are spaced too far to connect in one motion. Step back too far and you can't even reach the terminals. Adding to the frustration, most of the time, the game just sort of expects you to know what to do. There are instructions scattered around the school in the form of textbooks, but those only cover the bare basics of the controls. What you're left with is a sci-fi school experience that leaves you waiting for the bus ride back home.