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Media Molecule’s debut title is quite clever.
LittleBigPlanet, conceptually, is where human imagination rests—the place that contains our collective untapped creativity. The game contains eight worlds, each of which has different themes ranging from Japan (with plenty of ninjas) to Mexico. Each of these worlds contains three or four levels, which can be completed in about ten minutes. Each level also has an additional challenge, which extends beyond the traditional platforming gameplay. You explore the levels sequentially, but you can replay levels to find items you missed, which allow you unlock additional stickers and costumes.
Calling LittleBigPlanet a platformer would be misguided, though, since the game places such a heavy emphasis on customization and user creation. You can customize your characters and levels with costumes and find extras that extend the replayability of the game. These extras include things like hot air ballon races, and are fun since the actual platforming elements are basic. Further, each level is so wonderfully designed and clever that you can’t help but want more once you’re done playing. In a way, the levels are there to serve as inspiration for the game’s thorough level creation system.
You can showcase your creativity by tinkering with the game’s star, Sackboy. You can dress him up in different costumes, change the color of his sack, accessorize him with glasses and hats and so forth. Part of the character’s charm is how expressive he is. You can use the D pad to control facial expressions (including being happy, sad, angry and scared), use the analog sticks to move his arms around, and using the motion controls to move his head and hips.
In multiplayer, both local and online, LittleBigPlanet’s quirkiness and creativity really come through. The game has a certain magic that seems to get unlocked when you’re playing with other people, especially since you can then discuss what just happened with friends. There are some puzzles in the game that can only be solved by playing with friends (up to three others) including gates that have to be opened at a different location than the gate’s location, etc. The camera sometimes struggles to keep up with multiple players, causing a few accidental deaths but nothing that majorly distracts from the experience. The game is fairly generous with giving you lives and you’re able to respawn fairly close to where you left off (until you run out of lives, which will require re-starting the level).
You can go through the singleplayer or multiplayer campaigns in about six hours, and can easily find another four hours or so by going back and finding additional items. In addition to the main campaigns, LittleBigPlanet also includes a surprisingly thorough level creation system. Using the system, you can place structures, create characters (including setting up their AI routine), set up puzzles or even throw in vehicles. While Media Molecule did a respectable job of making the level creator accessible (including plenty of tutorials) it still takes some time to build decent levels. The amount of creating, editing and testing required to build something equivalent to one of the included levels would be daunting for most players, but the potential is there for the community to do something amazing.
Online multiplayer works very well, too. The ability to share created levels is also well done. You can easily move levels from your console to the game’s online sharing system, where you can then choose from preset tags to best describe your level. You can select your favorite designers. Once you choose a level to play, the game will automatically steam the level for you to play. If you like a level a lot you can download it to your own saved game.
Visually, LittleBigPLanet is a looker even if it doesn’t have to be. Technically, the game is surprisingly competent with amazing reflections, lighting effects, and particle effects (ranging from smoke and fire to electricity). The particle effects look especially good when they’re used on Sackboy, especially given how expressive the character is. But the game’s visuals really shine because of the artistic look that Media Molecule went for. The patchwork style is lovely and fits the game perfectly, as well as looking genuinely cute and charming.
Aurally, Stephen Fry’s English accent provides a perfect complement to the game’s visual style. The narration is as clever as the visual style, too, which is great. The soundtrack is equally pleasant, including a good mix of indie artists that fit the game very well.
LittleBigPlanet is one of those games that seemingly comes out of nowhere and redefines what you think is possible in a videogame. Each of the levels here are wonderfully delightful and imaginative, giving you a glimpse of what is possible from the designers at Media Molecule. The level creation system shows a lot of promise and may produce magnificent things in the future. -- Adam Nunez, PGNx Media
---- Nov 13, 2008
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