LittleBigPlanet Review - PS3

“In creating, the only hard thing’s to begin,” a poet once said. Well, Media Molecule’s highly anticipated PlayStation 3 exclusive LittleBigPlanet gives you that beginning. Similar to Spore, only much more so thanks to the incredible level editor, LBP not only gives you a fantastic game out of the box, but it also gives you a robust toolset to create worlds, adventures and experiences that are entirely original and unique to every single player. The game has a few issues that could certainly use some tweaking, but they don’t even come close to making this anything less than one of the most incredible games ever made.

Let There Be Sackboy

After the most charming and adorable opening credit sequence ever, during which you first take control of Sackboy, you’re thrown into the game’s story mode (the only one available at first). These first few levels introduce you to the basic controls. They also plant the seed for the rest of the game’s single-player narrative. It’s simple, straightforward and perfectly sets the tone for the entire experience by introducing you to quirky characters, fantastical settings and a droll British narrator who rivals GlaDos for wittiest and nuttiest disembodied voice in a video game.

LBP’s story is one of worldwide adventure, death defying rescues, perilous puzzle solving and, ultimately, friendship (Aww). You’ll visit various countries and encounter all manner of inventive and stylish environments, characters, outfits, stickers and objects along the way. One minute you’re jumping between stampeding buffaloes in a burning African savannah, the next you’re maneuvering across subway cars beneath a U.S. metropolis. From Russia’s frozen tundra to the dusty canyons of the American West, you’ll never be wanting for variety or ways for your mind to be blown.

As far as the gameplay goes, it’s not nearly as tight as it could be. While the physics-based platforming is glorious to see and a blast to toy around with, it can make traversing levels frustrating at times. This is due in large part to the game’s jumping controls. And for a platformer, bad jumping controls can often be a deal breaker. Fortunately, LBP never gets to the point of being unplayable, but it could definitely used some. Also, because momentum plays such a huge part in Sackboy’s movement, it’s easy to overshoot or undershoot a platform, which more often than not results in your death. Also, successfully correcting yourself in mid-air will often come down to luck more than skill.

Control issues become even more pronounced during co-op play, since having multiple characters trying to maneuver across swings, beams and other timing-sensitive obstacles at the same time can be almost impossible if everyone isn’t willing to wait their turn and really work together. Now, it’s not the developers’ fault that people are selfish, but because of the style of gameplay, it can have an even more pronounced effect on the overall experience.

The checkpoint/set-number-of-lives system can also make the single player portion of the game a bit less casual than some people might expect. Especially in the latter part of the game, where the puzzles can be almost unfairly difficult, like halfway through one of the Russian-themed levels where you have to maneuver through a giant wheel filled with electric panels. The jumps require split second timing, made even harder by the controls, and if you die, you re-spawn all the way back at the top of the wheel, where there is good chance you’ll be spit out onto an electrical panel, which kills you instantly. More than once I had to restart the entire level because I was unlucky enough to re-spawn right on a trap. There is nothing casual about that. While the game definitely has a laid back, relaxing, feel, there are several spots that will really challenge casual players, almost to a fault.

These complaints might sound harsh, but they rarely stop the game from being an absolute blast. For every one moment of frustration there are a thousand smile-inducing, “Aw man!” moments that never fail to make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Plus, a lot of the control issues can be compensated for once you have played enough and gotten a feel for them.

What Are You Going To Do? Make Your Own Game?

Once you complete the intro stages of the Story mode, you gain access to the online and creation portions (or, planets) of the game. From here, all of your wildest dreams can be realized and shared with the world. And this is where LBP becomes more than just another solid game; it becomes an incredibly accessible and gratifying tool of infinite creative potential. The level editor has been the game’s most talked about feature ever since the game was first announced, and Sack-boy! does it deliver.

The tutorials are easy to follow, and they will definitely teach you what you need to know to get started, but experimenting on your own and screwing up a lot are really the best ways to get a handle on all of the intricacies and possibilities of the simple yet incredibly complex toolset.

Once you’re ready to build, you have the option of selecting a blank canvas or one of the templates you have unlocked over the course of the game. The templates are spectacular creations and offer elaborate backgrounds that far exceed what’s possible with the game’s level editor. One is a massive New York City-style street, complete with alleyways, apartment buildings and abandoned cars. The level of detail in these templates is incredible, and they are enough to turn even average levels into something very special.

If you choose the blank canvas option, every single element of the level is up to you to design. You’ll have access to various materials like metal, wood and glass, all of which can be formed into any shape you want. There are also several drawing shapes to choose from, including squares, circles and stars. You can place stickers, point bubbles, or even objects you’ve created into prize bubbles for other people to collect and use in their own levels. Since the game levels adhere to a foreground, mid-ground and background model, objects can be built in three thicknesses, which means you can play around with perspectives in tons of cool ways.

Similar to the platforming control issues, the most glaring problem with level creation is the thumb stick control scheme. Because the thumb sticks aren’t entirely precise, you’ll find yourself undoing your work a lot (by using the game’s rewind/fast-forward feature), especially if you’re a perfectionist. For instance, trying to draw a straight line requires monk-like focus and patience if you want to draw anything long or tall. You can sidestep this by simply building large squares and then cutting out a section to make a long, skinny block, but that can be just as time consuming and imprecise. Ultimately, these are all minor complaints given what is possible with the level editor. It’s truly a technological marvel that people will be using to create their own wild games until their thumbs fall off.

Spread the Love

Between the Story campaign and the level editor, there is more than enough here to make this one of the year’s must-own titles. But, oh no, Media Molecule had to go and add online community features that are as slick as they are accessible. Uploading your own levels for others to play is just the beginning. You can browse and play other people’s levels as well, and even mark the ones you like with a heart. These bookmarks let you quickly find all of your favorite levels, and they also act as a way for other people to find out what levels are worth playing.

LittleNoBrainer

It’s so satisfying to finally have a game that not only lives up to the hype but exceeds it so many ways it’s almost unfair. If you haven’t guessed by now, LittleBigPlanet is one of those games. The pre-made levels are a blast and offer some of the most creative and awe-inspiring experiences you’ll ever have in a game. The level editor contains enough options for us to create entire games for the rest of our lives. And the online community means an endless supply of content and playability. If Metal Gear Solid 4 wasn’t reason enough to pick up a PS3, you have absolutely no excuse now.  

Review written by: Jake Gaskill

Video produced by: Mike Benson