Little Big Planet is mainly a platformer, a genre of games characterized by levels filled with obstacles and jumps to be navigated by the player. What makes the game unique, however, is the level editor included on the disc. This editor gives simplified tools which allow users to create their own challenging levels and share them with their friends for free over the Playstation Network.
Story-wise, Little Big Planet falls on the slim side. Players take control of the game's avatar Sackboy (or, you know, Sackgirl depending on what you choose to create) to explore the game. The world of Little Big Planet is created and maintained by what are known as "Creator Curators". These Creators are basically in-game representations of the developers in the game or of other players when you're playing their levels. The story poses that one of these Creators, The Collector, has gone rogue, kidnapping the creations of the other Creators and keeping them for himself. In order to right this wrong, the Sackperson must traverse the world of Little Big Planet, fixing the various problems created by The Collector along the way as he or she goes.
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| Hey look, it's the Bone Collector! |
The fact that the story is sparce in the game is barely a problem. The real disappointment comes from the fact that story mode is actually quite short. If one were to charge through the 8 worlds offered by the normal game, LBP would last around 8-10 hours depending on player skill. The ability to download unlimited player-created levels for free over PSN greatly increases the game content available, though the developers relying on players to completely flesh out the game can only be seen as lazy.
Little Big Planet's gameplay consists of all the mainstays of the platformer genre. Sackperson will run, jump, swing, and solve puzzles in order to continue on the path to saving the captured creations. Along the way, LBP offers numerous collectibles for players to find. These collectibles include new objects for use in the game's level editor, decorative stickers that players can spiff up their game hub the Pod with, and a huge number of clothing items that can be used to customize each player's Sackperson.
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| If you think these guys are weird, you should see what I came up with... |
While the game's art-style may come of as childish, the challenges presented by the game's levels are nowhere near easy. Luckily, you can recruit up to three other friends to play cooperatively either locally or over the Playstation Network. Levels often include special areas that can only be reached when two or more players work cooperatively to solve a puzzle. Unfortunately, one of the few flaws in the game is made obvious when playing locally with more than one person. If players move too far apart from each other in the game the camera pans out in an attempt to allow both players to retain visibility of his or her character. Disappointingly, the camera quite often does not pan far enough out, leading to a large number of forced-deaths off-screen.
Childish as it may appear, Little Big Planet's level and art design is undeniably charming. Levels draw from inspirations such as the Mexican Day of the Dead, an African savannah, and an Indian temple as their backdrop. These levels are both extremely clever in their design, and very aesthetically pleasing. Each level is a treat to behold all in itself. Players will find themselves driven to see what form challenges will come in next.
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| Let me play you the song of my people! |
It is also worth mentioning that the soundtrack of Little Big Planet is extremely enjoyable. The songs in this game are extremely catchy and rarely annoying. I found myself uncontrollably coming up with words to accompany the strange noises and vocalizations that make up the music throughout the game.
Playing Little Big Planet will quickly clue players into the idea that customization is a huge part of the game. From the huge number of variations possible in creating a Sackperson, to the amazing level creator included with the game, Little Big Planet offers a blank canvas just waiting for creativity to be released upon it.
Overall, Little Big Planet was a treat to play. I experienced the game while playing cooperatively with my wife which presented its own benefits and challenges. We had the most fun creating ridiculous Sackpeople for each new world that we explored, though everything in the game was enjoyable. The issue with the camera definitely gave us some frustration, though in all levels but one, checkpoints are distributed well enough throughout that the few unfair deaths weren't such a big deal. I would definitely recommend that anyone who enjoys this style of game give LBP a try. I seriously doubt you will be disappointed!
Amulets and Ale Rating:
Thanks for not blatantly saying "my wife's lack of depth perception and inability to make her sack person jump in the correct plane screwed me more times than I can count and easily doubled our gameplay time". It says a lot that we wanted to play all the way through the end...except that last level.
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