Much more than a platform game – LBP2 is the evolution user-generated content has been longing for
Format: PS3 Dev: Media Molecule Pub: Sony Out: 21/01/11 Players: 1-4, 2-4 online
How do you follow up a bold, pioneering creation tool like LittleBigPlanet? It empowered users like never before, enabling us to realise our dreams with the click of a few buttons and a spot of effort – alright, several buttons and a substantial amount of effort. This sequel isn’t a matter of merely ‘more levels, more items’. The developers have outdone themselves by creating entirely new ways to play, create and share, and enhanced everything that was special about the original.
It’s difficult to know which is more endearing: LittleBigPlanet 2’s humongous scope or it’s consistently brilliant execution. To not be even a tad impressed by the marvel of creative genius that is on show here is to be dead inside. Because this is more than a 2.5D platform game. It can be all manner of things, from classic arcade games, like side-scrolling shooters, to elaborate mechanical genre-benders and acts of artistic expression.
The original was understandably complex, and, if anything, LBP2 will require more patience thanks to its selection of game-changing advanced tools. Don’t let that deter you, however. Developer Media Molecule has done everything they can to make it approachable. The major tools among the new set are Sackbots (adding life to your levels with custom AI), power-ups and environment settings (new gameplay items and level elements), and the Controlinator (a device where you directly assign commands to your contraptions, enabling whole different genres).
You’ll quickly realise the enormous possibilities these new additions unlock. Tweak a Sackbot to ‘flee’ from players, and you have the makings of a chase right away. While fitting the mischievous marionettes with a Creatinator helmet and they can become a team of heroic firefighters or perhaps hostile zombies that launch limbs at Sackboy. The penny really drops though when you see what the combination of custom cameras and the Controlinator can do – which we’ll soon get to.
Creating remains a time-consuming process, but refinements to the editing tools mean less head-scratching frustration when you realise you have to undo an object awkwardly hidden from view. Mercifully, many of the new logic tools ease the burden of making your clever creations work in symphony, rather than hit-and-miss solos. Much of this is down to the new gameplay sequencer, a timeline that can have any number of operations and triggers assigned to it. Creation is still the heart of LBP, but those that just want to play will also have lots to get stuck into.
Returning LBP1 travellers are welcomed back to Craft World by the dulcet tones of Stephen Fry and immediately let loose to explore its bounty. Story mode will introduce you to many of its new tricks (with humorous cutscenes to boot). The presence of power-ups and Sackbots means even the platforming gauntlets are significantly enhanced. Darting between several other gameplay affairs, that include shooting and up-screen navigation, the biggest surprise is how well all of it clicks. It’s once again a terrific taste of just what’s possible and leaves you hungry for more. Fortunately, you’ll never be short of community levels to satisfy that desire.
Pong, Asteroids, Space Invaders, R-Type, Tetris, Breakout, Micro Machines, Geometry Wars; you’ll see homages to all of these online that make worthy substitutes for the originals. The LBP community is already exploiting the new tools to create ingenious levels – from bounce pads and rising water in ‘Venice is Sinking’, to ‘Omicron’, an ambient text adventure. The interface – everything from search and sharing options, to ratings and reviews – has received an impressive overhaul, with profiles, recent activity and a YouTube-style level queue. Via lbp.me, you can also manage your levels and community contributions from the web.
It’s not hard to see that LBP2 is overflowing with content. Did I mention it has a fully functional music sequencer? Creation-wise, what would have helped is a few game tutorials that breakdown precisely how to use a series of elements to create gameplay. The depth of what is on offer is truly astounding, and there are already over 50 tutorials to familiarise yourself with. However, for those users that struggle to put everything in to practice, a step-by-step overview of a platform level, a dual stick shooter, and so on, would make starting from scratch less daunting.
Despite its immense originally, the original LittleBigPlanet was pigeonholed by some as ‘just a platform game’. For that to happen a second time would be criminal. What you’re getting with LBP2 is the most complete game creator on store shelves, something with huge longevity thanks to over three million community levels and a game that’s tons of fun to play with friends. Believe the hype. The path to creative perfection starts here.
Aaron Lee
Tags: creator, littlebigplanet, media molecule, platformer, playstation move, sony, ugc
