Little Big Planet

Now I really don't like giving perfect 10s. I have once before and regretted it. You see our world is imperfect. Humans strive for perfection and strive to reach the next level. Declaring something perfect will leave us with no-where to go or expand.

I am almost in denial that Little Big Planet delivers a perfect platforming experience. For the less knowledgeable, Little Big Planet is the new multi level 2d platformer from Media Molecule.

It puts people in control of a "sackboy", a small customizable hacky sack teddy which, if you have had any exposure to games within the past few months you would recognize by his brown sack skin and big smile. Media Molecule went all out with Sackboy.I was amazed and sat at the intro level for at least half an hour playing with sackboys aesthetically functions; such as his head reacting to the angle you tilt your sixaxis, being able to wave his arms and control them individually i felt almost compelled to try a "macerina", and finally huge bubbles of happiness grew when I found you could make his hips react to the six-axis' tilt and thrust aswell. (and thrust it did).

Gameplay wise, Sackboy jumps around on a 2d platform with 3 fields of depth. In the beginning the game resembles what Yoshi Story 64 did by using 3d objects on a 2d platformer. Except in LBP (Little Big Planet) we have 3 fields of depth, allowing players to jump into the foreground or background. This allows puzzles to be alot more dynamic and some more surprises further down the track.

Your aim is to collect items and reach the end of the level by solving various puzzles. Sackboys only skill is grab (and the occasional pelvic thrust apon level completion) although this does not limit puzzle design. Puzzles are designed around good old pushing and pulling, timed and skilled jumping, physics puzzles (oh did I mention the physics engine is by far one of the most tastefully implemented physics systems ever?), vehicles sections (oh yes, did I mention the vehicles are AWESOME!!! ...and also better implemented then the Ferrari in GT5:Demo-version) and logic puzzles. One of my favorite things about this game is the optional 2 player challenges which allow for lots of fun times... and blaming the other person when you fall into fire...

After you complete a few levels you will gain many a items. With these items you can personalize your sackboy or build your own levels. Which is where the fun begins. The community content for LBP is massive and generally well done. You are able to upload your own level online or play other peoples online levels. It is quite difficult to create a level as fun as the "official" levels, but after a short search its easy to find levels which far surpass the enjoyment I had while playing the "official" levels. (for a hint, try playing the asian levels)

To truly enjoy this game I would recommend you play this co-op with a friend. The 2 player sections are very fun and challenging. And for those of you who don't have friends, you can always play with people online which I have found to be nearly lag free. The only downside I can see to this game is a small stutter apon entering a level sometimes (which doesn't affect gameplay since you are unable to control your sackboy at this time). But I had to find some reason to not give it a perfect 10.

.com