Little Big Planet

Developer: Sony
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Rating: E (Everyone)
Price: $59.99

By Joe Ziemba

LittleBigPlanet (LBP) is down right fun. This game has a modern and unique take on the side scrolling genre adding a sleuth of new features and player created content. LBP’s story is short but brings on enough intrigue to create an immersive experience. Starting the game showed a quick intro movie which, very cleverly, transitioned into a playable developer credits level.

The graphics in LPB are colorful and plentiful but clean at the same time. Even though there is usually a great deal of activity on screen at a given time it’s not difficult to see what’s going on. Some might say that the game’s theme is too cartoonish but I’d argue that it fits well. Initially, I did feel slightly cheesed out by the soundtrack but started enjoying it only after a few minutes.

Those of us who grew up in the 1980’s should find LBP’s game play instantly familiar. When I say familiar, I’m referring to the many side scrolling games that have been released in the past but seem to be making a come back. LBP is like Super Mario Brothers from the future on steroids. Players have the same fundamental jumping and timing game play underneath an updated interface with awesome new additions. The more you play the game the more content you unlock. For example, players can customize the appearance of their character with colors and clothing. They can also find and place different stickers all over the game world. Perhaps the more interesting and replay value increasing part of LBP is the user created content available through the online network. At the time of this review there are more user created levels to play than I will probably ever look at. LPB also has a multiplayer feature where you can easily find friends online to jump in a level with.

LittleBigPlanet doesn’t seem like much of a game from a short description or even its cover box. However, after only playing it for a few minutes it’s easy to tell that there’s a lot more under the cover. LBP has a friendly and cooperative tone giving a very enjoyably breath of fresh air. From my rating and description of this game it’s same for one to assume that I liked it. To solidify that I’ll go ahead and say I’m planning on purchasing a copy for myself. It’s just that fun!