Little Big Planet (PlayStation 3)


Little Big Planet is a cute little platforming game in which you control a small Sackboy (I call mine Lady Sackboy) around some mostly 2D levels to reach the end goal. While this is the basic premise of the game, there are a few other things to enjoy such as Sackboy customization, level creation, and online play. You'll also be able to collect stickers and materials to use in your level designs.



The game starts out fairly easy with the first area being dedicated mostly to tutorials. There are a total of eight "areas" which each contain three levels, except for the last one which contains four. Each area also has its own little mini-story to tie the levels together, and generally the last one will tie in vaguely with the new area you'll explore. Each new area also provides new looks in the beginning to help your Sackboy fit in with the environment if you so choose. Completing levels also earns more cutomization options, as well as completing certain challenges within the levels. There is a difficulty spike at around the halfway point, but overall the game is not too challenging.



Levels also contain stickers and other such things for you to find, which adds to the overall replayablility. Your level score is also displayed at the end, so you can go back and try to beat your record if you so choose. On top of the typical running and jumping that is present in most platformers, Little Big Planet also uses a grabbing mechanic in which your Sackboy... well, grabs on to things. This is used to swing from one place to another, to hold on to something moving, or to pull or push things to move them. This adds a bit of puzzle mechanics to the game, especially when trying to push and pull things to get to hidden rewards. You can also move slightly in the backgrounds and foregrounds sometimes as well.



Another aspect of the gameplay is creating your own levels. You can use some base templates or make your own. The game then provides you with very detailed tutorials on how to make your levels, which you can then name and share if you so choose. You can also play online and play other people's levels once you finish Little Big Planet's short story mode. The level creation was not really my deal so I didn't do much and can't comment too much on the specifics.



Overall Little Big Planet was a cute and sweet little platformer. I had some trouble with the sudden difficulty spike, since I'm not so great with platformers, but I overall had fun with the game. It was cute, I liked the customization options, and being able to make your own levels is a neat little idea, even if I didn't personally enjoy it. The levels were pretty creative and fun and the game had a good lighthearted feel that I really liked. I didn't really like how short the story was though and I really didn't like that you needed up to 4 people playing with you to get all of the collectables. I'm not a social gamer so I didn't like being penalized for that with stuff I just couldn't get. So it was a fun game and I enjoyed my time with it, but it wasn't my favourite.

Verdict:
IT WAS OKAY