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LittleBigPlanet

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This article is about all games in the LittleBigPlanet series. For the first PlayStation 3 game, see LittleBigPlanet (PlayStation 3). For the second PlayStation 3 game, see LittleBigPlanet 2. For the PlayStation Portable game, see LittleBigPlanet (PSP). For the PlayStation Vita game, see LittleBigPlanet (PlayStation Vita).
LittleBigPlanet
Series logo
Genre(s)Puzzle platformer
Developer(s)Media Molecule
SCE Cambridge Studio
Tarsier Studios
Double Eleven
XDev
Publisher(s)Sony Computer Entertainment Europe
Platform(s)PlayStation 3
PlayStation Portable
PlayStation Vita

LittleBigPlanet, commonly abbreviated LBP,[1] is a puzzle platformer video game series created by Media Molecule and published by Sony Computer Entertainment across multiple PlayStation platforms. The series follows the adventures of Sackboy and has a large emphasis on gameplay rather than being story-driven. All of the games in the series put a strong emphasis on user-generated content and are based on the series' tagline "Play, Create, Share". The tagline represents the three core elements of the series; Playing alone or with others online or on the same console, creating new content using the in-game creation tools and sharing creations and discoveries online with other players.[2]

Tarsier Studios, Fireproof Studios and Supermassive Games also contribute to the development of the PlayStation 3 games, creating in-game assets including costumes, backgrounds and stickers.[3]

The series comprises five games across three gaming platforms. The series was launched in 2008 with the PlayStation 3 game, LittleBigPlanet which was followed in 2009 by a PlayStation Portable version of the same name developed by SCE Cambridge Studio. The sequel to the PlayStation 3 version, LittleBigPlanet 2, was released in January 2011 alongside a smaller spin-off title called Sackboy's Prehistoric Moves. A PlayStation Vita game is in development by Tarsier Studios and Double Eleven, scheduled for release in 2012. The games are all published by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe.

Gameplay

The core mechanics of the series revolve around its tagline "Play, Create, Share".

The Play component involves players taking control of Sackboy and navigating him through various levels. In the first two installments of the series, gameplay consisted primarily of traditional platforming like jumping and avoiding obstacles to successfully navigate to the end of a level to win. Since LittleBigPlanet 2, gameplay has expanded to being a "platform for games" with the introduction of numerous mini-games and other genres into the game diversifying the game from being strictly a traditional platforming game. Most LittleBigPlanet games involve a player playing solo or cooperatively with friends to navigate through a level whilst collecting various "prize bubbles" along the way. These prize bubbles come in two types, small ones which constitute points and larger ones that contain new costumes, stickers or other type of collectibles that can be used to customise Sackboy or in level creation. There are also numerous co-operative parts of levels whereby certain prize bubbles can only be collected with the help of at least one player or more depending on the number of players stated in the level.

The Create component primarily refers to level creation in the game, which LittleBigPlanet has a large emphasis on. Players can create their own levels with the built-in level creator using items collected while playing through the story mode. These levels can range from classic platforming levels, to cutscenes or even brand new types of games such as racing, fighting or even dancing. In LittleBigPlanet 2, Sackbots were introduced to give players more control over Non Playable Characters in their levels as well as make them more intelligent.

Lastly, the Share component relates to sharing creations with the game's community by uploading levels to the PlayStation Network. To-date there are in excess of five million user-created levels available to play in the PlayStation 3 games. Since the release of LittleBigPlanet 2 and the LBP.me community website, the Share component has also had a strong emphasis sharing discoveries. Players are encouraged to share levels they find with other players by writing reviews and comments in-game and by sharing links to creations' LBP.me pages via social networks.

Setting

The game takes place in a world known as LittleBigPlanet, which was created by the eight curators. Each curator is in-charge of a part of LittleBigPlanet and they govern them independently. LittleBigPlanet has geography inspired by the real-life Earth, with various levels inspired by Africa, Australia and China among others present in the game. All games in the series, follow the main protagonist Sackboy, (also referred to as Sackgirl; or the gender-neutral alternatives Sackperson, Sack Thing, or Sack) a small, anthropomorphic creature made of fabric. Sackboy can be customised to the player's liking using costumes that are either unlocked in the game, or bought as DLC from the PlayStation Store. Sackboy can express four emotions; happiness, sadness, fear and anger. The player controls Sackboy's expression, each of which has three levels of intensity.

Games

Main Series

LittleBigPlanet (PlayStation 3)

Main article: LittleBigPlanet (PlayStation 3)

The first game in the series was released on the PlayStation 3 platform in 2008 and was the first title developed by Media Molecule, under the name The Next Big Thing. The game received extremely positive reviews for its design, gameplay and customisation leading it to win many awards..[4]In the game, players follow Sackboy as he travels around LittleBigPlanet, in order to stop The Collector who has gone rogue, kidnapping the inhabitants of LittleBigPlanet. Along the way, Sackboy meets the seven other creators and helping them out with their problems in their own respective realms as he tries to stop The Collector.[5]

LittleBigPlanet (PlayStation Portable)

Main article: LittleBigPlanet (PSP)

Following the critical success of the original game, a portable entry of the series was developed primarily by Cambridge Studio in association with Media Molecule for the PlayStation Portable. The game, released in 2009, shared the same name as the original game, however it was not a port of the PlayStation 3 game but rather a new entry in the series. It boasted an entirely new story-mode with new levels and still featured many of the same mechanics of its PlayStation 3 counterpart such as customisations albeit without the multi-player component of the game. The game takes place after the events of the PlayStation 3 version of LittleBigPlanet, in which The Collector has already been defeated. A massive carnival is being held and Sackboy decides to go around the world to invite the eight curators of LittleBigPlanet to the carnival whilst finding materials for his own carnival float.[6]

LittleBigPlanet 2

Main article: LittleBigPlanet 2

The third game in the series, is a direct sequel to the first LittleBigPlanet and was developed by Media Molecule for the PlayStation 3 for a release in 2011. The sequel saw a major shift in the direction of the series, going from a primarily traditional platforming game in the first two entries, to a more varied style of gameplay called a "platform for games". The second game gave players a wider variety of options when it came to level design, which saw the creation of levels other than platforming such as racing, puzzles to even fighting games.[7] Following the events of the first two entries in the series, the game takes place when an antagonist known as the Negativitron invades LittleBigPlanet and begins to suck up all its inhabitants. Sackboy must then team up with a secret organisation known as "The Alliance", led by Larry Da Vinci, to save LittleBigPlanet from the Negativitron as they travel around LittleBigPlanet battling Negativitron.[8] The game also supported the PlayStation Move, with an update post-launch.

LittleBigPlanet (PlayStation Vita)

Main article: LittleBigPlanet (PlayStation Vita)

The upcoming fourth game in the series, will be jointly developed by Double Eleven Limited, Tarsier Studios and Sony XDev Europe for the upcoming PlayStation Vita handheld for a 2012 release.[9] The game will feature the same core mechanics from LittleBigPlanet 2, with the focus being on a "platform for games" rather than a platformer like previous entries in the series before LittleBigPlanet 2. The game will utilise the unique controls of the PlayStation Vita by using its multi-touch touchscreen and its rear touchpad to navigate through various obstacles in stages as well as for level creation by users.[10]

Spin-offs

Sackboy's Prehistoric Moves

Main article: Sackboy's Prehistoric Moves

The game was developed by XDev as a spin-off from the LittleBigPlanet series utilising the PlayStation Move on the PlayStation 3. It was released in December 2010, as a downloadable title from the PlayStation Store and was later bundled with LittleBigPlanet 2. The game was described as a "demo" and featured 10 prehistoric inspired story levels. Unlike the main games, which can be played as a single-player experience, the game required a minimum of two players to work. This was due to the main mechanics of the spin-off whereby one player would control Sackboy traditionally using the gamepad for platforming while a second player had to use a PlayStation Move similar to a pointer to move obstacles and objects out of the way in order to successfully navigate a level.[11]

LittleBigPlanet Karting

Reports of a kart racing game called LittleBigPlanet Karting surfaced following a Sony retailer event in February 2012. No information has yet been publicly released by the publisher other than confirmation that the game is in development.[12] Numerous reports from the Destination PlayStation event indicate that the game will be released alongside a PlayStation Move steering wheel peripheral and will be 3D-capable.[13][14][15]

Reception

Game GameRankings Metacritic
LittleBigPlanet 95% 95/100
LittleBigPlanet (PSP) 87.93% 87/100
LittleBigPlanet 2 97.57% 92/100

The games in the series have been well-received by critics with the PlayStation 3 game and the PSP game attaining Metacritic scores of 95%[16] and 87%[17] respectively.

See also

References

  1. ^ Ellie Gibson (2008-08-26). "LBP's copyright system explained". Eurogamer. Eurogamer. Retrieved 2008-10-18.
  2. ^ Matthew Frassetti (June 3, 2009). "Play, Create, and Share Is The New Sandbox Genre". Gematsu. Retrieved December 15, 2011.
  3. ^ "Introducing the Extended LittleBigPlanet Family - Media Molecule - We make games". Media Molecule. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
  4. ^ "2009 12th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards". Interactive.org. Retrieved 2010-10-24.
  5. ^ "PlayStation Games - LittleBigPlanet™". Uk.playstation.com. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
  6. ^ "PlayStation Games - LittleBigPlanet™". Uk.playstation.com. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
  7. ^ Eric Levine (May 10, 2010). "LittleBigPlanet 2 for PS3 Officially Announced for Winter 2010!". PlayStation Blog. Retrieved May 10, 2010.
  8. ^ Media Molecule Staff. "LittleBigPlanet 2 Official Site". Sony Computer Entertainment. Retrieved May 10, 2010.
  9. ^ "LittleBigPlanet (working title) - PlayStation Vita, PS Vita game". Uk.playstation.com. Retrieved 2011-12-14.
  10. ^ Schramm, Mike (2011-06-07). "LittleBigPlanet (PS Vita) preview: Touched by a Sackboy". Joystiq. Retrieved 2011-06-27.
  11. ^ "Sackboy's Prehistoric Moves, LittleBigPlanet 2 Demo, Beta Expansion All Coming in December – PlayStation Blog". Blog.us.playstation.com. 2010-11-18. Retrieved 2011-01-17.
  12. ^ http://uk.ps3.ign.com/articles/121/1218415p1.html
  13. ^ http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-02-07-littlebigplanet-cart-racing-incoming-report
  14. ^ http://www.computerandvideogames.com/334948/littlebigplanet-karting-is-real-first-images-leak/
  15. ^ http://www.computerandvideogames.com/334921/littlebigplanet-kart-racing-coming-to-ps3/
  16. ^ "LittleBigPlanet for PlayStation 3 Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More at Metacritic". Metacritic.com. 2008-10-27. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
  17. ^ "LittleBigPlanet for PSP Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More at Metacritic". Metacritic.com. 2009-11-17. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
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