LittleBigPlanet

Little Big Planet isn't a revolution. It's a good platformer with a great aesthetic that comes with a great level creator. Speaking for the more hardcore hobbiest, LBP is not the game of infinite possibility and fun that it was pitched as. Just like so many other games, it's a game you will pick up and love but ultimately will put down in a matter of weeks. However, LBP is among the few you are likely to pick up and enjoy again a couple months later. Even better, you'll be playing through worlds and ideas you didn't even experience before. Simply because they weren't available yet.

LBP is a testament that platformers can never be harmed by minimalism. The game only lets you jump and grab, lending itself to NES-era controls (despite the fact, the grab button is on the right trigger). Other than that, the only challenge comes from finding your way through a level and its obstacles. Riding a mine cart to the right, finding a lever, and throwing a bomb to blow up a wall are as involved as the levels can get. You'll find more complex things like an air balloon made of different levers but that's about it. Nevertheless, the main campaign never gets boring. Each level is unique and the core gameplay is always fun. Even better when you tag along with a friend.

Not having a PS3 mic almost seemed ideal, as I closed out my playthrough of the main game. Media Molecule crafted a Pixar or Disney-esque world where a person's personality can be simplified into little details in each character's outfit and actions. Joining a game with a guy sporting a poncho who leaves you behind all the time, or a little girl in a dress who always waits for you to respawn carries a sort of pureness to it that words would ruin. Another reason you would prefer to have no voice chat on, is to hear the fantastic music throughout the game. I am speaking of details here, because that's what makes LBP so memorable. In the end, the only thing that will separate one player's creation or experience is the details.

As sad as it is, LBP doesn't have the tool set to breed new gameplay mechanics or entirely new worlds. And so, you play the player-created levels to prolong the experience and to be cast into a different world -- if the level is properly imagined. It's fun to play levels that pay tribute to BioShock or Batman in the most limited of ways. It's like in the mid-90s when I played through Indiana Jones level packs for Duke Nukem 3D or a Star Wars one for Doom. LBP isn't the first game to give player's opportunities to create new worlds. Just look at the PC mod community from the '90s for some startling examples of creativity. LBP is just the first game to mainstream it. Everyone can create their own world, everyone can experience it, and everyone can enjoy it because Media Molecule made a platformer that is surprisingly fun. If you think it all seems too much of the same, well you are right. You are also too old and cynical for this experience. Sadly, I think that includes me.