Games: LittleBigPlanet 2

Published on Sunday 13 February 2011 11:19

LittleBigPlanet 2 £44.99, PS3

LittleBigPlanet is a series that has placed creation at its core; encouraging players to let their imagination run riot and invent their very own games to be shared with the world. The highly anticipated sequel opens up the formula even further, throwing in an incredibly powerful toolkit that is capable of producing stunning results, as well as a charming core campaign that gives a base understanding of how its underlying mechanics work.

The main story mode sees the world of LittleBigPlanet under attack by an evil entity known as the Negativatron, which is sucking all the imagination out of the once playful land. Players must create a Sackboy character and journey across several colourful worlds to save the day, alone or with up to three friends. Stephen Fry returns as narrator, and really knocks it out of the park thanks to his playful dialogue and humour.

Once the story is done, players can take their base knowledge of how the main game works, and transfer it to the creation kit. The scope delivered by developer Media Molecule is incredible; enabling players to create intricate worlds, smart enemies and a plethora of game styles. As a result, LittleBigPlanet 2 is as good as your imagination allows. That a game gets people thinking, working together and creating beautiful scenes like this is nothing short of a triumph for the developer.

This article was first published in The Scotsman, 12 February, 2011