LittleBigPlanet

UPC: 711719220183

Platform: PlayStation Vita

Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America, Inc.

Developer: Double Eleven, Ltd.

Category: Action

Style(s): Side-Scrolling Platform

Synopsis: Sony's makeshift mascot known as Sackboy leaps onto PlayStation Vita with all-new ways to create and share levels. Customize Sackboy and his world by using the handheld's front and rear touch-screen controls. Games can be designed using the same tools and costumes from LittleBigPlanet 2 on PlayStation 3, only now you'll be able to use your fingers to place objects or draw items, and the system's motion-sensitive controls to play games in different ways.


You'll be able to use the motion sensor to "roll" items across the screen, for instance, or the camera to cut-and-paste images for use in the game. Multiplayer options include passing the system to a friend, sharing the same screen with a friend via multi-touch display, or going online with up to three other players. As with previous entries in the series, players can browse and download thousands of free games created by the LittleBigPlanet community. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

Controls: Joystick/Gamepad

Who says good things don't come in small packages? The PS Vita version of LittleBigPlanet, starring a hand-stitched burlap doll named Sackboy, is a charming, clever, and creative title that ranks as one of the few must-have titles on the handheld for 2012. While the gameplay hasn't evolved all that much when compared to the titles on PlayStation 3, relying more on physics to propel you through levels instead of a diverse selection of moves, the controls have expanded to take advantage of the Vita's distinctive features.

If you've been disillusioned with the control schemes in other PS Vita titles, where touch-screen tapping can be a detriment to the action rather than a benefit, you'll be pleasantly surprised with LittleBigPlanet's use of the handheld's abilities. You'll need to use the various controls to solve puzzles on a given stage. As you progress through the main campaign's 50 levels, you'll encounter puzzles that involve pushing or pulling on brightly colored blocks. Doing this lets you clear pathways or create platforms, and you'll be flicking, activating, and sliding objects to help complete objectives as well. You're not just using the touch screen either; you also have to pop out certain blocks using the rear touch pad.

Yet the best use of the touch screen is for editing your own levels, simplifying the process and reducing the time it takes to create something worth playing. You'll be able to drag and drop items, pinch or pull objects to resize them, tap the screen to switch between menu options, and more. The tools at your disposal are just as robust as the features included in LittleBigPlanet 2, including the option to take pictures and incorporate the images into your designs. Once again, you can create levels with an assortment of platforms, spinning gears, stickers, backgrounds, whozits, and whatnots.

More importantly, you can share and download creations from other users. While it was rumored during development that the Vita version would be able to utilize the massive amounts of content available for the PS3 games, that unfortunately isn't the case. Everything you do on Vita stays on Vita. This would seem to limit your options, but thanks to a strong community of faithful LittleBigPlanet fans, you'll still have hundreds of quality levels to download and experience. You can also sort the community-created levels by the ratings they receive from other users, allowing you to separate the wheat from the chaff, or the quirky from the kooky.

So instead of a traditional side-scrolling platform title, you'll be getting much more, whether you're creating new types of games by yourself or playing what the community has to offer. Of course, if you weren't impressed with either title on PlayStation 3, then the changes to the Vita version won't suddenly make you a Sackboy fan. It's more a refined version of LittleBigPlanet 2 with a new campaign, tweaked controls, and a few new tools and editing options, such as the ability to allow players to save their in-game progress. It's also a title that will ultimately be judged not by what's included, but what isn't: the creativity of its users. ~ All Game Guide

the game requires Joystick/Gamepad.