LittleBigPlanet 2 Message Board older than one year ago

Ready to be impressed? UK pop ground N-Dubz chose the path of adorableness in its latest trailer, employing LittleBigPlanet 2's creation tools rather than a film crew. The results, we think, speak for themselves. Which is to say it's very, very impressive. The song? It speaks for itself too.

#video I've seen so many great things in LittleBigPlanet 2, but I didn't know that the best thing yet would be a re-creation of Back To The Future. Bravo, user Rigzz, this is an amazing homage. More »

Two weeks into the LittleBigPlanet 2 launch and the LBP community has been amazing. The internet has been crazy with tons of tweets, funny status updates and lots of new YouTube videos with new community members.

Speaking of community members: VideoGamesAwesome just got a PS3 and have discovered the AWESOMENESS that is LittleBigPlanet 2. Their podcast is entertaining, as we can see their genuine emotions as they play LBP2 for the first time. They’re still fairly new at the game so feel free to chime in and let them know which levels to play next (like this one from TripleTremelo)…

Speaking of cool levels: A big THANK YOU for helping us reach 3.6 million levels online! It’s astonishing to see so many levels made for fun, and even levels created for contests.

Speaking of contests – In addition to our LittleBigPrius contest, there are tons more contests and prizes out there:

• Level Design Contest @ Deviant Art – Deadline: Feb 18
• Break-out-a-Genre Contest @ LittleBigPlanetGalaxy – Deadline: Mar 18
• How to (Tutorial) Contest @ LittleBigNetwork – Deadline: Mar 26
• Sackbot Contest @ Sacktastic – Deadline: Apr 1

Speaking of Sackbots: We’ve noticed an interesting increase in Monsters’ Zombie & Ghostbusters’ Slimer costume DLC downloads. I take it you guys are preparing for Zombie Survival levels…

Speaking of DLC: Don’t forget to get the Chinese New Year and Groundhog Day DLC packs before they disappear! And next week, prepare for a special Valentine’s Day DLC pack to appear on the store for a limited time…

Speaking of Valentines Day: We love that LBP2 made it on this list of Valentine’s Day gifts for your special loved one with a PS3…

Speaking of PS3: WHAT?!?!?! You don’t have LBP or a PS3? You’ll love this deal.

Do you want to set a Guinness World Record with LittleBigPlanet 2?

Jump into a MediaMolecule arcade with LittleBigPlanet 2.

Hello LittleBigPlanet fans! I just wanted to let you know that our “LittleBigPrius” level which we developed in conjunction with Toyota, is now available for download in LittleBigPlanet 2. You can find it through a simple text search on the Community planet—the “author” is LittleBigPartner.

As we mentioned earlier, this level is the focal point for a “create your own level” contest which officially begins today. Play our “LittleBigPrius” level to collect prize bubble items, and use these items to create your own Prius-inspired level. When you publish your level to the world, be sure to name it “Prius_ …” so that it will be easy for everyone to find.

Make sure that you get your level built and published prior to the conclusion of the contest at midnight on March 8th. That’s when we’ll take a close look at the 10 most popular levels, as determined by the LittleBigPlanet community. We’ll be judging these levels based upon originality, quality and polish, Toyota Prius brand awareness, and use of the items obtained from our “LittleBigPrius” level. From these finalists, we’ll pick a Grand Prize winner of a 46” Sony Bravia 3D HDTV and PlayStation Move hardware bundle. We’ll also select four First Place winners of a PlayStation Move Sports Champions bundle.

Read up on the full contest details here. And good luck!

Woot! LittleBigPlanet 2 is finally on store shelves and its been a crazy week in LBP2 activity, from our own Guinness Book of World Record Event to some EPIC viral videos:

With the game being played in PS3s around the world, I wanted to provide a quick “Who’s Who” and what to do when you’re not playing LBP, but thinking about it.

Official Resources!

In addition to our LittleBigPlanet.com re-design, new content on mediamolecule.com, and weekly community updates on our PS Blog, we wanted to make sure you know about a few more cool new web tools available including:

LittleBigMap: All the tweets, pictures, videos and even games all on one big map!

LBP.me: See who’s playing what and what games you want to play next! Complete with photos of games, user stats, user ratings, and

YouTube Goodness!

No doubt, your already subscribed to our official YouTube pages (US, UK, and Mm), but be sure to check out what our extended family in Australia has been up to. And don’t forget these guys for the latest and greatest in LBP videos…

Sackinima: Loving the machinima! Even better with LBP2!

ChimpanzeePS3 – Tons of EVERYTHING here!

LBP2Channel – Looking for levels to play?

LittleBigPlanet 2 Resources

Looking for some help? Our first recommendation is our ‘Uberly-huge’ strategy guide, but here are some of our other favorite sites to help:

LittleBigPlanet Wiki – Recently announced and immediately growing

S.T.A.R.S. (Simple Topic & Answer Registry System) – Go ahead, ask a question!

LittleBigPlanet Wikia – around since April 2007

Podcasts

We hope you enjoyed the latest MediaMolecule podcast. And if you’re in the mood for more be sure to bookmark our fans below for their latest episodes:

The LittleBigPodcast – Fresh with a new set ‘re-design’ and a ton of fun at our NYC event. Bonus montage below:

Sackcast – Officially back from a brief break, just in time for LBP2

LBPcast – Congrats on the recent anniversary of the show!

Fansites

LBPCentral – Creators unite!

LittleBigLand - Where I go for news!

LittleBigPlanetarium – Brand *new*, I just signed up!

LittleBigPlanetGalaxy – Always expanding!

LittleBigNetwork – Be sure to enter the “How To…” Contest!

LittleBigPlanetGuide – Love the re-design!

Sacktastic – Kicking off the new site with a Sackbot Contest!

Plagachef – The 2010 Christmas calendar was epic!

LiBiPl.net – Always a unique insight into LBP!

Did we miss anyone? Feel free to post in the comments section below and we’ll be sure to get everyone on our radar – and hopefully highlight their/your efforts on upcoming LBP Community Posts!

Have fun with LittleBigPlanet 2, and keep those custom levels coming.

Still need more proof that LittleBigPlanet 2 is every game ever? Creator curator Bluetonberry has a new level which might just win you over: It's a stunningly accurate recreation of the first dungeon from the NES Legend of Zelda. Check out a video (and an LBP.me link!) after the jump!

#ps3 LittleBigPlanet 2 for the PlayStation 3 is a fantastic little toolbox, capable of creating video games of all shapes, sizes and genres. We've seen plenty of game recreations in LittleBigPlanet, but this Legend of Zelda aims for strict accuracy. More »

Platform: (PS3)

5 out of 5

Avalon Centrifuge is one of the creators you'll encounter during the story.  On the surface, you might not think that LittleBigPlanet 2 looks vasty different from its predecessor. And, if you're looking at the single-player "story" side of the game, you're right, it's not a huge shift. But all of the underlying bits have become significantly more sophisticated, allowing players to take the level creation tools and create some incredible things. Those tools mean that levels that fall outside of the standard platforming genre are now easier to create, exponentially expanding the sorts of levels that an average person with a ton of free time can make. On top of that, LBP2 is better about getting you into those levels, with a lot of great filters and options that make finding the best stuff easier than it's ever been. It's an intensely charming and engaging game that really stands out as one of the smoothest examples of how to handle user-generated content on a console.

The story mode is structured a lot like the first game's, and it serves the same basic purpose. There's an evil force out there, and you'll work with a batch of "Creators" to right the wrongs and get things back to normal. It feels like these levels are largely designed to introduce you to the new mechanics of LBP2, like a grappling hook that you can use for swinging and climbing, or the grabinator, a pair of gloves that let you pick up and toss objects. You'll also start to get a sense of how you might use these new things in your own levels. You'll also get a user's-eye look at the controllinator, which is an in-game device that can be hooked up to allow you to use the DualShock to control objects other than Sackboy. This is what allows you to control cars, play dual-joystick shooters, fly lunar landers, or just about anything else you can come up with. It's a big part of what makes LBP2 so much broader than its predecessor.

The single-player is a brief romp that, as before, is practically required since you'll unlock a ton of objects and stickers for use in the create mode. Interacting with the level creation tools hasn't changed a lot since the first game, though there are plenty of required tutorials to go through before you can really start creating your own levels. You'll still shuffle objects back and forth along the three usable planes, and you're still represented in the creator as a floating Sackboy, as opposed to a mouse cursor or anything, well, "tool-like." While the tools are pretty easy to use and are usually explained well by the 50+ tutorials, getting in there and creating something awesome isn't an especially fast process. It seems like a mouse or a PlayStation Move controller would make things happen more quickly, but the game doesn't currently support either. Word is that a patch is on the way, though.

The official levels will introduce you to the basic concepts. Let's face it: Most of us are never going to put in the time it takes to build a world-class LittleBigPlanet 2 level. But there are plenty of people out there giving it their all, and the game is superb when it comes to sifting through these levels and getting the best of the best into your hands. The community section has plenty of filters that let you look at the highest-rated levels, the newest, or ones that are marked with specific tags. So if you want the newest levels that employ the controllinator (which is my current favorite way to sort it all), you can do exactly that. You can also do all of this while you're away from your PS3 via lbp.me, the game's official site. The site has a great database of user-created levels, along with all of the review, rating, and tag data that comes along with them. If you feed the site your PSN login credentials, you can even add any levels that look interesting to a queue. When you fire up the game, it'll immediately notice the list of levels you lined up and let you dive right into those without any more work. It's one of the best ways to integrate a website with a game that I've seen so far, and it's become my preferred way to find and share user levels.

There's an awful lot of wonder and joy to be found in those user levels. It starts by being fully compatible with levels created in the first game, giving you a great base to start with. But a lengthy beta and a collection of busy creators have been putting LBP2's improved tools to great use, resulting in goofy fighting games, better basketball games, multiplayer shooters, bootleg versions of The Legend of Zelda's first dungeon, a zillion levels with unlicensed Mario elements, and that's only scratching the surface. Some players are just building machinima-style movies with the level tools and telling their own stories. Even the music levels that just play MIDI-like versions of real songs are better thanks to a rebuilt music sequencer.  The sheer number of levels can be a little overwhelming, but with the great level-sorting tools, it becomes easy to spend hours just checking out and rating the work of others and leave you wanting even more.

What you do with those basic concepts? That's your business... and Nintendo's business, now that I think about it.  The only downside is more a matter of taste than a genuine issue: the platforming action of the core LBP gameplay is largely unchanged. Considering the backwards compatibility, it's easy to understand why Sackboy still moves and jumps the way he does, but it never feels like it's quite responsive enough. Granted, that's sort of a perception issue that comes from me spending so many years playing platformers, and well-designed levels (like the official levels) aren't built in a way that makes this a glaring issue. I guess I just wish that Sackboy jumped a little higher? Regardless, if the way Sackboy moves turned you off two years ago, it's still going to bother you in LBP2.

The tool upgrades given to creators in LittleBigPlanet 2 are enough to make the game feel pretty fresh, making the game worthwhile even if you never actually delve into the creation mode yourself. But if you've got a great level idea burning a hole in your brain, and don't mind putting in a grip of time to get it just right, you'll find the tools to be pretty accommodating once you learn how they all work. Me, I'm perfectly content with just surfing through the lists of levels, picking out the craziest examples I can find, and losing myself in a world of twisted Mario clones, shooters, and levels loosely based on feature films. So get out there and create some more of those for me, cool?

The latest episode of the Show About Games Show features one of the most adorable things our jaded, bitter eyes have ever seen: a recreation of a LittleBigPlanet level, done with Sackboy dolls and hand-made, LBP-ish crafts. Also, some human hands, though that sounds creepier than it actually is.

#clips Give this Show About Games Show clip ten seconds to let you know what's going on. Give it thirty to warm your heart. Then give it around sixty to blow your mind. More »

PS3's Mass Effect 2 lands in top ten too.

Publish that level you made yesterday, dude, and get your mind blown, man.

We still haven't heard any firm numbers as to the commercial reception of Media Molecule's even more customizable platformer, LittleBigPlanet 2 -- however, the developer was happy to share that the game's active user base has already surpassed the records posted by the original. Studio co-founder David Smith told Eurogamer, "The user count is actually quite crazy - we've already massively outstripped our LBP1 record for total users online at once. And that's just with North America and a few other territories."

Hopefully, we'll hear some actual sales numbers once the game becomes available across Europe. More hopefully, those assumedly large sales numbers will translate over to large numbers of totally dope user-created levels for us to consume and enjoy.

Wow! What a week. The launch of LittleBigPlanet 2 was as epic as ever. So many things happened and our community has been going wild. And with the community growing so much, we have a new video to make sure everyone knows how to SHARE their LBP2 fun.

And here’s some more fun links for the weekend:

• Behind the scenes at Media Molecule [VIDEO]
• Another 5/5 review, this time from G4TV
• New highlights from our LittleBigWorldRecord event
• Get “geo-social” with the LittleBigMap!
• And don’t forget to play these Mm picks found over at LBP.me

Much like its predecessor, LittleBigPlanet 2 is experiencing a few technical difficulties during its first few days in the would-be capable hands of its creative community. Some players have reported that when they attempt to connect with other players online, they hit what's being colloquially referred to as the "Infinite Loading" glitch, which freezes the game on a neverending loading screen. (Which is, as you might imagine, kind of a bummer.)

The exact cause of the issue is unknown, though, fortunately, there's a quick and dirty workaround (which worked for us, when we experienced the glitch): If you get stuck on the loading screen, turn your controller off and wait for the level to load. Once you're in, you can turn your controller back on and get back to whatever it was you were doing. Probably slapping around your fellow players and being generally unhelpful, you jerk.

Media Molecule had not responded to our request for comment as of publishing, but a recent tweet from the developer seems to indicate that a freezing glitch has been cornered and a fix is in the works.

We asked Media Molecule - and the team delivered!

Finally, the reason for LittleBigPlanet 2's delay from November to January has been revealed: It's because Media Molecule's Guildford-based HQ looks like the type of workplace that's not conducive to actually doing any work. Check out a video tour of the developer's colorful digs below.

When Toyota Prius let us know they were interested in working with LittleBigPlanet 2, we knew that their emphasis on harmony between man, machine and the environment was a good fit for Sackboy’s world. As gamers, we also knew that we could do something clever that the community would enjoy. So, together, we developed a LBP2 level called “LittleBigPrius”, which will be the focal point of an upcoming “create your own level” contest.

LittleBigPlanet 2 was just released to stores this week, so here’s your chance to get your creative juices flowing and win something big. How big? We’re talking a 46” Sony Bravia 3D HDTV…that’s how big!

If you are already familiar with LittleBigPlanet 2, you’ll know that its appeal doesn’t come just from the on-disc single and multi-player experience (which are fabulous), but also from the ability to create your own games. Our “LittleBigPrius” level is just one of the endless variety of games which will be created by the community.

“LittleBigPrius” consists of a traditional platforming section (with puzzles, of course!) followed by a top-down driving portion made possible by LBP2’s new tools. Along the way, you’ll be able to collect a number of items which you can then use to create your own levels. That’s where the contest comes in! We want you to use these collected items, and anything else your clever little minds can come up with, to create your own Prius-inspired LBP2 level. Be sure to name your level “Prius_[Your Level Name Here]” so that it can be easily located (and, no, we don’t want you to actually use the words “Your Level Name Here” unless that’s the best you can come up with… in which case, a contest based upon creativity is probably not for you).

When the contest officially begins, publish your level online so that members of the LBP community will have a chance to play and comment upon it. Most importantly, they’ll be able to “heart” it if they really like it. When the contest ends, the ten highest-ranked levels, as chosen by the community, will be selected as our finalists. From these finalists, SCEA will choose one Grand Prize winner and four First Prize winners on the basis of originality, quality/polish, Toyota Prius brand awareness, and use of the items obtained from our LittleBigPrius level. The Grand Prize winner will be awarded a 46” Sony Bravia 3D HDTV and a PlayStation Move hardware bundle which includes a PlayStation 3 system, the PlayStation Eye camera, PlayStation Move motion controller and Sports Champions game. The four First Place winners will receive a PlayStation Move Sports Champions bundle, consisting of the game, the PlayStation Eye camera and a PlayStation Move motion controller.

Please be sure that you have a valid e-mail address associated with your PSN ID, since that is how we will be contacting the winners. Check back on the Blog and PlayStation.com for full details when we announce the release of the “LittleBigPrius” level and the start of the contest coming soon.

It's a bumper week for PS3 owners, while award-friendly 'lesballet' flick Black Swan hits UK cinemas.

Just in time for Sackboy's next outing comes this insightful chat with Media Molecule's Studio Director.

We’re almost there! Our courageous participants will set the Guinness World Record mark for our LittleBigPlanet 2 gaming marathon at 6pm (Eastern Time) later today. Join us as we wrap up the past three days and celebrate the momentous occasion of LittleBigPlanet 2’s launch on the PS3!

Here’s a rundown of favorite moments:

• Guest Appearance from Sackboy himself
• All the Media Molecule goodness in the form of interviews, tutorials and Q&A’s
• LittleBigFistPumping with Jwoww and DJ Pauly D
• Playing with the NYC Boys & Girls Club
• All of our super fans making it to the PlayStation Lounge and joining us in the 4th chair
• “Laptop Guy” entertaining the stream in the wee hours of the night
• ALL our @LittleBigPlanet Twitter fans #LBP2record

Of course we couldn’t have done this without our partners:

• PlayStation Lounge at Sony Style (…with Foursquare check-in)
• Subway (…Loved the subs!)
• AstroGaming (…bonus with the LBP2 speaker tags)
• Gunnar Optiks (…sooo helped with the eye strain)
• 7-11 (…Slurpees were officially slurped!)
• Senario (…Plushies were a hit)
• Mezco (…loved all three Sack-tion figures)
• Great Eastern (…keychains: the perfect on-the-go accessory)
• Brady Games (…the book of knowledge!)

And finally, our very special “Thank You” to our hosts:

• Our very own Jeff Rubenstein
• The lovely and techy Veronica Belmont
• Daniel and Austin from the LittleBigPodcast

Yay!

#gameface Waiting for her friend to come home so they can play the game together, Flickr user iwinatcookie gets creative with her collector's edition LittleBigPlanet 2 Sackboy. More »

Does LittleBigPlanet 2 hold the same sway over our imaginations or is Sackboy delivering a stilted second-helping? Find out in the official GameTrailers review of LittleBigPlanet 2!

#unboxing This might be the most dramatic opening of a video game collector's edition ever committed to video, though probably not. It's the LittleBigPlanet 2 Collector's Edition! Let's open it. More »

Hey Sackpeople,

Congratulations to all!
Today’s the big day! After a long wait and being teased with all the amazing beta levels, LittleBigPlanet 2 is finally here, so, congratulations to Media Molecule and PlayStation! We know a lot of our fans will be there with us on day one. Will you? If not, FYI, you’ll miss out on getting the “1 week only” DLC – so don’t!

Little Big World Record
As we celebrate, don’t forget to tune into our live stream @ gamingworldrecord.com, or right here on the PS.Blog. Day 2 of our event is filled with interviews, activities, and Mm tutorials for your viewing pleasure.

@ Sony Style NY
And if you’re in the NY area, feel free to drop by at the PlayStation Lounge in Sony Style at 550 Madison and check us out in person. Join us for cool activities, chat with Media Molecule and even join our gaming marathon.

Check in with Sony
And as a special offer, for those of you who drop in and buy the game, be sure to check in at the Sony Style Store Foursquare page and get an autographed cover from Media Molecule and Limited Edition DLC. Just Show up, check in and claim your gift.

Visit the Sony Facebook page for more details!

#gameface LittleBigPlanet 2 hits stores today, and while it does a lot of things, the Xbox 360 is one thing it will not do. As seen on BertieA's Flickr stream. More »

Sackboy's latest adventure provides endless fun for fans while redefining the world of user-generated content.