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Take a virtual tour of Media Molecule's cozy home
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.
LittleBigPlanet 2 goes retro in time for tomorrow's launch
LittleBigPlanet 2 has a brand new graphics engine ... that you can ignore in these retro-inspired user-created levels. Sony and Media Molecule released this trailer in advance of tomorrow's littlebig-launch, focusing on some of the arcade games you can play via LBP2's versatile creation tool.
LittleBigPlanet 2 trailer shows off the cream of the player-made crop
Want to see what the LittleBigPlanet 2 community has gotten up to using the beta's partial toolset? The trailer posted below includes footage of some of the most brilliant levels uploaded so far. Sadly, none of our submissions made the cut -- probably due to their nightmarish, phallic nature.
LittleBigPlanet 2 review: A celebration of creativity
Whether you fell wildly, profoundly in love with the original LittleBigPlanet, or whether you were turned off by its occasionally imprecise controls -- a foible which spells certain doom for platformers -- it's hard to deny that Media Molecule created something magical. Not only was it charming from toe to tip, it placed an unprecedented amount of attention on user-generated content. The most fervent, active members of its community understood the true joy of the game came not from being its player but, rather, its author. In other words, the creation tools weren't a compliment to the game: They were the main course. However, even though some of the creations whipped up by LBP's master architects had convinced me otherwise, the game's tools couldn't be used to make everything. Media Molecule was clearly counting on this element of surprise when it came time to one-up the title. At GDC last year, studio co-founder Alex Evans quoted Henry Ford, saying, "If I asked them what they wanted, they would have said a faster horse. But I gave them a car." Even in the half-joking manner in which the quote was used, I thought citing one of the grandfathers of automotive innovation seemed like hubris when coming from a video game developer. Now that I have the unimaginably expanded tools of LittleBigPlanet 2 at my disposal, I'm convinced that I was dead, dead wrong. %Gallery-95497%
Windows XP, LittleBigPlanet 2 edition
Operating systems aren't particularly the most exciting things to play. But when they're recreated within the confines of the LittleBigPlanet 2 creation tools, we take notice. "Windows LBP Edition" won't replace your copy of Windows XP, but it's a heck of a lot cuter.
Player-created LittleBigPlanet 2 level goes Back to the Future
So, you've already powered through the first chapter of Telltale's Back to the Future series, but you're still aching for more anachronistic fun? LittleBigPlanet 2 user Hymanator's creation sounds right up your alley: Using the game's tools, the ol' Hymanator made a DeLorean time travel simulator.
LittleBigPlanet 2 'Storyline' featurette spans the universe
We've seen LittleBigPlanet 2's vast suite of level creation tools being used to create some pretty remarkable stuff -- it should come as no surprise that Media Molecule has used it to create what looks to be a pretty epic adventure. Check out the new "Storyline" featurette after the jump.
LittleBigPlanet 2 goes gold, European release date confirmed
Though the untold millions of new levels which the LittleBigPlanet community will almost certainly churn out have yet to be created, the sequel to Media Molecule's 2008 platformer is completely in the bag. The developer has announced that LittleBigPlanet 2 has gone gold, revealing that the DIY title will arrive in Continental Europe on January 19, followed by its release in Australia and New Zealand the following day and in the UK and Ireland that Friday, January 21. These dates coincide with the North American launch date on January 18, which is great, because the more pedestrians we have making levels for us, the merrier. If you're finding it difficult to wrap your brain meat around the month standing between you and Sackboy's next outing, you'll be relieved to learn that a demo for the game is set to launch today on the North American PlayStation Store and tomorrow following the European PSN update. Get your creative caps on, everybody! Also, your creative pants.
Create your very own Sonic the Sackboy
Ever wonder what it'd be like if Sackboy and Sonic had a kid? Well, let your imagination take a break and check out the real deal past the jump -- complete with instructions on how to make one of your own!.
Wolfenstein 3D recreated (with alarming accuracy) in LittleBigPlanet 2
If you're a game developer who isn't Media Molecule, you should be quivering with fear right now: LittleBigPlanet 2 beta player "RAPHAEL" has created a near-perfect mock-up of Wolfenstein 3D using the game's creation tools. See? We tried to warn you guys. LBP 2 is every game.
Sony representative says no 3D support for LittleBigPlanet 2
Sony and Media Molecule have remained relatively tight-lipped on whether their even-more-customizable platformer, LittleBigPlanet 2, would feature the kind of 3D support that's quickly becoming a mainstay for major PS3 releases. Though we've heard a few reports to the contrary from Sony in the past, SCEA marketing manager Mark Valledor recently responded to a PlayStation.Blog commenter who asked whether LBP 2 would feature the eye-popping tech, explaining, "Sorry, no 3D this time around." We've contacted Sony and Media Molecule to find out if Valledor's statement is on the level, and to see what he meant by "this time around." Is he hinting at the limited, future release of LittleBigPlanet 2: This Time For People With Really Expensive Televisions Edition? Hopefully, we'll find out soon enough.
LittleBigPlanet 2 beta adds voice recording feature
On January 18, Media Molecule will launch Griffin McElroy's 2011 Game of the Year, LittleBigPlanet 2. Some people are lucky enough to be in the beta right now, supping on the game's alluring blend of platforming and secret spices before they must pay to do so. If you're one of those lucky few, we'd like to inform you of a new feature in the beta: voice recording. In a pre-launch update on the PlayStation Blog, Mark Valledor, marketing manager at SCEA, offered a tutorial video showing how users can record voices in the game and assign them to characters. It was made by YouTube user Sackinima and sums voice recording up pretty well, so we've gone ahead and embedded it past the break -- fast-forward to 2:30 for the good stuff.
LittleBigPlanet 2's latest innovation: the 'Controlinator'
Today, Media Molecule unveiled the latest (verb)-inator device (after the Creatinator and the Grabinator) usable in LittleBigPlanet 2: the Controlinator. This device allows objects to be controlled directly, instead of by complicated arrangements of switches. We're excited by the possibility of better vehicle implementations in player made games, but at the same time ... there are starting to be a lot of -inators for us to learn. Hopefully the next device revealed will be some kind of Educinator.
LittleBigPlanet 2 demo and more beta invites coming in December
Sure, the release of LittleBigPlanet 2 got bumped to next year -- but that doesn't mean you won't get to play it before 2010 expires. Yes, we're talking about time travel. Are you down? No? Well, we guess you could just download the LBP2 demo that Sony has announced will launch December 21. The sample will give players access to a select sliver of the Story mode -- and all the new gameplay mechanics therein. Of course, for the full "Play, Create, Share" experience, you're going to have to receive one of the beta invitations going out in the next batch, which Media Molecule will send out early next month. This wave will include PlayStation Plus subscribers and community contributors, as well as a few random giveaway winners -- so if you're hoping to get on board, you might want to get on that Plus train, become an LBP creation maven and/or get really lucky.
Move-based, co-op 'Sackboy's Prehistoric Moves' hits PSN in December
As expected, Sackboy's Prehistoric Moves, the title outed by Australia's ratings board, refers to a new LittleBigPlanet spinoff. Sony officially revealed the game today as a multiplayer-only game requiring one PlayStation Move wand and up to three DualShock controllers. One player uses the Move to clear a path -- by blasting crates, flicking switches and triggering platforms -- allowing up to three other players to make their way through the ten prehistoric-themed levels platforming-style. The game title pretty much sums this one up: Sackboy in a prehistoric landscape, using the Move. PlayStation Plus members will get to see Sackboy's Prehistoric Moves as early as December 7, for free -- as will an unspecified number of "LBP supporters." The game will be released to the general PSN population one week later for $6. It'll also be included as a bonus on the LittleBigPlanet 2 disc, which will be available on January 18. %Gallery-107765%
LittleBigPlanet 2 'Grabinator' featurette introduces Sacketball
Though Sackboy's opposable thumbs weren't doing him a lot of favors in the original LittleBigPlanet, the "Grabinator" power-up in the upcoming sequel lets him haul around any old object (or any fellow player). Check out a sporty featurette showing off the uses of this new ability after the jump.
Australian board rates possible LittleBigPlanet spinoff
We know that Sackboy dominates whole worlds in LittleBigPlanet, but he's always stayed in the present, content to steal our dreams in modern times. We worry that may be about to change though, as the Australian Classification Board has rated "Sackboy's Prehistoric Moves" for release. Siliconera shrewdly theorizes this will be a Move-centric release, thanks to the title and Media Molecule's development partner for the project, Supermassive (the house behind Start the Party and Tumble). We're happy to see Sackboy branching out, but why would Media Molecule release yet another game when LittleBigPlanet 2 is already all of the games? What sense does that make?
Europe's LittleBigPlanet 2 special edition ditches plush, bookends
North America's LittleBigPlanet 2 Collector's Edition will include a bunch of extra costumes, a Sackboy plush, and bookends. The European Collector's Edition, announced today, includes the same Sackboy costumes (specifically, the Toy Story 3 Alien, Tron Legacy "Clu," Gonzo, and four from the "Even More Animals" set), but replaces the soft, huggable Sackboy with a piece of metal, and replaces the bookends with nothing. The packaging for the Euro special edition is a Steelbook designed to resemble Sackboy's torso, with a transparent outer sleeve for all the logos and other box art imagery. That means if you display it without the overwrap, it looks like you're displaying a rectangular, disembodied Sackboy torso. That's ... that's cool.
LittleBigPlanet's original concept sketches and showreel are disturbing
Prepare yourselves to be genuinely unsettled, dear readers. Media Molecule released a batch of truly revealing concept art and an animation test, revealing the true reason for LittleBigPlanet's protagonist's plushy composition. Now, we're just guessing, but by the media seen below, we think Sackboy is made of ... well, sack, because it makes him all the more entertaining to squish, crush, immolate and eviscerate. We may never look at him (or his creators) the same way again. Check out the disturbing concept art in the gallery below, and the even disturbing-er animation reel after the jump. %Gallery-106989%
Media Molecule makes a Creatinator trailer for LittleBigPlanet 2
What is the Creatinator? It's a new tool for LittleBigPlanet 2 that lets you shoot anything. And we mean anything. As this new trailer shows, you can fire off blocks, shoes and missiles. It's a totally worthwhile upgrade from the Paintinator, don't you think?
