Shane
Sackboy is back and about to run rampant for the first time on the PlayStation 4 within the imagination, creatively fueled puzzle platformer of epicness; LittleBigPlanet 3.
Following on, to a degree, from LBP 2, this third adventure takes place on a differing Planet within the LittleBigPlanet Universe, planet Bunkum.
This patchwork, stitched together and artistically derived land is being threatened by three nefarious Titans that, well, were accidentally released after the last game.
To keep creative freedom in place you as Sackboy, guided by a character called newton (voiced by Hugh Laurie) and other friends must tackle puzzle laden Levels, swinging, climbing and stickering to reach the ultimate goal of taking down these Titans for good.
Newton (basically a light bulb with a body and limbs) is a character that you will eventually love to hate. As annoying as he can be at times, and as helpful to a point, he is also not the creative genius he proclaims (or thinks) he is.
There are times also throughout the extremely lengthy game where you may question as to what his intentions are.
In addition to Newton, there are three other new main characters.
At game centric intervals you will assume control of Swoop, a Sack-Bird who is able to free fly around environments, picking up collectables and even at times, other characters.
Then there’s Oddsock; basically a Sack-Dog that pounds the side scrolling 2.5D / 3D Levels on all fours at great speed with the further ability to wall jump.
Finally to prove that Sacks do come in all shapes and sizes, Big Toggle is, er, big. Much heavier than anyother playable character he is handy for weighting platforms and utilising a bit of muscle here and there. Big Toggle is not all that he seems – he has an alter ego; Little Toggle.
Transforming into his teeny self he can walk on liquid surfaces and get to those small, tight hard to reach places.
With all of this newness thrown in, Sackboy doesn’t totally get left out. With the newly given ability to climb on grippable surfaces and a whole swagger of new costumes and accessories to mix and match and wow the Universe with.
Stickers are of course in abundance and there are times within play where you might actually need to use them, otherwise, sticker up each and every Level to your hearts content, all of which is available within your Poppit.
Throw in new power up gadgets, such as the ‘Pumpinator’, which uses air boosts to influence lighter objects to your advantage, players can also create their own within the Power-Up Creator.
In total there are 70 new additions in this field including re-jigged power ups from the previous games and the PS Vita title.
Local and Online multiplayer enables both co-operative missions and exploring Levels created by other LBP players, or share your own. This includes any that were created in the two previous games.
The Level Creator tool has been severely ramped up from the prior games. Previously there was a three layered ability within design, now it’s a whopping sixteen.
Controls have not really changed much from the previous chapters, asides from the new wall climb functionality. Using your emotions via the D-Pad is not only always amusing but will also dictate as to how other characters react to you, both in-game and online.
If you have any DLC from LittlBigPlanet 1 or 2 you can totally use these in number 3.
The original developer Media Molecule took a few steps back and newcomers into this series; Sumo took the lead. Thankfully they have remained true to the entire franchise whilst having enhanced both gameplay and visuals to a level of 1080p goodness.
LittleBigPlanet 3 is a definite for any of the owners of the previous titles and fans of the series.
The ability to create, share, play and imagine has no borders within LittleBigPlanet.
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