LittleBigPlanet – PlayStation Vita

I picked this game up at gamestop 2 days ago, and have been playing it for a reasonable amount of time. I can definitely say that this game is one of the best, if not the best vita game so far. I would go even as far as to say that this game is better than both the previous LBPs on PS3. It introduces new mechanics like rear touch to guide sackboy or to push blocks out, and front touch to push objects in, move objects, etc. Graphics are excellent, but the colors don’t “pop” out at you. Controls feel excellent except for the responsiveness on the touch screen. It isn’t very responsive to touch so when your on a fast moving level and you need to move an object, sometimes it doesn’t register your input and your sackboy is dead. The menus are slick and can all be navigated with touch. This game just feels like a improved version of LBP2, with all the create tools that were in there plus, memorizer, which will allow you to save inside a level. This alone is an amazing new addition, allowing people to create entire new games. Load times generally weren’t very long compared to games like Wipeout 2048, which was ridiculous. The previous games narrator is back too, and still funny as ever. The story is just there to allow you to go to different environments, and really shouldn’t be prominent in this type of game. I have only played the single player portion of this game so far as the servers go up tomorrow, and ill update this review accordingly once i dive into that.

UPDATE: MULTIPLAYER

Ok after playing a couple of games with some of my online buddies. I can say that the levels that people design are ingenious and fun. There are shark survivals, minigames, platformers, movies, giveaways, and a couple early RPGS. So far as of september 22, there are 2301 levels made and the game hasn’t even come out yet! Load times are pretty good for online levels and you can even download any of them to play on the go, making playing fun levels offline possible while commuting or whatever you folks do. There is a search function to find your favorite levels quick and easy. But not everything is good. The ping when playing with other people, especially when there are more than 2 people is pretty horrendous sometimes. Sometimes its amazing, like in LBP and LBP2, but other times you connect to someone that lives on a different continent, and you sackboy/girl is basically teleporting everywhere from the lag. I hope they fix the latency issue but otherwise, i see huge potential for this game to fill in the void of games we poor vita users are having right now. Have Fun!

I was thrilled when LBP Vita launched early & I was able to jump into the latest Sackfolk adventure …. today I escaped the “Clutches of Evil” (final boss battle) & watched the credits roll … it was a fantastic gaming experience. the levels are crisp & defined, the right amount of fun & silliness mixed perfectly with challenging platforming tasks. the cut scenes are gorgeous, with our usual dose of hilarity thrown in for good measure. I’ve watched 45 of the possible 67 tutorials & it looks to be a fantastic create interface – imagine being able to instantly implement any real life object via the Vita camera? the possibilities are endless. each of the 5 arcade levels have 10 levels within them – providing you an additional 50 levels of pick up & play fun & frolic. in my opinion, this is the best Vita game to date & not to be missed. the online features go live later today – you will require a system update 1.81 … this will add MP & the community levels – cheers ! have fun out there my fellow sackfolk.

This past week I’ve taken a critical look at LittleBigPlanet Vita; I have played through the Story Mode as well as spent a chunk of time in Create Mode.

First I’ll start with the new Story Mode. While it may seem a bit shorter than previous games, it is packed full of exciting gameplay, a great story, whimsical characters that will not leave you disappointed. Some may be worried that the Vita’s touch capabilities will leave us with a gimmicky game, and while they did implement both front and rear touch throughout the levels to showcase the new capabilities, I never felt as if I was being beat over the head with it. In addition to the normal levels and challenge levels we’ve become familiar with in past games, you also gain access to an Arcade section with full fledged mini-games. Each of these minigames have a handful of levels that you progress through with some very fun gameplay (my favorite is Tapling). I would go deeper into the awesomeness that is the story of LBPV, but I don’t want to spoil anything for you guys.

Next up is Create Mode. If you’ve already spent time in the LBP2 create mode, you’ll be able to jump right in and get creating. However, I’d suggest spending sometime looking through all the Tweak and settings menus of the familiar tools, you may find exciting new additions to them (such as the wonderful new abilities that come with the Note). In addition to all these new tweaks, we’ve been given all new tools to work with. I’m sure everyone has heard about the Memorizer by now, and I believe it’s going to allow creators to make bigger and better levels that were previously not feasible. For those who are looking to squeeze every last bit of thermo into their levels, you will love the dephysicalizer which allows you to remove the Physical properties of parts in your level which will reduce the thermo used.

Now I want to address those who are worried about taking the plunge into a handheld system. I’m pretty picky when it comes to handhelds and the Vita is the best handheld I’ve owned since the Sega GameGear; it’s weight, size, and button placement give a very natural feeling while playing it. This comfortable feel combined with LBP captivating (and addictive) gameplay, you tend to forget you are playing on a handheld system. It no longer feels like handheld gaming, it just feels like gaming. And call me fanatical, but I believe LBPV is well worth the price of the Vita.