If LittleBigPlanet 2 was a 20-something single female looking for a lanky, nerdy dude to hang out with, I’d be first in line to date her. She’s the cutest girl on the video game block. She’ll be whatever you make her out to be and she’ll look however you want her to. You’ll want to share everything she shows you with your friends, and she’s totally cool with that. She’s adorable, creative, and always promises to show you something new and interesting that will astound and inspire you.
She’s not without her flaws, however. Guys, she’s gonna cheat. Everybody wants her, and let’s face it: there are always better looking, more talented dudes out there. Plus, look at the way she walks — she’s always falling through the floor or bouncing around in ways you won’t anticipate or understand. And sometimes when she shows you something really special and technically impressive (like a Dead Space level, for instance), she’ll blow up your house.
She gets overwhelmed easily. Ask her to give too much or show more than she can handle, and things go south. She’ll break down, explaining how much she wants to show you these glorious things she has in store, but she just can’t. She doesn’t know why. “Shit sucks, you know?” she’ll say. “I’m really trying. Really. I just can’t handle it.” Maybe it’s her daddy’s fault. Perhaps Uncle PS3 just can’t bring himself to give you everything just yet: “She’s my little big girl — I want to keep her special. Maybe when she grows up a little bit. Wait a couple years?”
Also, she’s super complex and sophisticated. But with all those subjects she’s working on — physics, geometry, programming, art, music — they can’t all stack up like that and not have at least one of them suffer. My guess is her physics grade is probably a C right now. It needs some serious attention, especially since it’s sort of the bedrock of her life.
She operates better in groups. “The more the merrier!” she says. “…up to four.” She’s eager to show you and your friends all the things she’s created. You might get to know her better that way. Just keep in mind, the more you add, the greater chance she’ll become, well… unstable.
There’s no other girl on the block that strives to reach the bar Papa Molecule set like she does. It’s so high and ambitious and she tries so hard to reach it. Just know you’ll have to deal with the fallout when she doesn’t quite get there. It doesn’t happen often, but you’ll know for certain when it does. Aside from that, she’s a swell girl — one you’d want to take home to your parents. She’ll even put up with idiotic dopes (like myself) who insist on showing her the more piss-poor, barely functional “Robot Clive Owen vs. Frankenstein William Shatner” levels. The true beneficiaries of her expertise and talents are those super creative, artsy-fartsy guys who have a lot of time to brood.
She’s only been around a few weeks but she’s shown me things that have scrambled my mind plenty of times, and not just the things her daddy taught her. She might not be the star of the show, but people who work with her, learn from her mistakes, and are patient with her flaws can definitely take her to the prom. If only she didn’t walk like a mortally-wounded wildebeest –- somebody should really buy her some new walking shoes or something.
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Things We Liked: Provides even more robust opportunities for creative gamers to express themselves. Online play is greatly improved (it works). Very easy to find the best user-created levels.
Things We Disliked: Physics problems are still blazingly apparent. Clunky tutorials. Numerous crashes, particularly in community levels.
Target Audience: Creative gamers and those who appreciate ambition. People who like cuteness. Kids with a ton of time on their hands.
(LittleBigPlanet 2 – Developer: Media Molecule. Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment. Available for PlayStation 3. Unfamiliar with CFD!’s review system? Read our newly revised explanation here.)
