Genre: 2d platformer
Developer: Media Molecule
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment

There is a lot of experimentation happening with regards to the art styles employed by games that aren't overtly attempting for realism. A few games, such as Blue Dragon, 3d Dot Game Heroes, and LittleBigPlanet, the target of this exposition, have gone for clean lines, sharp texture resolution, and fancy 3d field depth techniques. Of these games, LittleBigPlanet perhaps does it the best, and actually manages to make even scenes full of disparate themes and colors look oddly cohesive.

It's usually dangerous for developers to opt for licensed soundtracks since, given the wide variety of possible music tastes, there is a high risk of annoying a large segment of the game's audience. LittleBigPlanet manages to make selections that tickle and charm, but are also mild and harmless, and difficult to dislike. Sound effects are minimal, although there is a great deal of voice acting in the form of well-done Simlish-like gibberish and excellent-when-not-too-frequent Stephen Fry narration.

There are easily-defined pros and cons to platformers with dynamic physics engines, and, during play, LittleBigPlanet regularily demonstrates both sides. Like other such titles, such as Gish, truly unpredictable and often enlightening moments can and do occur frequently in LittleBigPlanet, memorable moments which are simply not possible with a static physics engine. Negatively, the game is somewhat lumbering and clumsy, with bizarre collision detection. On the balance, the positive outweighs the negative however.

LittleBigPlanet starts off poorly-- from the too-frequent Stephen Fry narratives to the dull opening world to the too-hip soundtrack, the game feels forced, obnoxiously trendy, and wearisome. But four or five stages in, the level design quality drastically improves, the game's mood becomes somewhat dark and sullen, and the depth layer-based gameplay mechanic actually compliments the action rather than detracts. Between the last three quarters of the game's main play mode, the fact that the title essentially contains the UnrealEd of 2d platformers, and the fact that the game can be so thoroughly engaging while played cooperatively, LittleBigPlanet is the epitome of the dynamic physics-based platformer.