LittleBigPlanet is so amazing in so many ways that I hardly know how I'm going to pack them all into this review. Let's start with the gameplay. It would be easy for someone who hadn't tried the game to write LBP off as just another platformer. But anyone who has picked up an controller and played it can tell you that it's anything but. While the controls may be simple, the levels packed in with the game by Media Molecule are nothing short of brilliant. The basic controls are simple enough: jump, grab and place stickers. There are a few other moves like holding down the triggers and using the sticks to control your arms (which you can use to slap your co-players), using the d-pad to change expressions and using the Sixxaxis controls to move your head or body. These moves however are mainly "cosmetic" and don't particularly effect the gameplay.

The only real downfall in the control department (and it is an extremely minor one) is a bit of an awkward Z control movement. There are three "planes" to run on in LBP: we'll call them back, middle and front. Sometimes you need to be on one plane or the other to make a jump or get around a wall and it can be hard to tell which you are on. Moving between them is simple enough: just tap on your left stick either forward or backward. But, sometimes SackBoy has a bit of a mind of his own about where he wants to go. Media Molecule has already stated that they are not entirely happy with this mechanic and plan on fixing it with an upcoming patch. While this might sound bad, it's no where close to a deal breaker nor does it make it impossible to finish levels. It just means you need to be on your toes.

If you played the beta, then you are probably well familiar with the "Garden" levels. After I playing them through (many, many times), I started wondering what the other levels that are packed in with the game would be like. These early levels were pretty simple, would it just be more of the same? Thankfully MM manages create amazing levels that get more and more challenging and beautiful as the game goes on. You could really blaze through the game, just trying to complete each level, but you would be robbing yourself of a lot of the experience. There are so many hidden areas, parts that require more than one player to complete and awesome objects to be found that you will find yourself playing the levels over and over. And not just for the collecting either, but to marvel at just how ingeniously the levels and the objects that fill them are put together. The levels provide a wide variety of places to explore including the Southwest, the City, Japan, India, Mexico and a host of others. Each level is unique and manages to use the LBP creation tool set in new and effective ways.

The art design on LBP is out of this world. Sharp, well executed graphics all done in a style that is cute as hell and yet manages to remain sophisticated. It's not cute for the sake of being cute as so many games tend to be. Everything in LBP has the feeling of being created in a child's imagination, especially if that child was a devotee of Rube Goldberg. Cardboard cut-outs, levers, wheels, stings and stickers adorn many surfaces and the way that Media Molecule has taken those elements and mix and matched them to create even more new things is absolutely stunning. Even SackBoy himself is the perfect blank canvas to re-invent and create in any way you like. As you progress through the game, more and more costume pieces become available, allowing you to dress him/her to match the current level. Or you can go crazy and combine clothing elements to create some truly wild outfits.

The sound elements of the game go hand in hand with the adorable graphic style. Each song and sound effect seems perfectly suited to each level (Quar'an references included) and adds to the overarching feeling of the entire game. Adding to the aural fun is the incredible voice talent of Stephen Fry as the narrator. This is exciting on several levels as not not only is Mr. Fry's voice pin point perfect for the game, he is also king of the gays! A smarter, more well spoken gay man you will never find (perhaps save our own Tiny Dancer). Mr. Fry also has experience in the game industry, providing voices for LBP and Fable II as well as writing his own gadget blog, "Dork Talk" for The Guardian UK. The tech savvy Brit also keeps up his own personal website and series of podcasts.

Besides the story mode of the game, there are other places to explore as well. Your home base is your "Pod," a little cardboard dwelling that you can decorate to your liking with the stickers and objects you find throughout the game. While it doesn't have any effect on the gameplay, it's fun to customize your pod so as to impress others when you bring them into your LBP world. Up to four people can play LBP at once either online or on the same console. As I mentioned before, you will find that many of the levels require at least two players to be able to collect everything on them.

For many people, LBP won't be just about playing, it will be about creating. The level creator on this game is beyond robust and can even get a little overwhelming at times early on. The tool set is the exact one that the folks at Media Molecule used to create the game's 50 plus packed in levels. A seemingly endless list of stickers, materials, objects and tools will aid you in creating your own levels that you can play on your own or share with the LBP community at large. The tool set gives you everything you need to create eye popping levels if you give them enough thought. Levers, switches, rods, pistons, string, rubber bands, buttons, chains: the list of tools goes on and on. The possibilities of design are literally endless. With a bit of ingenuity and imagination, you can create a level the likes of which has never been seen.

One of the things that is going to give LBP a long lasting appeal is the constant influx of user created content to play. Once you have created your award winning level, you can upload it to the LBP servers for anyone to play. Of course there is going to be a lot of dreck, but Media Molecule has taken care to include a rating system and a comment system so finding the gems amongst the coal becomes a much easier task. Just look for the levels that have been favorited or "hearted" (as LBP calls it) by a lot of people and you can usually find some great stuff. After completing a community level, you are given the option of assigning the level a buzz word such as "long" or "exciting" or "rubbish." This not only gives future players an idea of what the level will be like, but those key words can be searched out as well. For instance, if you want to play levels that have been marked as "fantastic," simply search for that term and the game will send you back a list of user created levels that have that same label. Similarly, if you find a level that is offensive, you can go into a screen that will allow you to photograph the offending screen and report it to the powers that be at LBP. Of course, user generated content isn't the only thing that will keep LBP going as Media Molecule and Sony have promised a ton of DLC to keep the game fresh for quite some time to come

I could really go on and on here for another ten or twelve paragraphs, describing all the ins and out and intricacies of LittleBigPlanet, but I wouldn't want to rob you of the experience of playing it yourself and discovering how wonderful this game really is. If you own a PS3, LittleBigPlanet is an absolute must for your collection. I would even go so far as to call it a system seller in some cases, especially for those with a hankering to create their own games. This is a one in a million title, a shining star in the galaxy of video games. You haven't seen anything like it before and will likely never see anything quite like it again. A game truly worthy of the moniker "An instant classic," a term which I often have many issues with and don't use lightly. In this case it is more than well deserved.

10 out of 10