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LittleBigPlanet
Developer: Media Molecule
Publisher: Sony
Media Molecule has made its debut on the Playstation 3 with platformer Little Big Planet.
Graphics
The graphics in Little Big planet are shiny and clean, on par with every other next gen game on the market.
Audio
Actor Stephen Fry has done a fantastic job as narrator in Little Big Planet. His dry, British sense of humour really takes the voice acting to another level. The sound track sets the mood for each level.
Game Play
The minute Little Big Planet loads up you’re introduced to a lovable character named Sackboy. From here the tutorials teach you how to use the controls as well as how to use the six axis capabilities in the game. The D pad controls facial expressions while the pitch and tilt of the controller make Sackboy perform a variety of humorous expressions. You can also control Sackboy’s arms individually with the L2 and R2 buttons in conjunction with the left and right analog sticks. After the tutorials you are brought to your pod, an enhanced menu screen from which you choose which levels to play, download or create. You can decorate your pod as well as Sackboy by either downloading free or paid DLC from the PSN store or by unlocking clothing and accessories in the single player campaign.
The single player story mode is very short at 35 levels. Sure, that may sound like a lot of levels but they aren’t terribly long. That being said, the puzzles are very fun to solve and each level is unique. You should be able to breeze through the single player campaign in 6 to 7 hours; longer if you go for full completion. In each level you can find and unlock various objects, stickers and decorations which are then available to you when designing your own level. After beating the single player campaign the real fun begins: level creation. While I have not yet posted my own levels online to share with the world, I have started to play with the massive tool set provided. I’ve created some small levels and I am impressed with the versatility offered. I’ve downloaded some levels created by other users and all I can say is that the creativity is unbelievable. My favourite so far might have to be the Wipe-Out HD remake. That being said, don’t expect levels like this to be around for too long. Mm is now cracking down on copyrighted content in level design. With the endless possibilities, I would love to see some sort of Hockey or sports level created. They probably already exist, but I haven’t found them yet. I was really looking forward to online co-op level creation, but it is currently not available. This is sort of a letdown as this feature was one of my most anticipated in LBP. Hopefully they will patch in this feature soon!
Conclusion
If you’ve always sought to create your own game but lacked the know-how, Little Big Planet is the game for you. It will help you harness your creativity to design your own masterpieces which can then be shared with the world. There are only thirty-five levels in the single player campaign but, as mentioned, the true replay ability in this game lies in creating your own levels and downloading levels created by other users. The controls are not as tight as they should be and could be tweaked. Only time will tell how long this game will truly last. However, ‘teh good’ outweighs ‘teh bad’. Therefore, if you have a PS3 you need to buy this game. If you don’t have a PS3, well then Little Big Planet gives you a reason to buy one!
Contest Time! Gears of War 2 T-Shirt!
Want to own this cool Gears of War 2 t-shirt that was given away at the Toronto Gears of War 2 Launch event? Well here’s your chance. All you have to do is take an in game photo, upload it to Epic Games and send us your best shot!
Official Tehflakes.ca Contest Rules
Contest commences at 19:00 p.m. EST Friday November 14th 2008 and concludes at 11: 59 p.m. EST Monday December 1st 2008
E-mail us at ryan@tehflakes.ca with the following information:
Your Photo (duh)
Your Name
Your Xbox live GamerTag
Mailing address with postal code
World Of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King
World Of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King Collectors Edition unboxing.
GoW 2 Launch Party + Quick & Dirty #4 – Gears of War 2 + CONTEST
Last night, in the tunnels that run deep under Toronto, Xbox Canada and High Road Communications hosted the Gears of War 2 launch event. The evening started with community members and press meeting at Bay subway station. Attendees were greeted by Xbox Canada’s own JadeLive. After receiving guest badges, we were escorted down into the bowels of Toronto’s Lower Bay subway station. Yes, that’s right… the GoW2 launch event was held at the abandoned subway station.
On the way in, we each received a swag bag containing a copy of Gears of War 2 and a Gears of War t-shirt. Swag in hand, we descended the stairs and found ourselves on a dimly lit subway platform flanked by two subway cars. Between the cars were dozens of wide screen televisions displaying Gears of War 2 start screens.
I headed to the back and started playing the five player horde mode with fellow community members KowZ and The Forum Troll with a few other folks. Horde is all about teamwork and communication. Considering all we could hear was the rumbling of the subways above us, we still managed to fight off the Locust and make it to wave thirty five. I avoided checking out any of the television sets with the GoW2 campaign mode going on as I didn’t want to see any spoilers! Also of note, was the set of ten televisions back to back (five on each side) where people were playing 5 on 5 COG versus Locust. Ridiculously fun. DarthAlbert III and Mister Switch of ohmpage.ca played on opposing teams with much smack talk between the two.
Thanks again to Jade and her team for inviting us to their brilliantly planned and executed launch party.
Some quick thoughts about Gears in this special edition of Quick & Dirty for GoW2:
Gears of War 2
Teh Good
- Horde mode
- Better cover system including meat shield (use your dead opponent as cover)
- Improved graphics and audio
Teh Bad
- The controls when driving vehicles are still a bit wonky
- Voice “acting”
- There’s still nothing you can do should a team member go rogue and chainsaw you from behind. I’m looking at you HalfLife84!
Teh Verdict
If you enjoyed Gears 1 you will love Gears 2. More than just Gears 1.5, the new weapons (mortar!), enemies, and multiplayer modes create a brand new Gears experience. This game will account for a ton of time on Xbox Live for me and many other gamers. Gears of War 2 is a must buy this holiday season, make sure to pick up and join in on killing the Locust!
CONTEST TIME!
EDIT: CONTEST IS CLOSED folks. Congrats to Carnage1975. Hopefully your golden Hammerburst will still look nice and sparkly when it’s on the ground beside your freshly chainsawed corpse.
Img source: IGN.com
I know you want this sweet gold-plated HammerBurst firearm. Well, thanks to our good friend JakenBear at Xbox Canada, tehflakes.ca has a code to give away for one. All you have to do is respond to this post with your comments and one lucky winner will be chosen at random to win the code. Good luck!
Photos by okaybuddy. More pics available here.
read moreQuick & Dirty #3 – Little Big Planet
SIDENOTE: For the three people who don’t already know, there’s a GoW2 launch party happening in Toronto tonight. Tehflakes and I will be there in the middle of the action. Expect photos and reviews tomorrow. For now, enjoy Q&D #3 for…
Little Big Planet
Teh Good
- Large, beautiful worlds
- Interesting and unique game mechanics
- Co-op has never been more fun (especially online)
Teh Bad
- Um… teh bad?
- Okay, sometimes it’s hard to jump between the three planes (foreground, middle and background)
- Oh, and some users report having trouble with online, but so far so good for me
Teh Verdict
If you like platforming games, you will LOVE LBP. Early levels are good “gateway” levels for those new to gaming. This game makes me laugh my butt off. Sackboy is the cutest hero ever.
read moreQuick & Dirty #2 – Fable 2 (or is it II)
Regardless of how it’s spelled, Fable 2 is next up on the Q&D chopping block. Here we go!
Fable 2
Teh Good
- Much longer quest than the original
- Engrossing world (very addictive)
- Morality plays an even bigger role (it can drastically alter the world)
Teh Bad
- This game is GLITCH-Y; game ending at times
- Not enough variety in costumes and weapons
- Online co-op is one giant pile of fail due to camera restrictions (amongst other things)
Teh Verdict
Fans of Fable will love Fable 2. Not for the faint of heart. You will have some tough choices to make. Bring Kleenex.
read moreQuick & Dirty #1 – Mega Man 9
What? You were expecting a new game? I told you how lazy I am. Actually, the boss-man Flakes told me to go in order of release date, so you can blame him. Here we go!
Mega Man 9
Teh Good
- This is the Mega Man you remember from childhood (NES glitches included)
- When you complete a stage you feel a true sense of achievement
- It’s only $10!
Teh Bad
- This game is controller-breakingly hard
- CAPCOM is selling different difficulties and bonuses separately
- #*@%! Why is this game so fraking HARD?!? AAAARGH!!!
Teh Verdict
Mega Man done right. The sound, design and level structure all remind me when I was a kid. They also show me how babied gamers are nowadays in terms of difficulty. This is a game that I pick up, play for a level or two and then put down for a couple weeks because it makes me so angry (in a challenging way, not due to poor design). So worth the $10.
read more