evilromero
Member
I have the first one and tried to like it but it just wasn't very fun to play.
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What went wrong with Little Big Planet?
- Thread starter RP912
- Start date
Yep, LBP nailed online multiplayer. Not just that -- it nailed online and couch coop combined (you could play any number of players locally and still play with online people at the same time, something not nearly enough games do -- Halo was always great for this as well).
A platformer focused on exploration, a goofy world, and letting you put that world together yourself in multiplayer as well, or just kill each other with whatever evil things you can come up with in create mode. With unique player interactions (grab/slap) and an interesting minimalist communication system for online play (emotions). It's actually one of the best multiplayer experiences I've ever played, and I play a lot of coop games. One of the most unique.
petethepanda
Member
It was never a game that had a ton of marketing behind it and the physics/momentum-based platforming wasn't for everyone. 3 shipping with tons of bugs and a distressingly short (yet great while it lasted) singleplayer mode made things worse.
I haven't touched 3 since a couple weeks into release (the popit bug and seemingly frequent save corruption scared me away until patches came out but I never wound up going back) but I'm thinking about diving back in for a bit. Has the community picked up? The number of great player-made levels at launch seemed to be considerably smaller than it had been for the last couple games.
I haven't touched 3 since a couple weeks into release (the popit bug and seemingly frequent save corruption scared me away until patches came out but I never wound up going back) but I'm thinking about diving back in for a bit. Has the community picked up? The number of great player-made levels at launch seemed to be considerably smaller than it had been for the last couple games.
Bomber Bob
Banned
boring floaty platformer
Leatherface
Member
This pretty much nails it. It's a shame too because concept wise and aesthetically I think it's fantastic.
Calamari41
41 > 38
I'm in a target demographic for this game - big Nintendo platforming fan - and the fact that I don't even know if these games have a robust single player (meaning levels designed by the developers) is a telling part of the problem.
I don't think a lot of people are interested in playing a bunch of levels designed by randoms online. The fact that the franchise has been able to sell what it has is a success story, as far as I'm concerned.
I don't think a lot of people are interested in playing a bunch of levels designed by randoms online. The fact that the franchise has been able to sell what it has is a success story, as far as I'm concerned.
donkey show
Member
Patches we've released so far have taken care of the save corruption and all those other issues that were persisting in the beginning, so you won't have to worry about those anymore. And we're still looking to improve and add more on a regular basis. There's lots planned in the upcoming future.
As for the community, they've been making loads of crazy things lately: https://lbp.me/levels?p=1&l=12&t=team_picks The team picks get updated once a week so there's always top quality community stuff on a regular basis.
We also highlight some stuff levels monthly on our youtube channel: http://youtu.be/xeB1lmOyHWY
We've also added a level of the day feature for those levels that aren't team picked but still pretty awesome.
KratosEnergyDrink
Member
Single player campaign was boring and controls feels weird sometimes. Level editor was the only outstanding idea, but was a pain to use with the controller.
Glendemonium
Member
Other than the floaty physics, I've felt the game was overemphasizing the "whimseyness" of the world they were building. It just felt boring overall.
Other than the bad physics i would say the anonimity that curse almost every Sony game, Sony games don't really pop between others imo.
Really? There's a huge difference between bad physycs and what people call everything that jump differently from Mario.
Different kinds of platformer need different kinds of jump, not every platformer is straight left to right
but people forgot it :\
sörine;162313906 said:
Really? There's a huge difference between bad physycs and what people call everything that jump differently from Mario.
Different kinds of platformer need different kinds of jump, not every platformer is straight left to right
but people forgot it :\I love it when people list completely dull, uninteresting, and common things as reasons why a game is great. Oh, players can grab each other! And make faces instead of chatting!
You sound like a press release.
Chuck Norris
Banned
Wasn't the first super successful? Both commercially and critically.
I think the issue was that it really sold on a very innovative and forward thinking concept. And then the sequels were just... Rehashes. They never recaptured that spirit of freedom and newness because they just went really safe.
LBP2 should have gone full 3D. They should have continued reinventing the art style. Lots of directions they could have gone besides being so safe
I think the issue was that it really sold on a very innovative and forward thinking concept. And then the sequels were just... Rehashes. They never recaptured that spirit of freedom and newness because they just went really safe.
LBP2 should have gone full 3D. They should have continued reinventing the art style. Lots of directions they could have gone besides being so safe
Fbh
Member
Well for starters it was never a very good platformer so a lot of the appeal was the whole creative aspect of it that just isn't for everyone.
Honesty, even the user create levels never appealed that much to me. I only found a handful that were as good as the story mode levels and many of the popular ones were impressive in terms of concept but not in terms of gameplay. Yeah, it's impressive that someone managed to make an FPS or that someone managed to recreate the first dungeon of Zelda, but they weren't really that fun to play, it was the type of content you would watch for 2 minutes on youtube, say "Wow, that's impressive" and be done with it.
And then there is also the fact that it never felt like it evolved. Sure they added some new creative tools and new items and stuff like that. But no new entry (haven't played LBP Vita so I can't comment on that one) felt like a big step forward for the franchise.
They should have changed the style, or gave the option to make 3D levels, or polish up the gameplay so It's actually a good platformer with user created levels.
Honesty, even the user create levels never appealed that much to me. I only found a handful that were as good as the story mode levels and many of the popular ones were impressive in terms of concept but not in terms of gameplay. Yeah, it's impressive that someone managed to make an FPS or that someone managed to recreate the first dungeon of Zelda, but they weren't really that fun to play, it was the type of content you would watch for 2 minutes on youtube, say "Wow, that's impressive" and be done with it.
And then there is also the fact that it never felt like it evolved. Sure they added some new creative tools and new items and stuff like that. But no new entry (haven't played LBP Vita so I can't comment on that one) felt like a big step forward for the franchise.
They should have changed the style, or gave the option to make 3D levels, or polish up the gameplay so It's actually a good platformer with user created levels.
Actually, I think the grab button is a genuinely brilliant idea, and a great way of increasing interaction with a physics-based world.
Which I think might be the key, here: I think the very thing that sold LBP to a lot of people originally - that world with fully-implemented physics - is precisely what causes the 'floatiness'. Sackboy obeys the same physics as other objects in the world, because he has to. And the problem is, realistic physics-based jumping isn't actually all that much fun, and *does* feel floaty. How do you reconcile that, without making Sackboy into a source of too much energy to the physical systems underpinning things?
Cropduster89
Neo Member
All the polish, charm, innovation and visual appeal really just couldn't save it from being a $60 2D platformer, with fairly average platforming.
And now with the indie market being what it is you can get a platformer with better core gameplay for like 1/6 of the price. The custom levels were almost always trash too, even the best ones were a big step-down from the pre-made stuff. All the amazing stuff they added in 2 that enhanced the whole creativity tool side of things was kind of for nothing if it's just to play the same old platformer, with gimmicks that would work better if they were scripted by a level designer.
That said I had a lot of fun in co-op with the first one, just didn't last that long.
And now with the indie market being what it is you can get a platformer with better core gameplay for like 1/6 of the price. The custom levels were almost always trash too, even the best ones were a big step-down from the pre-made stuff. All the amazing stuff they added in 2 that enhanced the whole creativity tool side of things was kind of for nothing if it's just to play the same old platformer, with gimmicks that would work better if they were scripted by a level designer.
That said I had a lot of fun in co-op with the first one, just didn't last that long.
Visually it never evolved, but instead devolved.
3 looked dreadful, barely any logical colour design to it. Meanwhile, Nintendo adopted the "real life hobbycraft" textured approach to Kirbys and Yoshi's, and showed what could be done with the concepts and not 0.5% effort art design:
Other than that, it also went SUPER COMPLEX with its creation tools (actual coding, circuit boards, etc) which is great for the hardcore minority of LBP superfans, but completely off-putting to everyone else.
In terms of color design... maybe. but (and i dont wanna start a war here...but...) damn do these screens of kirby and yoshi look like crap. Even LBP1 and 2 look better all around versus those games.
Sony didn't market it correctly...which is obviously not shocking, but this series should have been pounding the commercial breaks on Disney / Nick / CN etc. I have two young children, I watch far more of this than I should, and I dont think I've ever seen a playstation commercial. Skylanders yes, Ninty, yes, but thats it.
I mean, there is an ADVENTURE TIME add on..perhaps advertising this semi aggressively during the cartoon would be effective...or maybe Im on crazy pills.
They sold a game that was crafted for casual, family and core players, to core players only.
I had the first one, brilliant ideas, and game, I even like the floaty physics (I for one welcome anything that doenst feel like an old school platformer). but it just wasn't compelling, and I dont have the time to really dig into the creation side.
I mean, there is an ADVENTURE TIME add on..perhaps advertising this semi aggressively during the cartoon would be effective...or maybe Im on crazy pills.
They sold a game that was crafted for casual, family and core players, to core players only.
I had the first one, brilliant ideas, and game, I even like the floaty physics (I for one welcome anything that doenst feel like an old school platformer). but it just wasn't compelling, and I dont have the time to really dig into the creation side.
Regulus Tera
Romanes Eunt Domus
People put a lot of emphasis on user created content when the thing that platformer fans want are tightly designed levels. Sure, you can find some if you put some time into the search system, but it's not the immediate appeal of the game.
Also floaty physics.
Also floaty physics.
TwntyOneTwlv
Member
The real question is, what went wrong with Modnation Racers?
John Bender
Banned
It was never good, god-ugly design/art, shitty name, etc.
Overall crap!
Man-is-Obsolete
Member
Yep, nearly everyone including Sony misjudged the adoption rate of current gen and flat out abandonment of last gen consoles. Should have been a ps4 only title from the ground up. Cross gen games are extremely hamstrung, which is what makes Tomb Raider this year being cross gen so odd.
FriedConsole
Banned
They are huge with kids. I guess people were pissed there exist a few games designed for kids.
BattleMonkey
Member
Building stuff is neat, but it has to be simple like Minecraft. LBP really is fairly complex in making anything or it just takes forever to make anything cool. Little kids just aren't capable of picking it up and understanding the engine well enough like Minecraft which is super simple.
The game has a younger audience aesthetic yet it's too complex for most younger players
The game has a younger audience aesthetic yet it's too complex for most younger players
Oppo
Member
I appreciated the floaty style, even though I realize it was too jarring for those used to Mario "physics" (which aren't physics at all but w/e). It seemed appropriate for the puppeteer/marionette look that LBP had.
It's nice to have platform was try something that isn't within that strict wheelhouse of traditional plat formers. And the tools were fucking mind blowing. So much thought, so much care. I can't help but think that had LBP somehow landed on Nintendo platforms, it would be considered in a friendlier light overall. It became the "cute artstyle challenger" that came from Sony so it befell a bit of platform warrior rhetoric. What a crazy game though. I didn't buy 3 but I loved the hell out of 1 and 2 and the Vita version as well. I do t think anything really went wrong with it. It just ran its course.
If anything I would have changed the 3 layer system to a simple foreground and background layer, which probably would limit things severely, but it seemed a bit too much.
I remember showing LBP to some of my nieces and they were literally gobsmacked, mouth agape, couldn't beIieve what they were seeing.
BattleMonkey said:
This may be true for a lot of players, but the fact that you could teach logic gates and basic programming with this game was incredible and very worthwhile IMO.
Despite the acclaim of the first two in the series, I never found the games to actually be very good. The physics was a crapshoot and the game spent too much time focusing on the creation than on actually making a fun to play game. There's something to be said on praise for novelty for the ideas presented and bringing something fresh to the PS family experience, which I think is a large part of its original acclaim, but that simply won't last after you've churned out three of the thing and the issues never really get addressed.
I personally had more interest in downloading and looking at the level designs than actually ever playing them. That's never a good sign.
Everything will look like crap when its a stretched image in JPG compression. The games do not look like that on an actual screen.
I personally had more interest in downloading and looking at the level designs than actually ever playing them. That's never a good sign.
Everything will look like crap when its a stretched image in JPG compression. The games do not look like that on an actual screen.
EatinOlives
Member
For me the shit physics along with the fact that they stupidly favored backwards compatibility twice instead of actually fixing said shit physics sealed it for me.
For me to even consider another LBP game they need a complete and mandatory physics overhaul from day 1 of their next game, backwards compatibility be damned.
The idea of "do ANYTHING" was better in paper than in practice. It took a tremendous amount of effort to create anything other than a platformer, and even then most of the new "mini games" controlled like ass.
The novelty of playing an FPS, platformer, top down racer, side scrolling shooter, etc etc etc all wore off once you realized that none of them were actually any good on their own.
For me to even consider another LBP game they need a complete and mandatory physics overhaul from day 1 of their next game, backwards compatibility be damned.
The idea of "do ANYTHING" was better in paper than in practice. It took a tremendous amount of effort to create anything other than a platformer, and even then most of the new "mini games" controlled like ass.
The novelty of playing an FPS, platformer, top down racer, side scrolling shooter, etc etc etc all wore off once you realized that none of them were actually any good on their own.
The Artisan
Member
Acrylic7
Member
Media Molecule made LBP2 way too early. LBP1 had so much content that people were super burnt out on the game. Making a sequel to something everyone has played a billion times over with no real improvements was a bad idea. And on top of that they even made 3.
I purchased LBP2 for $10 and didn't bother putting in an 2 hours as the memories of the first came rushing back like a nostalgia bullet. Id had enough. Iv played the best levels created by users whom some are x100 better architects than the actual developers behind the game. Even with a couch full of friends I can find myself yawning. Even while playing spectacularly crafted levels.
Should have been a PS4 game with x1.5 gravity plus the new mechanics. Quick sequels work for some games but Little Big Planet wasn't one of them. MM should have started something else right after LBP but should have still supported the community with new features not a billion pieces of DLC.
What makes LBP so brilliant is its level creator and the fans who put forth the effort to create jaw dropping levels. A sequel to a game in which the content on the disk is not the selling point wont sale.
I purchased LBP2 for $10 and didn't bother putting in an 2 hours as the memories of the first came rushing back like a nostalgia bullet. Id had enough. Iv played the best levels created by users whom some are x100 better architects than the actual developers behind the game. Even with a couch full of friends I can find myself yawning. Even while playing spectacularly crafted levels.
Should have been a PS4 game with x1.5 gravity plus the new mechanics. Quick sequels work for some games but Little Big Planet wasn't one of them. MM should have started something else right after LBP but should have still supported the community with new features not a billion pieces of DLC.
What makes LBP so brilliant is its level creator and the fans who put forth the effort to create jaw dropping levels. A sequel to a game in which the content on the disk is not the selling point wont sale.
RedRedSuit
Member
By definition floaty physics is not a "stupid reason." If a large proportion of well-informed and reasonably capable players, such as those commenting on LBP on this board, say a certain gameplay mechanic is poor, then that in itself means that it IS poor. It doesn't matter if one whips out a whiteboard and mathematically proves that LBP's physics are amazingly awesome... if players find this not to be the case, then it is not the case. It's a fairly democratic thing really.
That is why MM's tacit refusal to take the ubiquitous overly-floaty-physics complaint head-on (and instead proceeding to develop LBP2 the way they did) was an arrogant, myopic, and ultimately self-damaging move.
You are, of course, free to say anything you want, but "not being 60fps" is clearly ludicrous, since that is barely, if ever, anyone's complaint about the series.
Doctor_Thomas
Member
Physics and jumping were fine. It's like some people have never played non-Nintendo platformers.
kinoki
Illness is the doctor to whom we pay most heed; to kindness, to knowledge, we make promise only; pain we obey.
I loved the first Little Big Planet as a concept. I built a few prototype levels but they were mostly about just platforming and I know nothing of how to pace a platformer. When Little Big Planet 2 released I finally managed to achieve some skill in crafting levels. I never made anything more than advanced concepts. Nothing polished.
Third one rolls around and I can't find myself opening the tools. The campaign is uninspired and I don't feel the love being put into the products. It's competent but it feels like it's just more of the same. I'd love to be able to sit down and actually make something worthwhile but it's too demanding.
Third one rolls around and I can't find myself opening the tools. The campaign is uninspired and I don't feel the love being put into the products. It's competent but it feels like it's just more of the same. I'd love to be able to sit down and actually make something worthwhile but it's too demanding.
Yup, I really dug the first one, but halfway through the platforming aspect of it just wasn't very good so I lost interest in the whole franchise.
I'm really looking forward to Mario Maker because Nintendo's platforms, especially Mario games, have definitely nailed the platforming portion of their games.
I was actually tempted to post the opposite.
Most of us have played the DKCs, Marios, MMs, Raymans, MMXs, MMZs, Klonoas, Castlevanias, Metroids etc, LBP just feels bad. I think if LBP was your FIRST platformer (ever or in a long time) I could see how you'd grow to like it more than the rest of us.