SPEED CREATE by Mnniska
A new fan-created video series called SpeedCreate. Love the new approach and helpful tips/ideas passed along to the rest of us. Thanks!

LittleBigPodcast – Episode 156 and Muppets DLC
Thanks for keeping us updated on the latest!

The Muppets Invade LittleBigPlanet!
Speaking of the Muppets, the new DLC is available NOW! Here’s a look at our recent trailer…

The 2011 Sackies – Nominations Needed!
With the Golden Globes behind us and the Oscars coming up soon, awards season now here in full force, so it’s time for our own special LBP awards, called The Sackies – and we need your help. Check out how you can help nominate the best levels out there via LBP.me – just find the level and look for the special Sackies nomination feature at the top of each level. Nominations will be closed on Feb 6th, then voting will begin and go until Feb 20th with winners scheduled to be announced the week after. So, nominate your favorite levels now!

Other LBP News…
LBPCentral’s Community Spotlight, Episode 76
Thanks for the round-up. This episode highlights a handful of new games uploaded recently:

• InterKinetic
• The Hollows of Thronwood Thicket
• Super Special Awesome Christmas Level
• A Christmas Tale: Santa ClaWs is Jelly
• Escape from the Mines!
• Sealed Fate – Chapter 1
• Aeon Quest
• El Guero’s Disembodied Genius
• The Cillian Saga part 2
• The Ruins of Kalahr

Exciting Times at Media Molecule
-Happy belated Birthday to Mm (Jan 4th) – click on over to the Communities’ B-DAY card and add your own special message to Mm.
-Mm Podcast 15 – New Years Resolutions

…More Thank Yous…
And a special thanks to everyone in the community that act as our eyes and ears on the interwebs for the rest of the community to enjoy, including LittleBigLand, LBP2Blog, LittleBigPicks, RocketCheetah, and many many more!

PlayStation.Blog: Many view the PlayStation Vita launch line-up as the best in our company’s history. How long have you been planning it for?
Shuhei Yoshida, President, Worldwide Studios: Full development of PS Vita hardware started in Spring, 2008 when the semiconductor was complete. The great thing is that we [Worldwide Studios] were there right at the beginning to express our thoughts and reactions to the hardware that was being proposed. We were there at every stage and with every prototype, and we developed game builds to prove and, sometimes, disprove how each new feature was going to make for a great game system.

When Kaz Hirai took over management of SCEI he brought in the approach of fully integrating software and hardware development. Before that, we made brilliant hardware, no question of that, but our hardware team didn’t have such a good understanding of what game developers need or what features might be useful.

It is thanks to this way of working that you are seeing such a great line-up, using so many of the system’s unique features; it’s because our developers have been working with them from the moment each was conceived.

PSB: How far ahead are you looking now and what can we expect from the second and third phases of releases?
SY: Generally we look three years ahead when we work on games. We have a fairly firm plan right up to 2013 but, because PS Vita gives us the opportunity to work on smaller titles like Escape Plan and Sound Shapes, I’m certain we will end up working on more games than we even know about at this moment. On top of the launch line-up, we have already announced LittleBigPlanet, Resistance: Burning Skies, ModNation: Road Trip, and Killzone.

In the past we launched PSP and then shifted our attention to PS3 when that came on the horizon, which we now concede was a mistake. So with PS Vita we are working on this huge range titles and planning ahead for a constant supply of excellent games.

PSB: Augmented Reality (AR) has already been used in some great games but perhaps games aimed at a younger or more casual audience. What is going to convince hardcore gamers that it’s a compelling new way to play?
SY: One thing I know about hardcore gamers is that they hate it when we try to shove new technology down their throats. There may be a perception that Augmented Reality is a gimmick, so we have to provide something that is robust and genuinely enhances the experience. You’re right that AR leans more towards a casual or a younger audience but I don’t think that’s a bad thing; I think that it helps PS Vita to be more relevant to a wider group of people. The more we experiment, I’m sure that we will see real gameplay benefits for hardcore players.

PSB: As someone involved in unearthing new development talent, does it excite you seeing smaller teams coming up with really compelling download and mobile games?
SY: Absolutely – my personal PS Vita game is a totally immersive experience called Sound Shapes (which is especially great when you’re wearing headphones). It’s made by Jonathan Mak who created Everyday Shooter all by himself, designing the graphics and even composing the music. With this new game he has some huge ambitions: he has even hired a couple of people!

I’m a fan of these small developers – The best thing is that they have experience in every part of planning, developing and releasing. It’s not like they have left school and gone to work in a team of 100, only ever working on one particular aspect of their game. They don’t follow the traditional game conventions; some of them are very vocal about trying to break those rules. They are the next generation and they will be changing the landscape of gaming long after I have retired.

PSB: Is there one attribute that you’re always looking for in a PlayStation developer?
SY: I don’t necessarily work on recruiting any more as there are producers in our studios reaching out and looking for new talent. Each of them has his or her special thing that they look for but passion is the one common attribute. If a developer is asking you what you want them to develop, then that is not a good question; producers are looking for people with conviction in their own ideas.

PSB: PlayStation 3 has introduced predominantly new IPs from Worldwide Studios, whereas PS Vita has a mix of the new and the familiar. What can we expect to see in the long term?
SY: People like to see their favourite franchises, partly because gaming is about learning a mechanic and developing a skill, and players want to use those skills that they have honed. However, when we introduce new hardware with unique interfaces and network options, it is almost easier to work on something completely new. Take rear touch on PS Vita – we’d rather be thinking about how we can make fresh games using that feature than figuring out ways to add it to something that already exists.

PSB: Developers have stated that PS Vita is relatively easy to develop for, but how do you quantify that and put it into some perspective for our readers?
SY: If you’re keeping track of the third-party games that are being developed then you’ll be amazed at how quickly they are coming together. I’ve been working with our internal dev teams on launch games and they’ve had longer cycles because they were also, in part, helping to debug the early prototypes of the hardware and the SDK.

When I saw new developers coming in and getting straight to work on those systems when they had matured, I could not believe how quickly they were getting their games up and running. I have never seen anything like it before. If you want very straightforward evidence to support that, we are launching PS Vita here in Japan with 24 games.

PSB: Which games do you predict will be most popular at the Japanese launch?
SY: Actually, we collect data from retailers taking pre-orders and we know that Everybody’s Golf (note: known as Hot Shots Golf in North America) is the most popular and UNCHARTED: Golden Abyss is number two. I’m very proud that they are both Worldwide Studios titles.

PSB: It’s perceived that Japanese gaming tastes are quite different to those in Europe and the Americas. Do you see them growing closer?
SY: Japanese people traditionally have a strong local preference, particularly with the Manga style look of characters that they love. But as technology and presentation advances in games like UNCHARTED and Call of Duty, they are rightly seeing their quality. Also, it helps that SCEJ paid a lot of money to get Harrison Ford to appear on TV playing UNCHARTED!

Happy third birthday, LittleBigPodcast! Three years ago, our friends Daniel and Austin started a small podcast dedicated to LittleBigPlanet. And now, 146 episodes later, The LittleBigPodcast has a special birthday episode, and a special “Sack-it-to-me” video just for us…

Latest Media Molecule Picks

This weekend, be sure to play the lastest “Mm picks” chosen by Media Molecule themselves..

FreeFallin’ (3D Skydiving)
Add it to your Queue: http://lbp.me/v/7vdd14

Losing Things
Add it to your Queue: http://lbp.me/v/0e6hdm

Dark Force (Co-op sword action-RPG)
Add it to your Queue: http://lbp.me/v/06y4zb

And thanks to aoinko2012, MrShuanji and GameplayFlicks for capturing these vids.

Speaking of picks…

Check out LittleBigPicks’ latest guide on other new levels you have to play this weekend. Great stuff, guys!

A Vote for Sackboy is a Vote for Victory

Be sure to support LittleBigPlanet 2 in this season’s GAME OF THE YEAR nominations (but only if you think we deserve it…)

Spike VGA’s Best PS3 Game.

MMGN’s Best PS3 Exclusive of 2011.

Actiontrip’s Game of the Year 2011 – People’s Choice

We’re pleased to bring to you a new costume from our friends over at Oddworld Inhabitants. With the PlayStation Store update later today, you can dress your Sackboy up as the crossbow-wielding, poncho-sporting bounty hunter with a deadly secret (and deadly breath). Introducing the Stranger…

More wallpaper goodness!

If you’re looking for more wallpapers, check out the latest featuring Ezio Auditore Sackboy!

Crown winners!

For the goodness of science, congrats to the winners (and all participants) of the LittleBigPlanet Central Crown Contest!

A picture is worth…

Our friends over in LittleBigLand have a new segment of LBP “A week in pictures”. Check out this week’s snapshots of levels you SHOULD be playing!

LittleBigPlanet and LBP2 enabled PS3 players to play, create and share custom-made levels and game modes online for all to enjoy. Now, with the upcoming PS Vita game harnessing the handheld’s plethora of inputs and sensors for playing and creating, Sackboy’s new adventure will be the most accessible – and empowering – LittleBigPlanet yet.

We’ve seen glimpses of what PS Vita adds to Play starting at E3, when SCEE’s Pete Smith demonstrated how the touch screen, gyroscopes, and rear touch panel helped Sackboy navigate levels in all-new ways. At gamescom, Smith was joined by Tarsier Studios designer Richard Meredith to show us some more Play possibilities and tools you’ll use to Create new types of games.

Even the “Super Oval” shape of PS Vita is giving the development team novel new possibilities. Smith turned the Vita vertically to demonstrate a gravity-based game where players rapidly sort colored balls into the right chute – reminiscent of a touch-enabled version of PSN game Droplitz.

Next, the duo demonstrated an air hockey game where two people can play at once by each grabbing one side of the PS Vita. The demonstration made clear that, much like in LBP2, Vita’s LittleBigPlanet will allow for games far outside of simple side-scrolling platformers. Add in PS Vita’s tilt sensors, front and real touchscreen, cameras, and microphone and you’ve got a powerful but intuitive suite of control options for playing and creating levels.

Of course, if you see it in the world of LittleBigPlanet, you can also create it yourself.

Meredith took the controls here, showing how the most basic functions of creation can now be mapped to the intuitive touch screen. He first painted a simple stickman with his finger. As he dragged the completed scarecrow around the screen, the game automatically recorded the movement path. When he let go, and the little man danced along the path all on his own. Sorcery!

Smith then shared an anecdote about how development team members were tasked with making a complete game in about three minutes. Meredith re-created the experience by selecting a Swiss cheese texture and drawing a maze with his finger, dropping in a few pitfalls to make things interesting. Then he snapped a photo of someone’s mouth with the PS Vita camera, which he placed as the end goal of the maze. Drop in a ball, assign tilt controls to steer, and you’ve got yourself a game! Meredith also showed a more advanced version of that level, which took him a couple of hours to create. Though it packed far more detail and polish, it was essentially the same game he created in just a few minutes.

When it comes to the third element of LittleBigPlanet, Share, the team is working on a seamless connection between the PS Vita and PS3 community, including LBP.me compatibility. It seems clear that finding new levels to play will be as easy on PS Vita as it is on PS3. Perhaps most importantly, the simplicity of the new Create interface should entice countless new players to contribute to the millions of levels already living in the LBP ecosystem.

In a nutshell, the PlayStation Move Pack lets you create levels with (and for) the PlayStation Move motion controller, and it includes a set of levels built by Media Molecule to make your creative juices juicier. LBP has always been all about communities creating and sharing, so rather than show you our 200-slide marketing presentation, I’ll hand you over to Andrew, AKA Chimpanzee, creator extraordinaire and editor of the splendid Rocket Cheetah, for enlightenment…

Back in May I was lucky enough to be invited to the hallowed grounds of Mm Towers to check out the new LittleBigPlanet 2 features they were working on and hang out with some well-known Creators to see what they could do with them. We all knew that Media Molecule were working on an update to the game, introducing brand new tools which make use of the PlayStation Move motion controller, but what we saw was so much more than LBP 2 with added ‘waggle’.

15 members of the community from as far afield as the USA and France descended on Media Molecule’s Guildford studios and to kick things off we were given a brief demonstration of some of the features of the Move Pack.

Looking back, I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised by how much was being given to creators – after all, Media Molecule aren’t exactly known for doing things by halves. Aside from features that people are expecting, the Move Pack also includes a wealth of amazing new gadgets and tweaks which Creators have either been asking for forever or don’t even know that they need yet, but will soon wonder how they ever did without.

First up was the Manipulator, a power-up which can be dropped into a level to instantly enable Move gameplay. It works just like other power-ups that you’re already familiar with; It’s equipped when a player walks over it and can be removed with the power-up remover. With the Manipulator, the player aims by pointing the Move motion controller and can pick up, move around and carry grabbable objects using the trigger. It has a set range (similar to that of the grappling hook) indicated by a translucent orb around Sackboy.

The Moveinator is the PlayStation Move’s equivalent of the Controlinator. As well as all the standard buttons, it gives Creators access to all of the Move’s sensors: Gyroscopes for rotation and tilt on all and the accelerometers to detect up. down, left and right movement. Anyone who’s used the Controlinator in their levels will find the Moveinator’s circuit board very familiar. All of the outputs can be wired-up to Mover logic to allow the player to control any object directly.

Combine the Moveinator with the Move Cursor and you’ve got instant point and shoot gameplay. Just plonk one of these new logic chips down on the Moveinator’s circuit board and you’re given a reticule which you can aim with the PlayStation Move. You can customize the pointer to be any sticker you like and you can even tweak a range of options to have it change color or even switch to a completely different graphic when it hovers over specific objects.

To illustrate how some of the new features could be used, we were shown a few of the MM-made levels that’ll be included in the downloadable pack. It’s the largest piece of DLC that Media Molecule have released so far and the variety of gameplay is bound to inspire Creators to come up with even more exciting and original ideas. The main story levels consist mainly of puzzle/platformers where you play using with a DualShock or Sub-controller in one hand and the PlayStation Move in the other – a control scheme that was surprisingly easy to get used to. But the mini games are where I was really blown-away. One was a Labyrinth-style game where you had to tilt the Move to guide a ball through a maze-like track. In another, you had to use the Move Cursor to arrange objects, conveyer belts and bounce pads on a board to guide a dumb Sackbot from one side to the other.

Overwhelmed? I was. But grab a cup of coffee and take a deep breath because we aren’t even nearly done yet!

Next we we shown some of the smaller but equally pleasing new tweaks and tools. Firstly, Media Molecule have been listening and have delivered on a much-requested feature: Multipliers on Score Givers! Huzzah! You can even tweak how often the score is multiplied and by how much. They’ve also introduced Speed and Rotation Sensors which output if and how much an object is moving, which I’m sure will be music to many Creators’ ears. There’s also a new Slicer Tool. This works in a similar way to the Corner Editing Tool but allows you to pick any two points on the edge of a shape and slice it in two – a big time-saver.

Yet another new tool is the Move Recorder – a new logic chip which records the fluid motion of the Move controller. This allows Creators to give realistic, organic behavior to any object and anyone who’s used Sackbots’ “Act” function will instantly recognize how it works.

Well, that’s about it. Oh wait, no it’s not!

Just a small thing really, no big deal, it’s just that LittleBigPlanet 2 now has a freakin’ paint studio! The fully-featured Sticker Creator takes you to a whole new interface where the Move controller is your paint brush. Excuse me while I gush here for a moment but it really is no exaggeration to say that the artistic types among you will be able to create fully-fledged masterpieces with this. There’s a selection of brush types, shapes and colors to choose from and you can also change the brushes opacity, allowing you to blend several colors together to get that precise shade that you’re after. You could also take any existing sticker and use it as a brush or stamp. I used it to make a rather lovely ocean of bright yellow rubber ducks but you could of course get a little more creative with it and compose hundreds of different stickers together into something incredible

The paintings you make can then be used as stickers in-game, shared in prize bubbles or exported in high-resolution to the XMB.

With all these awesome new stickers you’ll be making, you’ll want a way to display them in their full glory in your levels. Mm has you covered, yet again, with the new Sticker Panel material. This mysterious new substance is magical; draw out a block of it in Create mode and as soon as you stick a sticker to it, it becomes completely invisible, leaving only the sticker behind. Sticker Panels behave in a similar way to the Hologram material in that it has no physical properties, can pass through other objects and can be stacked on top of one another in the same layer. However, unlike Hologram material, a Sticker Panel doesn’t affect the sticker’s color or opacity… unless you want it to of course.

Phew! That about does it for my ‘brief’ round-up of the LBP 2 Move Game Jam. It was a truly amazing to see some master Creators in action, let loose with some new toys. I really cannot wait to see what the rest of the community does with them.

A huge thank you to Spaff, Tom and everyone at Mm for making it happen and to everyone who was there on the day for letting me tap them on the shoulder every 10 minutes with a curious “Whatcha dooin’?”

• It’s not a port: this LBP features an all new campaign and Vita-specific features
• Your previously purchased LittleBigOutfits will transfer seamlessly into LBP for Vita
• Sackboy looks 72% cuter on the OLED screen

Producer Pete Smith from SCEE Liverpool has been working on the LittleBigPlanet series since the original, and is therefore well qualified to show off what’s new for LBP Vita.

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this LBP is that the Create tools are kind of like a Vita dev kit. You can access the touch screens, accelerometers and more to make levels that take full advantage of the handheld, and are unlike any previously created in the LBP universe.

We’ve been keeping a secret! We’ve challenged 12 community members to create an EPIC storyline and playable levels in LittleBigPlanet 2. We wanted to see if they could create a full game experience within LBP2 – filled with cut-scenes, bosses and even mini-games. Great news is they’re almost finished and we wanted to give you a sneak peek of what they’ve been working on. Introducing…’Hansel & Gretelbot.’

Stay tuned when the levels will be available for your playing pleasure. Click here for the whole story directly from Media Molecule.

LittleBigPodcast turns 2!

We can’t believe our friends over at LittleBigPodcast are turning two! To celebrate, they’re about to release their 95th episode with a very special guest appearance by the team at Media Molecule. Check out the latest podcast and celebrate with us. Daniel and Austin: You guys rock! ..Cha Cha Cha…

LittleBigLand Unveils its Holiday Create Pack 2010

With the holidays around the corner, LittleBigLand is kicking off the celebrations with their release of a bunch of SHAREABLE holiday object goodness. Get online and be sure to play this awesome level by april2011, Dr. Pepper, Killer_Sackman, Poison_Samurai and Argetlam350 (aka The LBL Creators Club).

On the PlayStation Store

Birthday Cake for everyone!

Hurry and head to the PlayStation Store to download the limited edition Birthday Cake costume as we celebrate LittleBigPlanet turning 2. I’ll only be available for one week…Cha Cha Cha!

LBP and LBP2 goodness on the PlayStation Store in December

We’re sure you saw yesterday’s post on the upcoming Sackboy playables on the PlayStation Store. With the demo expanding, Sackboy’s Prehistoric Moves and the downloadable LBP2 Story Demo coming soon, we’re glad you’ll have some quality Sackboy time over the holidays.

LittleBigBloggies at PAX Finale!

For all you CREATE fans, we just finalized the last two Bloggies from PAX 2010. Check out these two games made in LittleBigPlanet 2 while on the show floor. Kudos to our Community Creators for coming out and showing us how its done.

And…

…what’s a few celebrations with out cake, cookies and…glass statues?

…Cha Cha Cha…

Happy Birthday LBP!

This Thursday, November 11th, PlayStation Home will update to client 1.4. In addition to the features we announced last Friday – wardrobe management, grouping, and voice chat – there are several other noteworthy additions, such as the new “Character Status” settings, improvements to the Menu Pad and Navigator, and cross-game invite support (finally, you can invite your friends to join you in PlayStation Home no matter what they are playing or watching on their PS3s). The new 1.4 client also brings numerous bug fixes and performance improvements. Full Patch Notes can be found HERE.

Important notice: When you start PlayStation Home to apply the 1.4 patch, please wait for the orange light to stop flashing on your PS3 before commencing the patching process. Otherwise your PS3 will reboot and you will have to start over.

LittleBigPlanet fans rejoice! This week the mega-popular LittleBigPlanet space receives a massive update with the brand new LittleBigDerby game. This super-addictive multiplayer game puts you and up to 7 of your friends in a paintball challenge where you must shoot targets to earn points and progress your racer towards the finish line. Pro tip: Hit targets with the right color paintballs to rack up bonus points.

The PlayStation Home Mall receives a huge update this week with brand new items in the Exclusives store (such as the new Platinum suit and Onyx gown – pictured below), new accessories for the ladies in the Sodium store (also pictured below), Irem swimwear, and Konami’s new line of soccer items (their initial offering includes the Australia and New Zealand kits – check back often for more countries’ kits in the PlayStation Home Mall).

Finally, the PlayStation Home Community Theater will air the first episode from our newest partner – the one and only Hip-Hop Gamer. In episode 1, HHG takes a look at the PlayStation Move and discusses how it may affect the gaming industry as we know it. Check out the world premier this Thursday!

See you in Home!