Media Molecule Aims to Revolutionize the Video Game Industry, Again.

Posted by Jon at 2:28 PM


On October 27, 2008, a new video game called LittleBigPlanet was released on the Playstation 3 vidieo game console. Developed by an innovative group of developers at Media Molecule studios, this game took an entirely new approach to gaming by giving the players full control over their gaming experience. Players were given all of the tools that the developers at Media Molecule used to build the game so that they were able to create their own levels. In this manner, players were able to cater their gaming experience to their own tastes. Furthermore, by being able to share your creations with other players around the world, LittleBigPlanet created a sense of community that is unrivaled by any other video game--this community has already built over 3 MILLION LEVELS, and remember that this was purely for their own satisfaction and pleasure.

While earlier games had given players similar creation tools, the experience in LittleBigPlanet was much more refined and user-friendly, which is why the game saw such great success and sold over 4.5 million copies worldwide.
Now, in 2010, Media Molecule is getting ready to completely revolutionize the video game industry once more. Recognizing the success of LittleBigPlanet (LBP), Media Molecule is prepping to release its successor, LittleBigPlanet 2 (LBP2) , by the end of this year. Arguably more so than LBP, LBP2 is offering players unlimited capabilities in creating their own gaming experience. LBP was marketed as a "platforming game," but LBP2 is being marketed as a "platform for games." I'll explain:
LBP certainly gave users the ability to innovate and contribute their creations to the rest of the LBP community. However, their creation tools were limited to a 2D plane--everything in the level design had to be built around this side-scrolling, 2D game platform. Now, with LBP2, Media Molecule is removing this limitation, giving users FULL control over the creation process, in 360 degree 3D environments. Imagine the possibilities this provides to creators...they can essentially replicate any other gaming experience that exists, spanning across a variety of genres. Thus, in LBP2, expect to see not only side-scrolling platform gameplay, but racing, first-person shooter, role-playing, adventure, puzzle, strategy, sports, arcade, and any other gameplay types that the LBP community can think of.
Conceivably, this unlimited ability to create video game experiences in LBP2 could change the way developers approach the video game creation process. If LBP2 is as successful as LBP (or more so), this type of game could take over a large part of the market. Imagine if there were only one type of video game--one with an open platform--and its users created all the various types of games that currently exist on their own. For example, if I were in the mood for a sports game one day, I could just create it and then play it. The next day, I could create a puzzle game, play it, and so on.
Whether or not this trend would be a good thing or not is up for debate. The video game industry would become completely homogeneous, with the initial content in video games varying only in their titles and themes. Some might argue that this would limit the quality of games, since everyday users do not possess the same expertise and skill in creating video games as do professional developers. On the other hand, others might argue that this could improve the variety of gaming experiences, since the collective imagination of all the players would vastly surpass the creative capabilities of a select group of developers.
Either way, it will be extremely exciting to see what people create when LBP2 is released this year.

 

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1 comments:

  1. WisconsInnovation said... December 15, 2010 at 11:43 PM

    Little Big Planet 2 sounds like it is pushing the envelope once again in terms of user-generated content. Now all that is needed is to link it to the Makerbot and start printing LBP2 creations out of hot melted plastic!  

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