Often, things are only as good as the competition surrounding it. Sackboy’s first adventure in LittleBigPlanet was superb; not only is it one of the best platforming titles around, it went on to become the second highest rated title in ‘08, solidifying itself as one of the PlayStation 3’s flagship titles. However, the release of LittleBigPlanet 2 not only greatly outshines the original in every aspect, but makes it look more and more like a proof of concept than a fully fledged release; which is surely the highest praise you can afford Media Molecule’s latest title.

LittleBigPlanet 2 is everything you want in a platformer; clever, witty, expansive, hugely enjoyable and with incredible longevity. The combination is so delicate but brilliantly balanced and bursting with more imagination than the walls of a primary school classroom. The Guildford based developer originally touted that their creatively inspired offspring would never require a sequel; that they could just add-on content via DLC (as they did) and watch the community expand the size and scope of the game with bigger and better levels and ideas. Whilst this may would have been perfectly possible, LittleBigPlanet 2 is the follow-up we all wanted.

In his second LittleBig outing, Sackboy elegantly tiptoes along the tightrope all sequels have to walk; with similarities on one side, differences the other. That it manages to constantly balance along such a fine line with such grace is a rarity in successors. Whereas the original provided a huge scope for potential, it was all up to the community to determine whether it would deliver; two million levels later and the proof is there. Filled with mind-blowing levels the PlayStation slogan never rang truer, the “game is just the start”. Fast-forward to its predecessor with three million levels already available and the possibilities are endless. With a brilliant twist from the developers, players are no longer creating just levels, but now entire games unleashing the creative talent and ingenuity of players, with some of the content already live as validation.

Whilst the creations of the community are what will see the playable life stretched further and further, it is the main story mode that offers the immediate quality. For the entirety of the story mode, a beaming smile was plastered across my face. As with the original, there is a level of charm and cuteness unparalleled in the industry, and the balance between cooperation and competition with other players is ideal.

LittleBigPlanet 2 is superior to the first game in every way; benefiting from a delay that pushed it into 2011, there is a degree of polish that would even make woolly Sackboy’s head glisten like the shiny apple, gifted by a pupil to their teacher. Everything is just as you left it: Sackboy with his devil-may-care approach fashion, his pod – a home to drive any interior designer mad, the wacky yet clear interface, the cute and cuddly graphical style; the only noticeable difference is that it’s all just better.

The familiarity will be instantly apparent as Stephen Fry, who returns as the narrator once again, is brilliant. His delivery and appropriateness quintessentially defines and encapsulates the broad audience of such a unique title. Sackboy’s appearance is as customisable as before – albeit with a greater variety of options – and your pod is no different. However, now you can now also save styles, so if you invite some friends in and they plaster it with candy canes and stickers of cows you need not worry. The menu has been tweaked to show more information but in a far more user-friendly and coherent way; for example, when entering the community section, the best levels filter to the top with greater ease and precision than before. Users can also customise the world that their levels are presented on to add even more personalisation. The ability to import your save file from the original was an unexpected but welcomed addition, bringing your costumes, saved items and more into LittleBigPlanet 2, so it really is like you never left.

As with LittleBigPlanet 1, the second outing features a brilliantly imagined and designed story for up to four players to enjoy. With thirty key story levels and about another dozen other side levels there’s a great amount of content here, requiring multiple playthroughs to collect all the goodies scattered about. Using the same 2.5D side-scrolling platforming premise, the additional tools now available open up Craftworld, the wonderful setting of Sackboy’s adventures, to a far wider variety of levels types, styles and qualities.

Utilising new gameplay techniques that Sackboy acquires, the levels are noticeably more complex without needing to ramp up the difficulty or throw in cheap tricks, ensuring they are clever and concise in their design and execution. By introducing new abilities for our fluffy little friend to pick up or control, the levels can go from standard platforming, to a Bionic Commando style swing fest, to a side-scrolling shooter, back to a strategic puzzler within a single world. The pickups bring a whole new dimension to the LittleBigPlanet universe. Although they were experimented with via the downloadable content for the original, the sequel nails not only their use within the levels, but also retains their uniqueness along with the rest of the game. If firing cupcakes from a miners hat isn’t original, then nothing is.

It doesn’t stop there though. Enter the cutest addition to a game in decades, Sackbots. The adorable A.I. controlled robots are used throughout levels and their emotional stimulating personalities only cement how special this game really is. Whether they’re frightened of you, in love with you or fighting beside you, they open up another box of gameplay tricks, as well as cast their enchanting spell. Add a selection of vehicles for Sackboy to control and use across levels and the advancement from original to sequel is more than apparent. The inclusion of characters like Larry Da Vinci add a far more engaging plot than previous, and the use of voice actors provide an emotional link to each and every one.

The controls are almost identical to before, with just the new additions mixing things up. Those that disliked the ‘floatiness’ will have to settle with only a slight refinement to the jump action, which results in fewer fractionally miss-timed leaps.

Visually the game is gorgeous and displays production value of the highest standard. Each story mode level is rife with detail and the new effects such as motion blur, lighting effects and filters only solidify this. The introduction of cut scenes help to tell the story and are already opening the door to some incredible community creations. The music is once again superb and utilises a mix of diverse tunes to further enhance an already thoroughly enjoyable experience.

There’s the creation mode, which as before, requires patience and a huge amount of imagination – and not to mention time, but the results are even more staggering.

LittleBigPlanet 2 is one of the best games on the market. Offering an incredible story mode filled with joy and love, millions of additional levels to boot and a creation mode second to none, the core is as good as it gets. When you consider there’s also online and offline play for up to four players, versus levels, leaderboards, an additional hundred levels from when you begin reading this review, it’s not difficult to see just how huge LittleBigPlanet 2 is. Media Molecule has created a title worthy of everyone’s collection, if not for its impressive gaming accomplishments, then for a guaranteed Delicious taste bite after bite.