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The 61FPS Review: LittleBigPlanet - Part 1

Many would agree with me the LittleBigPlanet is the most significant game release of 2008. Sure, Spore was a big deal, but it was only the next logical step in Will Wright's Sim series. LittleBigPlanet is a platform for whatever the user wants it to be, a venue for sharing and interaction, and a robust toolbox for imaginative and aspiring game designers. There's no denying LittleBigPlanet is an impressive and forward-thinking new box of toys for the kids, but is it a fun game? With one week of Sackboy inhabitance under my belt, I'm prepared to render my first impressions.

Watcha Playing: DDR and Helix

These days where it's easy to put on extra weight but the in vogue body type is just left of emaciated, it's easy to have a poor body image of yourself and think you need to drop a few pounds for aesthetic purposes. Frankly, I think this is a bum deal and a lousy reason to exercise. I'm neither fat nor thin and could not care less about how much I weigh, but I do care about my health. I'd also like to have more energy than I typically do. Unfortunately, I lead a very sedentary life. My art requires I sit down at a drawing table, my writing has me sitting at my computer, and my favorite pastimes of reading and gaming have me planted on my butt too.

A while ago I decided that some how, some way, I was going to squeeze exercise into my schedule and stick to it. Of course, I've made such promises to myself before. So, what's a gamer to do? Why, whip out the Wii of course!

Sweating it Out: How Fitness is Changing the Public’s Opinion of Games

Image courtesy of San Francisco Chronicle

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, “the nation's largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to improving the health and health care of all Americans”, announced today that they will be awarding $2 million in grants to twelve research teams across the United States to support research proving the benefits of health and fitness based videogames. It’s obvious that the recent surge of interest in fitness gaming has more than a little to do with the popularity of Nintendo’s Wii and the monolithic marketing blitz surrounding Wii Fit. But gaming as a method to curb obesity in the US has been gaining momentum since early 2006, when West Virginia began working with Konami to outfit public school gym classes with Dance Dance Revolution machines.

While videogames are still an easy target for news media controversy, the tide is changing in a big way.

about the blogger

John Constantine, our superhero, was raised by birds and then attended Penn State University. He is currently working on a novel about a fictional city that exists only in his mind. John has an astonishingly extensive knowledge of Scientology. Ultimately he would like to learn how to effectively use his brain. He continues to keep Wu-Tang's secret to himself.

Derrick Sanskrit is a self-professed geek in a variety of fields including typography, graphic design, comic books, music and cartoons. As a professional hipster graphic designer, his recent clients have included Hooksexup, Pitchfork and MoCCA, among others.

Amber Ahlborn - artist, writer, gamer and DigiPen survivor, she maintains a day job as a graphic artist. By night Amber moonlights as a professional Metroid Fanatic and keeps a metal suit in the closet just in case. Has lived in the state of Washington and insists that it really doesn't rain as much as everyone says it does.

Nadia Oxford is a housekeeping robot who was refurbished into a warrior when the world's need for justice was great. Now that the galaxy is at peace (give or take a conflict here or there), she works as a freelance writer for various sites and magazines. Based in Toronto, Nadia prizes the certificate from the Ministry of Health declaring her tick and rabies-free.

Bob Mackey is a grad student, writer, and cyborg, who uses the powerful girl-repelling nanomachines mad science grafted onto his body to allocate time towards interests of the nerd persuasion. He believes that complaining about things on the Internet is akin to the fine art of wine tasting, but with more spitting into buckets.

Joe Keiser has a programming degree from Johns Hopkins University, a tiny apartment in Brooklyn, and a fake toy guitar built in the hollowed-out shell of a real guitar. He writes about games and technology for a variety of outlets. One day he will stop doing this. The day after that, police will find his body under a collapsed pile of (formerly neatly alphabetized) collector's edition tchotchkes.

Cole Stryker is an American freelance writer living in York, England, where he resides with his archeologist wife. He writes for a travel company by day and argues about pop culture on the internet by night. Find him writing regularly here and here.

Peter Smith is like the lead character of Irwin Shaw's The 80-Yard Run, except less athletic. He considers himself very lucky to have this job. But it's a little premature to take "jack-off of all trades" off his resume. Besides writing, travelling, and painting houses, Pete plays guitar in a rock trio called The Aye-Ayes. He calls them a 'power pop' band, but they generally sound more like Motorhead on a drinking binge.

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