Creation in progress.

Who would have guessed that a physics-based platform puzzler would be one of the most celebrated games of the past year? Well, we guessed it, actually, and so did almost everyone else, because LittleBigPlanet is just about awesome. Having embarrassedly taken out a slew of prizes at the GDC Game Developers' Choice Awards, Sackboy is pleased to announce that he's feeling the love from the consumer side of things as well, with over half a million user generated levels online!

In fact, to say "half a million" is to be quite modest, since LittleBigPlanet is very nearly at the three-quarters of a million mark, with over 725,000 (*ding* there goes another one) homemade worlds created. Since its launch in late October last year, the game has been played over 125 million times, and more than four million comments have been left for the gamers responsible for the massive amount of content out there.

If you're not in on the LittleBigPlanet phenomenon, you might not realise the astounding leaps users have made with the creation tools. As well as enormous numbers of traditional-style platform or puzzle levels, ranging from the casual but beautiful to the diabolically clever, gamers are managing to develop some mind-boggling design feats: a functional calculator, rhythm action games, and a fan-favourite giant pinball table! What is the secret to the blockbuster's continuing success?

Mark Hardy of SCEE explains:

“LittleBigPlanet is giving people from every walk of life the opportunity to express themselves creatively. The game is just the start. This is Creative Gaming; never ending experiences that take on lives of their own through their players.

LittleBigPlanet appeals to a generation shaped by their networks and thirsty for great experiences to share with friends. Where LittleBigPlanet goes from here is up to its community; it is theirs to shape however they like. This makes it much more inclusive than gaming has ever been before.”

Continually updating with new user content, which threatens to overwhelm developer Media Molecule's own updates in quality as well as quantity, LittleBigPlanet is a Playstation 3 exclusive and seems to be available absolutely everywhere.