8-bit levels in LittleBigPlanet

OK, so it's debatable whether or not the original Space Invaders could actually be called“8-bit.” Whatever. It’s one of the most iconic and instantly recognizable games ever made, and once we started thinking about how it could be done in LBP, we knew we had to create it.

So here we have the original:

And our re-interpretation of the classic:

It’s pretty simple – just grab one of the three tanks and try to rack up a high score by aiming its cannon into the rows of squidlike invaders, which will be firing back with log-looking things that can instantly dissolve your tank or chunks of your four bunkers. All in all, it’s thematically identical to the original…

Except that in the original, you can’t do this:

To watch an embarrassingly short match, hit up the video below:

Our final stage, while not quite as complicated as Parapa Palace, was one of the most fun to build despite taking a huge amount of work to get right. It’s also one of the most important levels in the entire series: the Cutman stage, which for many gamers was the first one they ever tackled.

Here’s a shot of the starting point in the NES original:

And here’s the first thing you’ll see when you load up our version:

Above: Note the lifts in place of the ladders – there are a lot of those spread throughout the stage

Hey, remember these things? They were a huge pain in the ass, weren't they?

We're confident that our versions are twice as huge and just as painful.

Look out, Mega Man! It's Big Eye!

Luckily for you, that one’s a lot more dangerous than our borderline-braindead version, which just wants to jump on you and/or fall over (but mostly fall over).

Above: DURRRRRRRRRRRRRR

In the original game, these guys were great for getting in the way:

We left them mostly intact, although we had to de-lethalize them, as they presented impassable obstacles when they were on fire or electrified.

Finally, there’s good old Cutman himself:

Turns out he's a lot more mobile (and a lot less egomaniacal) than our version, who can nonetheless mess you up with those cutters he’s tossing out.

For a full run-through of the Cutman stage – including comparisons with the NES original – check out the video below:

Oct 23, 2008