LBP2 Level Review - SAVE Insomniac Games!

Hello to everybody and welcome to this weeks LBP2 Level Review. I discovered this level though the blog for Insomniac Games, the developers of the Resistance and Ratchet and Clank series'.

The level has been created by Joshua Leman, who works for Insomniac's Quality Assurance department. After his experiences while working at Insomniac he was inspired to create an LBP to sum up the developer and try and put across the sense of fun felt from within the company.

The level itself tells the story of Sackboy's first day working for Insomniac Games. After being first introduced to the team it isn't long before he has to begin a hard day's work getting rid of any bugs that may stop the game releasing smoothly. Although the bugs are indeed stopping the game's release they aren't as you would expect, as they are actually real bugs that have invaded the company offices and are running riot, causing all matter of problems for the team.
The level will take players though some of the most well known parts of the offices, including the main lobby and the infamous kitchen, which is said to have a vast stock of Coca-Cola before then ending with a final boss battle as well as a brief appearance from Insomniac Games CEO Ted Price.

I must say that I despite the level being rather short (a playtime of around five minutes) I did greatly enjoy playing it and found that the humour suited the game well, being the style I would come to expect from Insomniac.
Overall I am being to rate the level as 7/10, feeling that the lack of length and gameplay variation bring the level down slightly, although it has great use of materials and general environment creation.

If you wish to view it, here is the lbp.me page for the level, from which you can also view the older LBP level created by Leman, or artisu_mizuki, which is his PSN ID. Also here is the post on the Insomniac blog which has more information about the level and Leman's inspiration.

So, that's all for this week's LBP 2 Level Review, I've been randomthings and again, thank you for reading.

NGP - Official name leaked?

Searching the internet last night I came across a few articles regarding Sony's latest handheld console, the NGP. The information claims that the NGP, or Next Generation Handheld will officially be named the PlayStation Vita.

The articles all contain roughly the same information. The first piece of information is that the web addresses PlayStationVita.com and PSVita.com where created on April 20th using NetNames, a major web dormain registration service. This aspect of the rumour though does appear to be true, at least to some degree at both sites currently cannot be accessed and instead display a page relating to NetNames.

Along with this two pictures have also surfaced. Both are said to be from a marketing brochure for the new handheld and both images not being particularlly high in quality. Here are links to both images:
Image 1
Image 2

All of the articles I have read regarding this say that the source of this information is in fact other Blogspot site, Mega Rock Blog. Since the information was put out the blog's viewing permissions have been changed so only those permittted by the authour can view it, although a page from the site's cache can be viewed here.


I personally am unsure as to why the information has come out now, but at the same time, I don't honestly care as it is not even a week until E3 now, so it would seem that any false information will be proven wrong or correct information backed up at E3, so either way we will most likely recieve more information. As for the name itself, I am unsure as to what to think of it. There are many of the consoles features that are yet to be shown, so I am not sure as to if that name reflects the product. Having said that though, 'vita' is Latin for life, and as many gaming sites are saying, this could be Sony attempt to breathe life back into their systems, but I will not comment on that here...

Anyway, that has been the latest news for the new NGP information. I hope to have more news soon. I have been randomthings and thank you very much for reading.

Here we go - time for an update

Hello once again to you all! After the past few weeks off I am glad to be back. The past few weeks have been rather busy for me. I have had some time to play a number of games, but I haven't really been able to make time to post. I have found the time though to make a few changes to the blog.

The first major change is the overall appearance of the blog, which as you can see currently is made up of shades of black and white. I will possibly keep this style and look, but will be making minor changes, such as the font colours to make them clearer.

The second major change is the blog's title, which has changed from the rather lengthy "My Weird and Wonderful Virtual World" to now being "Xenon Gaming". I unfortunately cannot think of anything better at the moment, which is a shame as the title only reflects the Xbox aspect of the blog, with Xenon being the development codename for the 360. Despite the title change I have still kept the URL the same, as I will change them both to the same thing once I have come up with a final name. If you do have any suggestions for a different title though, then please feel free to message me at simplyrandomthings@gmail.com.

The next change is that I have changed the header at the top of the blog feed, with it containing a small description and introduction from myself.

The fourth and final change is that below the blog feed you will find my Twitter feed, which displays my last five tweets. If you wish to follow me my username is @iamrandomthings.

That is the changes to the blog, but I may also change the posting schedule, I am will from now onwards not be specifically posting my opinion of games on Mondays, and will instead be posting them on either Monday, or Friday. This will give me more time to try out a number of different titles before posting. I have also decided that these posts will most likely be focused on Xbox Live indie games.
Another change is that I may also post other things in addition to the scheduled post for each day, as I feel that only five particular posts a week is both not enough to put out and also rather limiting on what I do publish

So, I believe I have mentioned everything I wish to mention. I have been randomthings, thank you very much for reading and I hope that you will be back soon.

LBP2 Film Review - Figment

As I am sure you are all aware, the PlayStation Network is now back online. It is currently in phase one off restoration, which means that core features, such as online play, Home and Music Unlimited are now available. As a result I have been able to now access more community levels on LBP2.

The level which stuck out today is not really a level as such, it's a film. Anybody who has played the game, may be aware that as well as the main level creator, Creation mode now also offers the change for players to create films, something that I personally have never gotten the hang of.

I have watched a number of different community created films whilst playing LBP2, all of which vary in how good they are. Some of different ones that have stood out include a series entitled 'Cause and Effect' and a recreation of the clock tower scene from Back to the Future: Episode One.

This particular film stood out, firstly because of it's title: Figment [50 Minute Movie]. After seeing this, along with the fact it's a Media Molecule pick, I couldn't help but check it out.


Figment has been created by ladylyn1, who as his bio (yes it is a he) says, he's currently a university student. It clearly shows that he can still find the time and effort to create LBP levels and it certainly pays off, with Figment having reached over 1,500 hearts and just over 6,000 views in the time it's been uploaded, which I believe is since the PSN restoration.

Figment follows the story of Charles, a man who has become increasingly distressed and who's mental health has deteriorated further since the murder of his wife. Charles already suffers from mental health problems and now he finds everyday life a problem. Issues aren't helped along with the fact that he is a suspect, wanted on the account of his wife's death. This leads to Charles being chased by the law and having to hide and every opportunity. One night while he is being chased Charles eventually finds himself back in his hometown and is tracked down by a detective who wishes to help him in finding his wife's killer. It isn't long before Charles and the detective, who wishes to simply be named John team up and venture to the scene of the crime, the lighthouse that was once home to Charles and his wife, Charlotte, and it isn't long until the plot begins to thicken further...

The lighthouse home of Charles and Charlotte.

As I have already mentioned, I have never really grasped how to use the film creation on LBP, so I think pretty much anyone who can make a film has done incredibly well, but I personally feel this might be the single greatest creation ever on LBP, and there's over 1.4 million levels now. As the credits show, ladylyn1 did have some help from others, but this must have taken a great deal of hard work. The entire film feels, in a way very much like a normal film, despite the fact is has been created using LittleBig Planet 2. The camera angles are interesting and work well, the story has been carefully thought out and planned as well. The 'sets' look impressive and have been made with hard work. Also the sounds used fit with everything else and the voice acting for Charles fits with the theme and feel of the film.

Overall the film is described as a horror/thriller and isn't really designed to be watched by young children. It does in fact have quite a hard message underneath.


As this is indeed a review and also the first one that I am rating, I am pleased to give Figment 10 out of 10. I would like to congratulate everybody who worked on making it what it is. I think this again shows that LBP not a platforming game, but rather a platform for games, and also films to an extent. This is also shown by the other films that ladylyn1 has created, which can be viewed on his planet, or by viewing his lbp.me page here. You can also view the page for Figment here.

So, to as always round everything off, I am randomthings, I'm proud to say that the PlayStation Network is back online and being used for great things and that I will of course be posting again soon. Thank you very much for reading, I'll see you on Thursday.

Super Sheep!- My opinion of The Most Addicting Sheep Game

One of the XBLIGs that I have had on my hard drive for a while is The Most Addicting Sheep Game. Developed by Bombdiggidybullfrog, TMASG is, as the title implies, a rather addicting game that involves a sheep. The game takes the style of the traditional side-scrolling game, but takes inspiration from title's such as The Impossible Game, in the respect that the game continuously scrolls by itself and requires the player to have to jump, leap and roll to avoid obstacles and get across gaps in the ground or reach a higher area.

Piles of black sheep can be rolled into and knocked over.

 The game's levels are organised in a similar manner to Lemmings, with levels being in sets, each set being increasingly more difficult, ranging from the first tutorial levels through to set five, the Grim levels.

In my personal opinion this is a title is a fun and enjoyable game, given it has been developed by a lone developer. The fact that it initially seems similar to The Impossible Game put me off of playing it for some time, as The Impossible Game was not something I enjoyed and was simply annoyed by it, being luck to last for more than eight seconds. Having said that, once getting into TMASG it's similarities to Lemmings' difficulty style was interesting. In Lemmings I liked the fact that there was an option to begin the start of any level set within completing the previous one. Apart from that I found the simple art style to compliment the gameplay style.

Overall I would say that TMASG would personally be a game that I would be able to play as a small 'filler' as it were, playing it during any shorter spaces of time that I would have free.

The Most Addicting Sheep Game is available from the Xbox Live Indie Games Marketplace for only 80 Microsoft Points, so it's a more than fair price. And you can as always get the trial to test it out.

So, that's all for today. I'm not too sure that I will post tomorrow, as I obviously can't do Home Weekly due to PSN still being offline. Just to round off, I have been randomthings, you've been reading and thanks for doing so.

Gaming News - 12/5/11

Hello everyone and welcome to today's Gaming News for Thursday 12th May.

One of the top headlines today is that Polish developer City Interactive have announced Sniper: Ghost Warrior 2 for the PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 systems. The sequel is set to use Crytek's CryENGINE 3, the same engine used to create Crysis 2. It looks like the developers may show a trailer along with detailing more information regarding the title at E3 before the wait of its release next year. An article from VG247 regarding this can be view via this link.

The second item to make the news is that there is a new multiplayer mode that has been released for Section 8: Prejudice. The new Assault mode is a free addition to the game, which the developer TimeGate Studios has created to celebrate a total of ten million online kills between both the Xbox 360 and PC versions. In the new mode two teams will be placed against each other over a series of rounds during which they will either attack or defend capture points. The mode is designed to promote co-operation between teammates whilst offering fast paced gameplay. An article about the new mode can be found here, courtesy of IGN.

The third article I wish to mention today is new information regarding future developments from Bungie. It has been recently revealed by the Washington State Business License Directory that Harold Ryan, the president of Bungie will now be the director of the newly formed company Bungie Aerospace. It is claimed that GameStop discovered a trademark described as "computer game software downloadable from a global computer network." It is believed that this could mean that the new software being being developed could firstly be an MMO, as it is said as to be used on a global network and secondly that the software will be a mobile application. This could be likely as in January, Bungie posted job adverts for mobile application developers. Neither of these factors or the development of the software itself has been officially commented on, although it is also know that the software has been trademarked under the name 'Crimson'. More information on this story can be seen on this CVG article.


So, that is today's news. I am sorry to once again change the posting schedule, but I have found it will be more convenient to post Gaming News on Thursdays and allows for a different post on Fridays. Tomorrow, I will be posting on an XBLIG, although I am currently undecided as to which as I have played quite a few lately.

Anyway, I would like to thank you for reading, I've been randomthings and until next time...

"For science... you monster" - My opinion of Portal 2

After having played through the Xbox Live Arcade trial multiple time, last Sunday I finally got Portal: Still Alive. I think it's a truly innovative game, which apart from Narbacular Drop, on which the game was inspired, no other game was used a similar mechanic of using inter-connected portals to traverse the environment. Still Alive took me the best part of four hours to complete and I was impressed it. I was even more impressed by its sequel, which I also got hold of.

I would like to mention now that this post will contain spoilers of the ending to Portal, so if you have yet to complete it, or simply wish not to, please skip ahead to the paragraph after next.

Portal 2 follows on the rather puzzling ending of Portal, in which, for those of you who have played the game via Steam and seen the updated ended, Chell is firstly sucked up to the surface after her encounter with GLaDOS and then dragged away from the burning wreckage around her by an unknown entity who thanks her for assuming the ''party escort submission position''.

After this the second game begins, with Chell awakening it what appears to be a hotel room. After being woken, a pre-recorded message instructs her to do a few simple tasks. After that a knocking is heard at the door and after opening it the player meets Wheatley, are somewhat sarcastic and witty personality core who is voiced by Stephen Merchant. It soon becomes clear that Chell is back within the Aperture Science Enrichment Centre and has been in stasis for a great number of years and the world she has woken up to is a crumbling ruin of what she left behind, with the Enrichment Centre now overgrown and falling apart.

After meeting Wheatley, it becomes clear that if he and Chell are to escape they will need her to use again weld the Aperture Science Handheld Portal Device, or more simply, the Portal Gun.
It also becomes clear that they will have to pass though "her" chamber and after passing through and entering the centre's main breaker room, Wheatley manages to reactive GLaDOS.

GLaDOS instantly recognises Chell and describes that in being 'murdered' she discovered a black box safety feature, thereby she could replay the last to minutes of her life, over and over. Straight away she decides to begin putting Chell through more tests, which leads to another dose of portal based mayhem.

As well as offering more use of the Portal Gun. Portal 2 introduces a number of new physics mechanics to further expand the gameplay. The largest additions are that of three new paint-like gels that can be used to manipulate the environment and aid the player in completing puzzles. The second new mechanic is excursion funnels, which work like tractor beams that can be set to either repel or attract object can within the beam. The final major new mechanic is aerial faith plates. The plates act like flippers which are designs to be able to launch all matter of objects into the air and up to higher areas and places that otherwise couldn't be reached.

Beyond the single player story, Valve have also given Portal 2 a co-op campaign. The co-op can be played by pairing up with a random player, although the and heavily recommends that it is played with a friends, for better communication and enjoyability. For the co-op players assume the role of Atlas and P-Body, a modified personality core and turret respectively. Both of the robots have the same abilities, although as players progress through the game's co-operative portion they will begin to unlock gestures, which can be used to both interact with their team-mate or simply show off. These gestures include being able to high-five and hug the other player. To continue Portal's humorous themes, the bots have a mix of both robotic and human qualities in their personalities, with can been seen in the gestures, one example being that a player can be 'left hanging' if the other does not high-five them too.




Atlas and P-Body


Having spend most of my time playing the game once I got it I was extremely impressed with the title and what it has been able to offer. Being a full retail release, Valve have clearly been able to expand upon the gameplay of the original game, which was a smaller game which was first included in the Orange Box, before later having a stand alone version, Still Alive being released on Xbox Live Marketplace. I have not really played the co-op campaign, but have completed the single player and was constantly surprised with the new features, expansive story-line and general feel of the game.

Each section of the game has been carefully planned out, not leaving players overly confused and struggling or left to complete parts too quickly allowing for an equal paced game. Having said that, around the mid-point of the single player I did find some of the challenges particularly difficult, with one puzzle taking noticeably longer, forty five minutes in total. The single player campaign is said to take around six hours to complete. It took me around ten, but even so, the puzzles and challenges still never felt patronising nor like the game was taking me by the hand.

To further add to the positive aspects of the game, it has remarkable graphics for such a game and I think more so given that I have played the console version.

Overall I would recommend Portal or Portal 2 to anyone who is looking for an individual and different puzzle game, or just a story with clever and witty jokes.

Portal 2 is out now for a regular retail price of £39.99, for the PS3 and 360 versions.

So, that's my opinion of Portal 2, I have been randomthings and until next time, thanks for reading.

A quick update

Hello everyone. This is just a quick update to say that I will once again be posting tomorrow, after another gap. As PSN is yet to be restored, tomorrow's LBP2 slot will be replaced with my opinion on Portal 2. I've spent these last few weeks playing a number of games, all of which have been on the Xbox, so I would like to appologise for the lack of variation in my next few posts, although I will be mentioning Portal 2, a few XBLIGs (Xbox Live Indie Games) and give another round-up of the latest news from Sony and other general headlines.

Also I now have a Twitter account, which you can follow me at, which is @iamrandomthings.

Thank you once again for reading and until next time...