LittleBigPlanet demonstration video: Sackzilla

A new force has arrived on the scene to create havoc and destruction on PlayStation 3. LittleBigPlanet is about to feel the fearsome presence of... Sackzilla?

Games Convention 2008 is home to many games and goodies, but the Leipzig hosted event certainly has a monster on its hands in the shape of the mighty Sackzilla; destroyer of cities! Ravager of towns! Crusher of people!

There's a lot to be said for the ability to build a diverse array of content in platform based creation title, LittleBigPlanet - and this video is a great expression of that. Sackboy shows exactly how you can form a lovely and fully working monstrosity that bears more than a passing resemblance to a well known giant fire breathing lizard.

It's the intricacies that make the whole thing as good as it is. Notice how you can select the material of your creation (each having its own properties - glass is smooth and forces characters to slide off it, metal will be heavy, and so on), cut out the exact shape of what you want and then piece it together. In this case, arms, legs, a torso and an appropriately massive head are formed with ease by the similarly costumed Sackboy.

The genius of the game's creation tools means each of these parts can be attached by connectors in the Gadgets menu, giving Sackzilla mobile joints that dolly up and down for a humorous, if slightly disturbing puppet style movement. This is all adjustable, too, so if you feel your design isn't roaming with the pace or style you wish, it can be fine tuned.

Stickers and decorations offer the perfect means of assembling a mouth and eyes, as well as additional texture and clothing to Sackzilla. Throw in the ability to place it on a mobile trolley with a cable operated pulley system (you wont need a degree in mechanics or construction to work out where you need to place each cable, as it's all well designed and intuitive enough for experimentation) and a big red button to activate the whole thing and there you have it - Sackzilla lives! Or at least, it did until another Sackboy sets it alight using a fire hazard tool...