LittleBigPlanet Gets Limited Public Beta This Month

LBP's getting an LPB. SCEA says there will be a limited public beta test for Media Molecule-developed PlayStation 3 title LittleBigPlanet this month, just ahead of the game's October release. "In terms of LittleBigPlanet, the game itself is all but complete," says an SCEA rep on the official U.S. PlayStation boards, "however, we're looking to run a test of the sharing, uploading, downloading and multiplayer server side of the game before it launches to ensure that under a large number of users it does everything it is supposed to." World creation and user-generated, shared content is key to platformer LittleBigPlanet; Sony Computer Entertainment Europe has suggested that players will be able to monetize their own creations. The PS3 exclusive is widely anticipated to be one of the year end's most closely-watched titles. The rep clarified that the beta is a bit more than a stress test -- "We're looking a little more deeply into the game experience than simply throwing thousands of players at the online side of the game at the same time." It's unclear as of yet how beta participants will be selected. "If it will be possible to 'sign up' for this test, full information on how to do so will be made public in advance of the test," says the rep. "Similarly if the test is going to be conducted in an invitation-only we will let you know ahead of time."