First off this is a thread for discussion on whether the LBP falls into a niche market, not a flamewar, sales figures can be used, but it is encouraged that any figures used are backed with some sort of intelligent information relating to the OT. I don't want to see "L0L LBP only did so and so numbers" or even "LBP numbers are fine and will do better." The intention is not to discuss the numbers but to take a look at this game and determine whether it falls into a niche market

So to begin, personally I do feel that LBP appeals to a niche market. My reasoning? Simple, people enjoy playing games, however not all people that enjoy playing games enjoy creating games. I fall into this category, I've never been a fan of level editors, level creations, RPG maker etc. I'm the type of person that enjoys completing tasks and not creating them which is why if I ever got a PS3; MGS4, R2, Uncharted, Valkyria Profiles etc. would be at the top of my list to buy.

Of course people will say well than you can buy LBP and wait for better user created levels to come out. To me that destroys the entire point of the game and eliminates a majority of the meat in LBP. The point of LBP is to create levels, that's where gamers that play the game should be spending the majority of their time in the game. Buying the game to not create levels is akin to ordering a steak with A1 sauce and asking for a plate of A1 sauce. Sound appealing?

So there you have it my opinions and guesses on whether LBP appeals to a niche market. What are your thoughts on my ideas, and what are your opinions on the topic?

well yes, compared to the install bases of 360 and Wii, PS3 seems the most niche of all, also factoring in that many buyers got it for the blurary and nothing else.

LBP was going to be a buy for me, but after the beta I decided not to get the game.

The controls alone made it a game that was not for me.

It sucks that so many good maps got taken down for Copyright crap... so much for a game that can be made into anything..

"Littlebigplanet make anything you want"

Lawyer Spokesperson (may or may not be a lawyer or spokesperson)Can only make none copyright material, don't use hexagons, circles side by side, or triangles in strange locations,do not make things that look like anything that will look like something, don't submit maps on the 2nd day of the 1st week on odd number months, except if it's a level with only one box in the center, if that be the case then please load as many of those as possible, all rights reserved to keep cool maps away from people, yes! we say you can make anything you want, but it has to be what we like, not what you like, we reserve the right to change our rights when the rights need to be changed... right?

Yes. 2D platformer is niche. End of thread.

I think the biggest problem with dropping LBP when they did was that SONY didn't establish a market for the game before it dropped.

Sure it can cater to casuals and (some might say) female gamers, but the fact of the matter is, I doubt many would drop the money for a PS3 just to play the game, without a solid foundation of Casual friendly titles, there was no way LBP could have been HUGE (to borrow a phrase).

As for the core gamer demographic, I believe a large percentage (if not the vast majority) rarely pay attention to gaming websites, so the only exposure to LBP they would have received would have been the really "gay" advertisements sony floats around (I use the word "gay" because that's what, I believe, most of the non-website visiting gamers would deem it as, not because I'm trying to attack homosexuals.).

Seriously, one of the few LBP ads here is a poster saying "In my world, I fart when I'm happy". OKAY.

On top of that, I believe there's a group of website visting gamers that realised that this games potential lies in the community and that unless the community make awesome levels, this game will suck. I'm a part of that group, I'll pick up LBP in a few months time at a cheaper price and because by that time, there should be some truly awesome levels created.

Yep. Not alot of people are into creating their own stuff. Me for example. As great as the game might be its not my type and no one I know is excited for the game. The casuals have also never heard of it.
User created content in console games is still new so i guess its niche. Then again I dunno.........

I would normally call you out for lying here, but we ARE talking about Sonys marketing dept.

No, it's not niche.

The game isn't just a creation tool. You could waste countless hours playing the story mode or random levels online, without ever touching the create mode! I still haven't ventured into the create mode since buying the game, because I don't feel like redoing all the tutorials I did in the beta, lol.

And just look at sales. The game will probably be past a million when last week's numbers come in, and it's only been out a month! It's one of the fastest selling ps3 games yet, tracking between Uncharted and Call of Duty 4, more on the CoD4 side of things:

http://www.vgchartz.com/swlaunch.php?reg1=All&game1=LittleBigPlanet+-+PS3&reg2=All&game2=Call+of+Duty+4%3A+Modern+Warfare+-+PS3&reg3=All&game3=Uncharted%3A+Drakes+Fortune+-+PS3&weeks=100

I can back this up, this add is in several places in Sydney Australia, mostly at bus and trainstops.

Also I don't think the game itself is niche, but rather i caters for a very niche audience of creators who feed the rest of the community. Its kinda neat that both the niche and the mainstream can co-exist in one game.

I'm sure I'm not the only one who's never touched the creator for this game... Right guys?

CDiablo wins the thread.

Even if you don't make your own levels, even if you don't download other peoples, it's still an awesome 2d platformer - and 2d platformers are certainly not niche