In the midst of all this talk of motion control, Kratos’s headache cure and The Last Guardian during Sony’s E3 press conference, you could be forgiven if you forgot about ModNation Racers. Cast your mind back, though, to the horrible scripted banter between two amiable gentlemen from United Front Games and their neat-looking racing tool kit. Ring any bells? Well, maybe it should.

The LittleBigPlanet effect is obvious, so much so that the studio openly references it as the inspiration. But instead of crafting physics-driven platform levels, ModNation Racers gives you the opportunity to build tracks, vehicles and drivers in a matter of seconds, then upload and share them over PSN. Not quite as startlingly original as LBP, granted, but still incredibly charming.

Being a kart racer, ModNation Racers is low on realism and high on weaponised power-ups. So far, so Mario Kart. With an incredibly slick system, though, one that even puts Media Molecule’s tool kit to shame, it’s possible to build, decorate and play a fully fledged track in a matter of minutes. And the building part actually looks quite fun to play.

It all begins by laying the track down, which you do in real-time by driving the course you want. The game’s clever enough to recognise when you’ve crossed back over the track, too, so that eliminates the idiot factor. After that, there’s a chunky toolbox that lets you raise and lower the ground, throw down trees and sheep and monkeys, and as a finishing touch you can move the sun around in real-time to set the lighting. Before you know it, you’re racing, and while the on-track action seems a little generic, the satisfaction of knowing you built the course should help to overcome any apathy.

An interesting prospect indeed.