EA Games has joined in the user-generated content fad by announcing Create, a new “EA Play” title that looks like a platformer where players can create their own environments and puzzles. Hmm, why does that sound so familiar?

Could it be because user-generated content is ever-so-fashionable?

Little Big Planet leads the user-generated charge, thanks to its easy-to-use yet robust set of building tools, and the forthcoming Little Big Planet 2 looks to take things to the next level with tools for creating just about any genre of game you can think up — not just platforming. PlayStation’s ModNation Racers takes cart racing to a new extreme by letting players easily craft their own highly detailed and fun-to-play race tracks.

Now comes Create, where exploration and puzzle-solving are rewarded based on the higher level of creativity that you use. The game is said to present you with increasingly-complex puzzles where time is frozen; you insert various objects or creatures into the workings, and then start up time to see what happens (derivative of Scribblenauts much?). Reportedly, every puzzle the game presents has multiple solutions available, and the game actually tracks the way you think and express your creativity, and it reacts by adjusting the puzzles accordingly. The deeper you go into the game, the more rewards you unlock, which allow you to customize your game and even create your own content. EA’s website for the game offers the ability to upload your creations for others to download and enjoy.

User-generated content is nothing new. As far back as the original Half-Life, or even further back to the likes of Duke Nukem, game developers have been making tools available for users to create their own content. Even more recently, games like Will Wright’s Spore have offered users the opportunity to take part in a greater community of users by customizing characters, structures, and entire worlds. (The hype over Spore has cooled in the last year or so, even though EA continues to milk the franchise for all its worth. The next title on the docket is DarkSpore, a fast-paced RPG that brings real combat to the Spore universe.)

The difference with these new titles like LBP, ModNation, and now Create is the ease with which users can fashion new content. It’s become so simplified that it can be done on consoles now, whereas in the past it required nothing less than a PC. Yet the resultant maps, characters, and objects being made – put together by user choices and clever algorithms in the game — are high-res, sophisticated things that were never before possible at the hands of Joe Basic Game Player.

Publishers are sinking more and more money into this trend, but is it just a fad? Or is it really the future of gaming? I think it has its place, but it’s never going to replace the finely-polished work of professional game designers. It’s the equivalent of YouTube versus the movie theater. There might be some gems out there among the user-generated stuff — maybe even a few creations good enough to catch the attention of movers and shakers in the industry — but there’s also going to be a lot of crap.

Create, by the way, will be available this holiday season for Xbox 360, Wii, PlayStation 3 (compatible with Move motion controllers), PC, and Mac. Screens below.