Scribblenauts for the Nintendo DS is a kind of adventure game that you don’t see often — actually, there hasn’t ever been a game like Scribblenauts; an adventure game where your character progresses through the levels by you typing the name of an object, pretty much any object you can think of, from dinosaurs to cars, to monkey to trees, as long as it isn’t vulgar or trademarked, it’s probably in Scribblenauts. The core concept of the game is highly original and extremely entertaining, and if it wasn’t for a few issues, it would’ve been the ultimate must-have game for any DS owner.

The gameplay is simple and follows the standard 2D side scrolling fashion, but to solve puzzles in Scribblenauts, you need to use an object that might fit and help you move forwards. You “scribble” the object (say, a “meteor”) and poof! it appears on the screen. The goal of each level is to secure a Starlite at the end, and accumulate them. On top of that, you have dedicated puzzle levels, which don’t feature as much action but pack plenty of challenge for your imagination. Once you’ve settled in the gameplay and figured out how advance through the levels (maybe you need a club or a crowbar to break something, maybe you need a walking robot), you’ll be troubled by the rather frustrating controls the game has to offer. You control your hero (named Maxwell) via the stylus, where you point to an area on the screen, and he’ll run to it. But it’s far too easy to point a few pixels too far, and see yourself walk into certain death.

The vocabulary of the game, which is its greatest asset — and the entire concept — is staggering. There are over 30,000 items you can call up to help you, anything from a fruit to a black hole. Yep, black holes. It’s one of those games where your own imagination (not the developer’s) is the limit. Hell, you can even summon a Man-Bear-Pig to fight your enemies. However, despite the vast opportunities, they’re rarely used to their full potential. Out of the 3,000 items, you can complete the game with a few dozen, and the levels don’t challenge you to come up with something new. You can always strap wings to yourself and easily fly to where you need to be, and summon someone to kill your enemies for you. While you can get a special bonus for completing levels without using weapons or stuff like that, it’s not exactly the best use of a game with such a high concept.

Having said that, there are still over 200 levels, most of which will give you a great time, and some of which are really amazing. On top of that, the game features a level editor as well, and you can share the levels with other players online. The visuals are fairly decent considering it’s a DS game, while the music seems bland and a bit out of place. Overall, Scribblenauts is a game you should try if you own a DS, despite its issues, its originality and concept far outweigh the quirks with the game.

The Good:
Wonderful concept
Huge amount of items
Original
Tons of levels

The Bad:
Concept isn’t used to its full potential
A few control issues
Mission objects aren’t always clear
Bland soundtrack

Overall score: 8/10