# Scribblenauts **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [September 15, 2009, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195 "2009-09-15T17:40:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Talon\_Karrde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Talon\_Karrde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Talon_Karrde)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2009, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/1 "2009-09-15T17:40:41Z")
I picked up this game this morning and am having lots of fun with it. If you haven’t heard of it, it’s a DS game where you have puzzles that you solve by writing in the name of an object and having it appear on the screen so you can use it. For example, one of the puzzles has a lumberjack and a tree and it tells you “help him do his job”. You can write in “axe” or “saw” and give him one of those, or you can think of something else. I wrote in “beaver” and it appeared and gnawed the tree down and that’s how I won that level. There’s more information on the [Wikipedia page](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scribblenauts), along with a screenshot of a more elaborate way to solve that puzzle. So if you are playing, share your favorite solutions you’ve come up with. Right now I’m going through puzzle mode trying to solve them the most direct way with the fewest objects. The only really cool solution I found so far was for a level in a park where there’s garbage and a fly and it tells you to get rid of the fly and clean the park. I typed in “fire” and burned the fly and the garbage (along with the tree that had some garbage in it). ---
**Author:** ![Transistor\_Rhythm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/77aa72/32.png) [@Transistor\_Rhythm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Transistor_Rhythm)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2009, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/2 "2009-09-15T17:44:48Z")
Buying the hell out of this today. I’ve been excitedly waiting for it. ---
**Author:** ![Lightnin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightnin/32/180_2.png) [@Lightnin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightnin)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2009, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/3 "2009-09-15T18:01:22Z")
Oooh, it’s out? Gonna have to go pick it up today. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2009, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/4 "2009-09-15T20:47:52Z")
I just got it, haven’t started playing yet, but I have heard a couple bad things, mostly about the controls. The directional pad doesn’t move your character like you think it should, you have to move him with the stylus. And since you also interact with everything else with the stylus, there’s a lot of times when you move when you don’t want to, or touch something you don’t mean to. I’ll post more once I start playing. ---
**Author:** ![Pithy\_Moniker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8dc957/32.png) [@Pithy\_Moniker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pithy_Moniker)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2009, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/5 "2009-09-16T01:30:00Z")
The controls are very frustrating at times. I don’t know why they didn’t make the crosspad control movement and the buttons control the camera. Despite that, the game still manages to be a lot of fun. If they ever re-release this for a console system with proper controls, I will buy it again in a heartbeat. ---
**Author:** ![Talon\_Karrde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Talon\_Karrde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Talon_Karrde)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2009, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/6 "2009-09-16T01:36:04Z")
It came out today. The interface is definitely clunky and it’s frustrating at times. That said, the rest of the game makes up for it IMO. ---
**Author:** ![Tabby\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Tabby\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tabby_Cat)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2009, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/7 "2009-09-16T12:57:08Z")
… if you’re one of those lucky bastids who’ve already gotten their dirty little mitts on a copy. [Trailer here!](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KhvhdGLZQ5g) [Another demo at E3](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DooZ8LDCNQA) I can’t wait to get my hands on a copy! ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2009, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/8 "2009-09-16T13:01:24Z")
I’m going to merge your thread into the existing thread in the Game Room, **Tabby\_Cat**. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2009, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/9 "2009-09-16T14:15:28Z")
The controls take a while to get used to, but they’re not that bad once you do. I am loving just playing around on the title screen and seeing how things interact. For example, summon two bunnies. ---
**Author:** ![ReuvenB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9fc348/32.png) [@ReuvenB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ReuvenB)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2009, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/10 "2009-09-16T16:25:14Z")
Yeah, I’m not seeing the complaints about the controls. They’re not bad at all. You should be completely comfortable after the tutorial period. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2009, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/11 "2009-09-16T17:55:37Z")
> [@XWalrus2](#): > > Yeah, I’m not seeing the complaints about the controls. They’re not bad at all. You should be completely comfortable after the tutorial period. Have you gotten to a point where you need to click on an object, but it’s small (like a rope or something) but miss by a tiny bit, and it causes Maxwell to start walking, sometimes into open pits, or water with a shark, etc…? Another thing I hate is the camera…you can move it to where you want, but it will then “snap” back to Maxwell for no reason…_not_ moving the camera causes the camera to move. It’s frustrating that you have to keep tapping the D-pad or the A or B button just so you can take a good look at the environment. It’s also frustrating that you can’t move Maxwell to a spot on the map if he isn’t visible on the map. You have to move the camera back to him (or wait three seconds since it will go back to him anyway,) move a little bit, move a little more as the camera catches up, etc… ---
**Author:** ![CT\_Damsel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CT\_Damsel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CT_Damsel)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2009, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/12 "2009-09-16T18:16:31Z")
Happy to see this thread. I received the game from UPS yesterday and having been playing about non-stop since. ---
**Author:** ![Trion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ccd318/32.png) [@Trion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trion)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2009, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/13 "2009-09-16T18:56:33Z")
I also have the game and I’m enjoying it. And I won’t be back into this thread. I wanna figure this out for myself. At least for now. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2009, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/14 "2009-09-16T19:30:28Z")
> [@Talon\_Karrde](#): > > The only really cool solution I found so far was for a level in a park where there’s garbage and a fly and it tells you to get rid of the fly and clean the park. > > I typed in “fire” and burned the fly and the garbage (along with the tree that had some garbage in it). Hmm. I did mostly the same thing, except I didn’t use the fire on the fly, since I was afraid of burning the flowers around it. I tried using a tsunami on that one, just for fun. It killed me. Not an optimal solution. But the Starite did show up…I just wasn’t alive to collect it. My one real gripe is that the tutorial area…unskippable, interminable, and more often than not redundant ‘Click on the object to pick it up’…next level: ‘Click on the object to pick it up. Now click here to use it’…next level…etc. It’s the worst tutorial level I’ve ever had to do. On the other hand, the objects you can conjure up are delightfully varied, and have some neat interactions. The level where you need to knock down some bottles without cheating or using a gun (like a carnival game, yeh?) amused me. It’s got an interesting definition of ‘cheating’ and ‘gun’…I’ve used a cannon, and it seems like the only reason the tank didn’t work is I couldn’t aim it at the bottom bottles without crushing the carnie. My favourite is when I mistyped ‘sword’ as ‘sord’. Go ahead and do it…I was rather surprised by the result. ---
**Author:** ![Electronic\_Chaos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Electronic\_Chaos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Electronic_Chaos)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2009, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/15 "2009-09-16T20:25:18Z")
Hah, I was doing the level where you had to get the soccer ball past the goalie. I’d already used several objects trying to do it, so I was about to restart. Then I remembered someone said you could summon a hydra… so I did it. The goalie ran from the hydra, right into the goal, holding the ball and I got the starite. ---
**Author:** ![Talon\_Karrde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Talon\_Karrde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Talon_Karrde)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/16 "2009-09-17T00:06:45Z")
This game just wowed me again. I typed in “cryptozoologist” and to my surprise someone appeared. Then I summoned a bigfoot and the cryptozoologist chased it around! ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/17 "2009-09-17T00:12:43Z")
> [@Talon\_Karrde](#): > > The only really cool solution I found so far was for a level in a park where there’s garbage and a fly and it tells you to get rid of the fly and clean the park. > > I typed in “fire” and burned the fly and the garbage (along with the tree that had some garbage in it). I just used a Garbageman. Just like real life, my solution to most problems are “get someone else to do it.” ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/18 "2009-09-17T06:20:01Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > My favourite is when I mistyped ‘sword’ as ‘sord’. Go ahead and do it…I was rather surprised by the result. Here’s [why](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sordes). ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 8:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/19 "2009-09-17T08:46:06Z")
> [@Captain\_Amazing](#): > > Here’s [why](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sordes). Awesome…I was trying to figure out what in the name of god it was, but Google was of no help. > [@AlsoNamedBort](#): > > I just used a Garbageman. Just like real life, my solution to most problems are “get someone else to do it.” I tried that…it failed me. I still haven’t figured out why. ---
**Author:** ![Quercus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/7ab992/32.png) [@Quercus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quercus)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2009, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195/20 "2009-09-17T12:30:45Z")
Shouldn’t we have a hotkey on the SDMB for “Obligatory XKCD reference:” ? Anyway, here it is > **[Scribblenauts](https://xkcd.com/637/)** > > Let me look away and type 'guy who's just jealous that I beat all his MarioKart times' and turn back, and ... yup, there you are again! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scribblenauts/510195.md?page=2)