Notes
Scribblenauts, Pennsylvania
Scribblenauts is the game for the Nintendo DS where you conjure items to get your little guy to a star that’s somewhere in each level. There are almost 23,000 things you can conjure just by typing the name of what you want. Type “rope”, and your character will have a rope and be able to swing Indiana-Jones-style from stuff. “Chainsaw” lets you use a chainsaw to cut down trees. “Blowtorch” lets you melt an ice-block. You get the idea.
The thing that kills me is how people are reviewing the game — Yahtzee says it was a case of “the same solutions [every time], just helicopters, boulders and Cthulu.” That’s the kind of thing I keep hearing from people — that you can beat the whole game really quickly just by typing “jetpack” or “bazooka.” I think that if you’re playing Scribblenauts by solving every problem with jetpacks and a T-rex, you might be doing it wrong. I can’t help but be reminded of Michael Scott at improv class in “E-mail Surveillance.”
Think about this: what is the most exciting thing that can happen on TV or in movies, or in real life? Somebody has a gun. That’s why I always start with a gun, because you can’t top it. You just can’t.
Remember how everyone in the improv class thought Michael was a tool? I’m not saying that you’re a tool if you play Scribblenauts like Michael Scott performs improvisational comedy, but I am saying that you’ll be the only one in the office I won’t invite to my barbecue. But you probably are a bit of a dick.
Just because you can summon a nuclear bomb straight off the bat doesn’t always mean that you should. Play Scribblenauts to appreciate the art-form. The game actually encourages you to do this — you get extra points for going back and playing a level again and coming up with a more inventive solution.
Please, everyone, don’t act like a fucking FBI agent every time you play Scribblenauts. It makes for a really boring improv scene.
