1. Gameplay
Occasionally I get just a little bit tired of shooters and RPGs. It’s not common, but it does happen. Occasionally I do expand my interest into other genres. Sometimes, if I’m feeling very adventurous, I’ll look at my game library and find something completely random just to see if there were any positive elements from the game are worth learning about. Scribblenauts: Unlimited is an excellent kids game that’s surprisingly fun. While it may make more sense on the Nintendo DS, it works very well on the PC too.  I'll bet you wish you had one of these things on the Oregon Trail. If you’re completely unfamiliar with Scribblenauts, the basic idea is that the player is presented with a series of simple puzzles and must create items in order to solve those puzzles. For example, in one puzzle an old lady told my character that she was tired of standing. I had to use my magic notepad to create something for her to sit down on. This seems like an extremely simple puzzle (because it is), but the fun comes in coming up with creative solutions.  I prefer to admire creativity from a safe distance. If you’ve ever had a chance to sit down with young kids, most of them come up with pretty ridiculous answers to simple questions. This game is designed to give that level of controlled freedom in problem solving. Sure, the player could write something as simple as “chair”, which would solve the puzzle and allow the player to move on. However, the game allows the player to write in almost anything. Seriously, the dictionary that this game uses is massive. Everyday items like chairs and desks are obviously included, but somewhat ridiculous items like battlemechs, dragons, and “flying crying whales” are all included. If you can think of it, the game almost certainly has it (with a few restrictions).  This should say a lot about the content of the game. My only issue with this game is completely personal. I am not a very creative person. I like to solve puzzles in as fast an efficient way as possible. So when I encountered the old lady I just talked about, my answer was “wheelchair”. I could tell that I wasn’t really grasping the true fun in this game, but it’s really difficult for me to change my way of thinking even for something as entertaining as this. That being said, I know I’m probably an anomaly here, especially when compared to the much younger audience that this game targets.  If you look at this picture and say "none of this makes any sense", you're too old for this game. Whether you’re 5 years old with a Nintendo DS or 25 years old sitting in front of an overpowered gaming PC, this game can be extremely fun.
I completed this game in a little over six hours but that isn’t really a fair assessment. My very literal approach to each puzzle significantly reduced the amount of time I had to spend coming up with a creative answer. I could often breeze through sections with the simplest responses, rather than coming up with unique and hilariously creative ways of solving the puzzles. I could see this game easily lasting for double the amount of time that I spent on it.
For the most part this game was pretty straightforward and easy to figure out, but sometimes the wording of the puzzles was so ambiguous that I had a very difficult time finding a sufficient answer. For example, one puzzle said “What would you find in an aquarium?” To me this could have many different answers, but the most obvious one was “fish”. However, this was evidently incorrect. I tried all manner of sea creatures, none of which worked, until I had to completely rethink my approach. Eventually I figured out that “aquarium”, in this case, was synonymous with “fish tank”. Once I said something like “filter”, then I was able to complete the puzzle. 2. Parental Notices
Violence is an occasional factor in this game but is definitely not prominent. The player will have to resolve certain situations with violence, and sometimes certain puzzles can best be resolved with violence, but there are plenty of scenarios where the player can choose a non-violent solution (provided the player is creative enough). When violence does occur, the target will flash red and lose a bit of health. If the target is killed, it disappears into a puff of smoke.  Boom. The player can create a number of different types of weapons. This can be almost anything, from a simple club to a huge missile-firing mech.  If you understand what my character is sitting in, you'll know why this gets me excited. The flamethrower was the only weapon that I noticed that could cause significant damage. It shoots out a jet of flames that will hurt both friendlies and enemies.  That could do some damage.
Sexuality is not a factor in this game.
Substances are not a factor in this game.
Gambling is not a factor in this game. 3. Other Factors  Anyone else feel like watching Face/Off?
As with many other factors in this game, religion is an incidental element. There are some quests that involve coming up with a religious artifact or helping a priest, but these are very brief.
Similar to religion, anti-law is an incidental inclusion. There are a few quests that will involve helping or hurting criminals, including one quest where the player must break out of prison, but these are presented in a very childish form that is appropriate for all ages.  That orphanage is surprisingly small compared to the firehouse.
There are no multiplayer modes for this game.
This game does include mods, but the ones that I have been able to find are all appropriate for all ages and do not increase the mature content in any significant way.
Other than the fact that the player can use a jetpack pretty much anywhere and has no problem breathing underwater or in space, extreme sports is not a factor in this game.
As with religion, magic is included on rare occasions. Magical items can be conjured and mythical creatures can be seen in certain missions. Unlike religion, though, the game’s plot and mechanics hinge on the idea of a magical book that can create whatever is written in it. The plot also includes a magical spell that was placed on the main character’s sister, which is progressively turning her into stone.  It's a pretty messed up way to teach a lesson.
Human Disfigurement The player will encounter zombies in certain missions. If a zombie bites any other creature, including the player, that creature will become “undead” just like the zombie.  Zombie zombie zombie.
1 Comment
Caleb
8/1/2018 09:58:32 pm
When I played Scribblenauts I was able to go to a school. Spawn in some small children. And then shoot them to death with an automatic rifle. It was not graphic but the fact you can do that is disturbing. It is also rated E for everyone. Leave a Reply. |
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