To scribble or naut to scribble, that is the question.
When scribblenauts was announced, it was like a dream come true. This was it. THE game. The do-anything-you-effin'-want game. On that principle alone, the game delivers. You type in an object and, BAM, there it is. It requires an imaginative mind, and that, I am sad to say, I have failed the game at. Chalk it up to an engineering student to be able to follow instructions but not think that far out of the box. Every challenge seems to bring up the thought "HEY! A jetpack would be great here!"
That said, some things just don't seem to work very well in the game. The controls, I believe, are the most glaring flaw here. Touch-based movement leads to some pretty bad puzzle failures when you're trying to interact with something and wind up running toward it. Not fun when you want to ride a raptor and jog straight into it's aggro zone.
Really any vehicles have this problem too. Ground vehicles are slow and flying vehicles get stuck easily unless it's a big open area. Interaction with them is a chore as well. 1 click on it dislodges you letting you fall wherever. It really feels more like you're playing the role of a god leading Maxwell and giving him things instead of actually playing as the character. (well, this is the group that made drawn to life, so that doesn't seem too far off.)
Some of the puzzles, as well, are too straightforward. I realize that the fun of the game is finding new and different ways of doing things, but when it boils down to "Give Santa something he needs." Not much to really do there...
All in all, I guess it's not too bad. I mean, it's as close to my video game dreams as anyone has come so far. But when playing, it's flaws are just sitting there glaring back at me. It's a good start, but it definitely needs a bit more work.