Scribblenauts Showdown – the Party Game You’ve Been Waiting For? [Review]
The admittedly clever write-to-solve Scribblenauts series has always found itself to be a solitary experience most comfortable on handheld platforms; but Scribblenauts Showdown brings the puzzle game to the Switch, Xbox one, and PS4 in a party-game format, which tries to capture the magic of its predecessors, but with mixed results.
While the previous Scribblenauts games play out in adventure-type scenarios, Showdown pits up to four players against one another in different challenges, but the twist (in typical Scribblenauts fashion) is that each player can write and create their own solution (in the form of an item or rule) to give themselves an edge. Need to select an animal to win a hurdle race? Type in ‘cheetah’ (or something else that will work). Need better bait for a fishing challenge? Try a hamburger (fish love hamburgers, right?). It’s all a bit tongue-in-cheek and more about having fun with your imagination that playing with real-world rules.
These moments are exactly where Scribblenauts Showdown shines. It straddles the line between the absurd and oh-that’s-really-practical atmosphere excellently, providing a ton of laughs when each player is finding their solution, and finding out if they react as anticipated during the challenges.
That said, there is a shortcoming to the fun: not enough good challenges. There are a ton of mini-games, which are separated into ‘wordy’, speed or versus game-types. The ‘wordy’ games are undoubtedly the best, with a track-race with created animals, an object balancing game, and weapon combat game being highlights, but the rest are reworked version of notable mini-games found on most party experiences. It’s not a game-breaker, as there is a ton of replayability, but some additional primary wordy games would’ve added a lot to the experience. There is a sandbox mode which allows you and another player dabble in larger areas that require some object-based puzzle-solving, but it feels a little hollow compared to other Scribblenauts’ efforts, being as it’s not the main element of the game.
Overall, Scribblenauts Showdown is a great game for those looking to add another enjoyable option to their library of party games, but it does leave us wanting a little more in terms of mini-game options and variety. It’s an admirable entry into the multiplayer world of Scribblenauts, and we know that developer Shiver Entertainment is scratching the surface on something spectacular.
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