"Wordplay" was the first title, according to the 5th Cell creative director Jeremiah Slaczka. Yeesh. Slazcka himself called it "really lame and not fun and very generic … We've always gone through a lot of names before we kinda settle on a final name.

He continued:

Scribblenauts was also actually a temp name, which is kind of funny that it actually stuck. Because in the beginning, we were just like, well we need something, we always need something for a pitch and what's the project name. So we were like, "Well, this is quirky and interesting, but maybe not completely what we want to go for." But it just stuck. It made sense. And it wasn't generic at all."

Well here's a toast to temp names. Don't think there's much argument that "Scribblenauts" serves this game far more than something like "Wordplay."

Scribblenauts Wasn't Always Called Scribblenauts [Nintendo Everything via VG247]

Scribblenauts is out to prove that it's more than just a clever, a really clever, game mechanic and that the "Write Anything, Solve Everything" puzzle game from 5th Cell is worth your money and a permanent spot in your Nintendo DS or DSi.

But does the game do more than provide gamers with a glorified visual, animated dictionary? Is it a game worthy of its own unique mechanic? Let see.

Loved
The Write Stuff: While Scribblenauts is a classic puzzle game at its heart, the thing that separates it from like titles is the ability to type or write just about anything they can think of (minus trademarks and profanity) and have it appear in the game. This staggering new mechanic, writing a word and seeing it pop onto the DS screen in cartoon form, is alone worth the price. The fact that you can then use these inventions to try and solve riddles or make your way to the game's Starites is all bonus.

Broad: Developer 5th Cell isn't saying just how many words are available for you to summon in Scribblenauts. All we do know is that there are more than 22,800 of them available in the game. And we're not just talking about words found in your typical dictionary. There are plenty of fun little surprises including Internet memes, urban legends, chemical compounds and even the intangible. This incredible, expansive word list, essentially all new toys that can be used to play and replay levels, is one of the keys to the game's success.

Deep: It's one thing to include tens of thousands of words and their animated counterparts in a game. But to define them, that's a whole other Herculean task. And the game does just as good a job defining, categorizing and animating all of these bits of pop culture, history, science, existence as it does in creating the list. Each summoned word has specific potential, likes, dislikes, history, weaknesses and strengths. It's staggering how deep the game can go.

Interactions: Finally, pulling everything together neatly is the game's ability to look at varying objects and decide how they might interact. The game knows that when the sun comes out a vampire turns to dust. It knows you can shoot a human to kill him or her, but not a zombie. But that's the easy stuff. The things that have been covered in countless books. But what about the bizarre, the unthinkable. What happens when you hand this world of possibilities, of limitless interactions over to a gamer? Hilarity, in my experience.

Take for instance a problem I ran into in the 150th or so puzzle I was working on. Confronted by an area teeming with West Virginia's legendary Flatwoods Monster, my initial thought was to take out one urban legend with another. So I quickly typed in Chupacabre. Only I mistyped it and accidentally summoned not the panther-like, blood-sucking lizard of Mexican lore, but the delicious Mexican snack, a chalupa.

Flummoxed, I dropped the chalupa in the hand of one of the monsters and summoned a vampire instead. The vampire quickly attacked the Flatwoods Monster who, seemingly confused by the treat she was just handed, began to swat at the creature with the chalupa. The vampire made quick work of her while I watched on belly laughing.

These are the moments that make this game sing. And they are plentiful.

Lateral Thinking: Because the game offers gamers an almost unlimited supply of objects, tools and creatures with which to tackle the game's riddles and puzzles, the way to solve any given problem is incredibly varied. To deal with this, on some level I believe, many of the game's levels feel like lateral thinking puzzles. Lateral thinking puzzles are the sort of brain twisters that challenge your preconceived notions and force you to approach problems in unique ways. I've long been a fan of these sort of puzzles, so it wasn't long into the game that I started to recognize their presence in many of the challenges I faced and the solutions I found.

Not only do these sorts of puzzles provide a more engaging experience, and certainly one better fitted to the nearly omnipotent powers of the gamer in Scribblenauts, they are also the sort of puzzles that children tend to be quite good at, expanding the game's potential audience.

Pop Culture: I've already touched on the breadth and depth of the game, but it's worth circling back to point out just how amazing it is that a game that includes the likes of worm holes, hydrochloric acid and Einstein, also includes the Keyboard Cat and Flatwood Monsters. This integration of pop culture makes the game feel that much more approachable and gives the developers countless opportunities to sneak inside jokes and funny asides into the title. That's the sort of thing that can win over a fan for life.

Charming Art: The cleverly crafted puzzles and amazing mechanic is backed by a delightful art style that makes everything, no mater how deadly, dangerous or disgusting, really cute. Tapping into this, the game even allows you to unlock different creatures to use as your avatar as you play through Scribblenauts. I went with a pirate.

Create Your Own: I was surprised to find that Scribblenauts also allows gamers to create their own challenges. The method of creation is startlingly easy. You essentially drop objects into a room and place the end-goal Starite. You can even assign moods or actions to creatures and people with a simple interface. The end result is a tool set that is easy to use and allows for fairly deep custom level creation. That's certain to greatly extend the game's life.

Hated
Touchy Avatar: The one major problem I ran into with Scribblenauts is a doozie: The controls. Unfortunately, the detailed, tiny animations and the need to control everything with the touchscreen don't combine very well. To move your main character around, Maxwell, you tap on the screen and he moves to that point. The d-pad, meanwhile, is used to move the camera around the screen. The problem is that if you're trying to interact with an object, like attaching a recently summoned rope to a boulder, and you accidentally miss that very tiny rope, you may send Maxwell running toward you... often with fatal results.

I can't tell you how many times I lost a level simply because an object moved as I went to tap it or I mistapped and Maxwell ran off a cliff. It's incredibly frustrating. It's so frustrating that it proves just how amazing the rest of the game is, because despite the annoyance I played through nearly all of it.

Word Confusion: This isn't nearly as bad as the control issue, but I was annoyed that my use of phrases sometimes resulted in what I wanted and sometimes didn't. Typing shark and robot shark, for instance, result in the same thing: A shark. But sometimes, that isn't the case. For instance there are both zombies and robot zombies. This issue is most annoying when you're trying to apply size or length to something like a rope or a rock and it works with certain words and not others.

In Scribblenauts you truly get as much out of it as you put into it. I found that many of the puzzles can be solved with pretty routine ideas. You can simply summon up a dragon and clear the room of monsters, or you could arm one of your monster foes with a Mexican snack and have a vampire attack. The fun is up to you.

While Scribblenauts is a well crafted puzzle game, its real power is its ability to tap into the soul of the Internet. Finally, someone has created something that puts our vast knowledge of the inane and arcane to use. I can proudly say that I know how to vanquish a griffin, what to summon when I'm confronted by Cthulhu, and why a river is handy when facing Nuckelavee, all without looking it up.

Embrace your inner geek, pick up this game.

Scribblenauts was developed by 5th Cell and published by Warner Bros. Interactive for the Nintendo DS on September 15. Retails for $29.99 USD. Solved 159 of the 231 levels included in the game's action and puzzle modes, including the last levels. Created a level.

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While we were well aware that the WB would secure popular franchises like Joust and Spy Hunter, the currently changing trademark ownership of some classic Midway IP give us insight into what the new home of Mortal Kombat also secured. Some of it is positively ancient, like the Super Sprint spin off Badlands, and the classic Sinistar and Defender.

Trademark snooper superannuation dug up some of the trademarks transferred to Warner Bros. thus far, a list expected to expand as time goes on and the US Patent and Trademark Office gets around to it.

Missing from the list right now is Mortal Kombat, actually, which should show up as a WB property any day now—even though This Is Vegas is there.

For a very short list of what Warner Bros. didn't pick up, see this post.

Warner Bros. has contacted the United States Patent and Trademark Office to transfer proprietorship of the following Midway trademarks, Part One [superannuation]

Foxtrot813 is just your average Replica soldier, but soon beckoning voices lead him to go against Replica Command's orders, striking out on his own through four levels worth of single player action. In a rather strange move, Monolith and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment will be releasing a demo for the downloadable content on August 27th for the PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3. A demo...for DLC. Okay!

Those of you more into F.E.A.R. 2's multiplayer side aren't being left out in the cold, however, as an accompanying title update brings with it a new Slo-Mo Deathmatch mode, which introduces a slo-mo power-up that makes everyone else move like molasses while you gleefully run circles around them. Sounds lovely.

Expect games based on both dating games to ship "across multiple platforms" following the conclusion of The Bachelor's 2010 season. Since Ludia is pegged as the developer—the creator of fine licensed products based on The Price Is Right, Hell's Kitchen, American Idol and more—don't be surprised if the platforms handed a rose are the Wii, Nintendo DS, PC and iPhone. Ludia loves long walks on the beach and casual-leaning hardware.

Looks like we may be slowly catching up to Japan when it comes to dating sims, just with a little more fake tanner, a little less time spent in high school classrooms and a dialog choice that includes "I didn't come here to make friends, I came here to win."

"MySpace is and will be more in the future a gaming platform, a space for people to meet and play games," Jonathan Miller told a gathering at the Fortune Brainstorm: TECH conference in Pasadena, California on Thursday.

"None of the traditional media conglomerates are also significant video game players, so to speak, and I think that that's the missing piece of the equation, particularly when you see how much time is spent playing games online," Miller said.

Miller went on to tell Reuters that while MySpace won't be primarily a gaming destination, that will be a crucial theme.

"If you look at the big activities online, games right now is number three," he said. "Communications, search, games. So it's clearly going to be a major focus."

He also said that News Corp could even consider making acquisitions to bolder "MySpace's video game platform."

With Warner Bros. ramping up their efforts in game development as well it could be an interesting time for game development and it's cross-pollination with other forms of entertainment.

News Corp sees MySpace as place for videogames

The 5th Cell developed game has players scribble the names of items that they can then use to help solve the more than 200 puzzle and action-themed challenges.

To celebrate the looming date, and perhaps rub in the fact that they still haven't sent us that promised early build of the game, WB released a two sparkly new screens from the innovative puzzler.

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment announced today the release dates for the PlayStation 3, PC and Xbox 360 versions of the Watchmen beat 'em up, which span two retail releases—Watchmen: The End is Nigh The Complete Experience for the PS3 and Watchmen: The End is Nigh Parts 1 and 2 for the Xbox 360—plus three digitally distributed episodes for the PS3, Xbox 360 and PC.

The second episode will be available to you in a number of formats, included with one of the Blu-ray editions of the movie, in PlayStation 3-style packaging and on a Xbox 360-only DVD. It can also be downloaded, for everyone that enjoyed the first Watchmen: The End is Nigh so much.

Maybe this official list will clear it up.

Watchmen: The End is Nigh The Complete Experience is an innovative, retail Blu-ray Hi-Def game and film hybrid which will include Watchmen: The End is Nigh Parts 1 and 2 and the Watchmen: Director's Cut on Blu-ray. This new cut of the action-packed blockbuster includes an additional 25 minutes of footage not seen in theaters, available only on Blu-ray and DVD. The two-disc collectible set will also feature exclusive artwork in a premium package. The game will be playable on the PLAYSTATION 3 which can also play the Blu-ray disc of Watchmen: Director's Cut. The Watchmen: The End is Nigh The Complete Experience will be available on July 21 for a suggested retail price of $49.99.

Watchmen: The End is Nigh Parts 1 and 2 will be released as a single game available for the Xbox 360 on July 21 for a suggested retail price of $29.99.

Watchmen: The End is Nigh Part 2 will be available for download on PC on July 29 and PlayStation Network on July 30 for a suggested retail price of $14.99 and on Xbox LIVE Arcade for the Xbox 360 on August 26 for 1200 Microsoft Points.

Does Traveller's Tales have what it takes to mine Batman for both mini-fig fun and a decent story? Do they even need to, or does the mechanic alone keep the LEGO franchise afloat? Hit the jump to read up on the game's good, bad and ugly.

Loved
A Motley Cast: Because you essentially play through the same plot twice, from the perspective of the good and the bad, the developers had plenty of opportunity to introduce a lot of playable characters. While the good sticks you with Batman and Robin's, albeit in a wide variety of tech suits, the bad gives you a chance to play a wide spectrum of villains, each with diabolically funny weapons. From the Joker's shocking handshake to Mr. Freeze's ice maker, I've never had so much fun being bad.

Intricate Backdrops: While LEGO fanatics might bemoan the lack of realism, Batman fans certainly won't. The developers have done a lot to open up the setting for this latest title, including plenty of rooftop battles, looming high rises and large architecture.

Oodles of Lego Gadgets: The game is already packed with tons of weapons for the bad guys, but you also get a number of tech suits for the dynamic duo, a garage of bat and bad guy vehicles and even a robot and plant you can ride around on.

Original Story: Unlike Traveller's Tales' previous LEGO games, this one comes with an original plot. Sure, the idea of all the bad guys breaking out of Arkham Asylum isn't exactly fresh, but not knowing what's coming next is a bit refreshing for the LEGO franchise.

Still Lots of Fun: Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Batman, they all have their selling points, but really it's the overarching LEGO franchise that makes these games so much fun to play. While Traveller's Tales has tweaked the formula a bit with each iteration, they know better than to mess with a good thing.

Hated
An Issue of Perspective: I love the LEGO games, absolutely love playing through them all with my son. But I'm really getting tired of that camera angle. You know, the one that makes running across a platform, jumping, climbing at times, a frustrating exercise in guess work?

Bit of a Cake Walk: More than previous games, beating this latest LEGO game seems more like an inevitability than the product of gameplay. The bosses in particular are quite easy.

Convoluted Progression: I like the idea behind essentially playing through the game's story twice, once as Batman and Robin and again as an assortment of villains. I also like that they way it's presented you get a completely different take on the experiences, almost a Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead take. What I don't like is being confused about how far along I am and whether I've actually wrapped everything up. This time around I think gamers need a bit more hand holding.

Bugs, Still, Really?: I put up with falling through scenery, getting trapped in areas and glitchy cut scenes for all of the LEGO Star Wars games. I got slightly more annoyed when they showed up in Indiana Jones, but Batman? It's starting to feel like Traveller's Tales is content with their fun, though flawed engine. To be clear, gamers aren't. At least throw in a way to suicide out of a bad situation and reappear somewhere other than the same exact spot.

I'm a self-confessed LEGO The Video Game fanboy. I've loved all of the titles (at least on console) that have come out with those three words framing the IP of the day on the box cover. I'd probably buy LEGO Finnegan's Wake The Video Game if it came out. Strike that, I'd definitely buy LEGO Finnegan's Wake The Video Game if it came out. And while I think that the formula works on most levels, I don't think it gives a developer license to not take a step back and look at what does need to be improved. I'm willing to put up with the problems inherent in the current games, but that's not going to last.

Despite it's few flaws, LEGO Batman The Video Game is a blast to play, a return to the sense of fun and discovery that first ignited the success of the LEGO games in Star Wars. The character models are lovingly detailed, their mini-fig ass-kickings adorable to watch. If you liked any of the previous iterations of LEGO games than this is probably worth picking up.

LEGO Batman The Video Game, developed by Traveller's Tales and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, was released on Sept. 23 for the DS, PC, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PSP, Wii and Xbox 360. Retails for $30 to $50. Played through all three episodes as hero and all but the last half of the least level of the third episode as a villain. Explored the Batcave and Arkham Asylum on Xbox 360.

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