In most games you play, you use a set of tools within a set environment that are used to efficiently complete the game. In “Scribblenauts,” for the Nintendo DS, the tool is imagination.

“Scribblenauts” is the new, side-scrolling puzzle game from 5th Cell. The premise of the game is to use whatever you can think of to solve a series of puzzles.

The character is Maxwell, who has a magic notepad. You use the notepad to type in the item you need. For example, if a vampire riding a dinosaur will solve the task, go ahead, that’s what will appear. There are two stages to play in: action stages, in which completing a required feat is needed, and puzzle stages, where a set amount of items is used to capture a “starite.”

Each stage tests levels of creativity. Winning grants the player “ollers” – the game’s currency – which can be spent on more stages and different avatars. But even if you fail a challenge, it can go hilariously wrong.

For example, one level wants the player to give the correct equipment to a cop, doctor, firefighter and chef. I gave a knife to the chef and a gun to the cop. The cop saw the chef as a threat and proceeded to shoot everyone around him. Clearly, the cop wasn’t the best shot, but this result was comical, to say the least. The game rewards you for thinking outside the box but requires you to think about all the possible outcomes of your actions, whether playing methodically or experimenting with the situation.

The visual style fits well within the world that 5th Cell created. Much like the PS3 game “LittleBigPlanet” by Media Molecule, all the environments and characters look like wooden pegs; paper and string holds them together. Pushing the papercraft style a little more would have been nice, but the simplistic approach works well on the DS’s hardware.

While the DS hardware is limiting, picking it up for 10 or 20 minutes, solving a stage or two and putting it back down feels right for “Scribblenauts.” You can get a sense of accomplishment, and it doesn’t sink into your time.

One feature that’s not present is online play. “Scribblenauts” would make a great cooperative experience with another friend online or through local Wi-Fi. You’re able to share levels you’ve created with a friend via Wi-Fi, but the option to upload and download new stages online would have added plenty of replay value.

“Scribblenauts” is the first of its kind, pushing what the developers call “emergent game-play,” which means letting you play how you want to without harsh restriction, according to www.IGN.com. With “over 30,000 words” that you can use, according to www.amazon.com, it’s one of the most ambitious and rewarding games this year.