The present invention is directed toward water based play compositions including a crosslinkable network polymer and a crosslinking system effective to crosslink the polymer. The crosslinking system is a water-soluble salt complex including a primary crosslinking agent, a secondary crosslinking agent, and a tertiary crosslinking agent. The crosslinking system contains a diminished amount of boron compounds while remaining effective in crosslinking network polymers including polyvinyl alcohol (to form moldable dough compositions) and guar gum (to form hydrogels).