A Good Snowman Is Hard To Build

Developer: Alan Hazelden, Benjamin Davis | Publisher: Draknek | Release Date: 2015 | Genre: Indie / Puzzle / Casual | Website: Official Website | Purchase: Steam / itch.io

While we knew that a good snowman is hard to build, we didn’t realize that it was also an activity enjoyed by monsters. In this charming puzzle title, the process involves more thought than lumping together as much snow as you can find and then sticking a carrot and scarf on it. On the plus side, there is no risk of frostbite, and the activity isn’t dependent on the weather.

As the title of this game makes abundantly clear, your goals in A Good Snowman Is Hard To Build revolve entirely around building Snowmen. Your character might be a giant monster with stringy arms and legs, but his penchant for naming and hugging the snowmen means he is more adorable than creepy. As Alan Hazelden, one of the original creators of Sokobond, had a hand in the puzzle design, it should come as no surprise that finding the solutions involves a fair amount of head-scratching. Snowmen are comprised of three different-sized balls of snow. Your job is to create these snowballs and then move them into the correct position to create the snowman. It looks deceptively simple, but like any good puzzle game, looks can be deceiving.

Each puzzle is set in its own little area with snow and grass on the ground. Roll a snowball over the grass, and it will remain the same size. Roll it over snow, however, and it will grow larger. The large snowballs, which form the base of the snowmen, are the easiest as after they have come into contact with snowy ground three times, they cannot grow any larger. Medium snowballs can only touch snowy ground twice, and small snowballs can’t touch snowy ground at all if you want any hope of successfully creating your snowman. Luckily, rolling any snowball over the snowy ground will expose the grass underneath, which means most puzzles involve maneuvering the largest snowball in a manner that clears a path for the medium and small ones. You can only roll the snowballs in four directions, though. In addition to the puzzle areas being relatively small, they are usually cluttered with trees, benches, bird baths, and other bits of scenery as well. You can push smaller snowballs up and over larger ones, but not vice versa. Your monster also cannot pass through snowballs or the scenery, which means you might know precisely where to put the snowballs but not how to get them there.

Figuring out the puzzle solutions involves a fair bit of trial and error, but thankfully, you can reverse all your steps, one by one, at the tap of a button. This removes the tedium of restarting an entire area because you made one or two stupid mistakes or wanted to test a theory. Of course, if you mess things up irreparably, you can instantly reset everything to its default state and try again from scratch. As some rooms might require you to build up to three individual snowmen, things can get tricky very quickly, and that undo button comes in handy. The game is very relaxing since nothing can kill you, and you usually have a couple of puzzle rooms you can tackle at a time. New areas open up as you complete old ones, and everything is connected, which makes it look like a park hedge maze. It is pretty easy to make your way between the rooms, but there is also a unique “fast travel” system, accessed via the park benches you find everywhere.

Regarding the visuals, it is hard not to be charmed by the game. Benjamin Davis is responsible for the graphics and did a great job with the characters. Since the whole game takes place in the same park, there is little variety in the look of separate areas, but the snowmen more than make up for this. In addition to your monster naming every snowman, they all have a different look. From top hats and mustaches to beanies and sunglasses, half the fun is seeing how the snowman you are busy constructing will look when it is done. There is no need to interact with anything except the snowballs, but pressing toward any scenery objects will usually cause your monster to perform a short animation. This is nice, as apart from some butterflies flitting about, the game does look a bit motionless.

The audio in the game was handled by Ryan Roth, known for his work on several great indie titles, and he did an excellent job creating a soundscape that matches the somewhat melancholic feeling of the game. The music is atmospheric without becoming obtrusive, and when you complete a puzzle, the music in that area also stops. The sound effects are also great, with bird songs heard in the background, as well as the footsteps of your monster. Interacting with the game is as easy as moving your monster in one of four directions. If it comes into contact with a snowball, it will automatically start pushing it. Bear in mind that snowballs can only be pushed and not pulled, so if you shove one against the edges of the room, you might have no choice but to rewind a few steps. The grid-based movement felt fiddly when using an analog controller, but it didn’t bother us too much because it is so easy to rewind wrong moves. Playing with a keyboard felt more precise, though, as we made fewer accidental moves.

In total, it took us about two hours to complete all the puzzles in A Good Snowman is Hard To Build, and despite getting stuck a few times, we enjoyed every minute of the experience. You can also reset your progress in the game if you want to have another go at the puzzles after completing everything. The puzzles are tricky sometimes, but it always feels like a solution is just within your grasp. Experienced puzzle fans might find some early puzzles a bit too easy, but the gentle learning curve means anyone can enjoy this game.