South Park: Snow Day!

Last updated

South Park: Snow Day!
South Park, Snow Day! cover.jpg
Developer(s) Question
Publisher(s) THQ Nordic
Director(s) Christopher Brian
Producer(s) Todd Benson
Artist(s) Jacob Glaser
Writer(s) Trey Parker
Matt Stone
Jameel Saleem
Composer(s) Jamie Dunlap
Exiquio Talavera
Engine Unreal Engine 4 [1] [2]
Platform(s)
ReleaseMarch 26, 2024
Genre(s) Action-adventure, beat 'em up, roguelike
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer

South Park: Snow Day! is a 2024 action-adventure game developed by Question and published by THQ Nordic in association with South Park Digital Studios. The game is based on the South Park animated series and takes place after the events of the previous games The Stick of Truth and The Fractured but Whole . [3] It was released for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S on March 26, 2024, and received mixed reviews from critics, with mixed reactions towards the change in art style, writing and humor, and criticism towards the gameplay, toned down content, and short length, with many comparing it negatively to The Stick of Truth and The Fractured But Whole.

Contents

Gameplay

South Park: Snow Day! centers around the four main characters—Eric Cartman, Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, and Kenny McCormick—participating in snow-based fights and activities, with players assuming the role of a player-created character named The New Kid (as with the previous games the Stick of Truth , Phone Destroyer, and the Fractured but Whole ). [4] [5]

After completing the tutorial, the player is placed in a small hub world, in which the population resides in Kupa Keep in Cartman's backyard. The player can interact with characters such as Cartman in which missions are selected, Mr. Hankey, who takes dark matter (actually feces) as currency to improve the player's perks through a skill tree, which can also be swapped to accommodate the player's preferences, Butters Stotch who keeps a record of cards found throughout the game, Tolkien Black who maintains the armory where the player can select weapons and abilities, and Tweek Tweak and Craig Tucker who maintain the Bazaar, where the player can purchase emotes or cosmetics with platinum points.

Once a mission is selected, the player must select a card that can improve abilities depending on their loadout, as well as a Bullshit card, that would give the players major advantages. Enemies will also have cards set before missions start. Arenas contain multiple chests that can carry Cheesy Poofs for healing, toilet paper that can be used as currency to upgrade cards, and dark matter. In combat, enemies will attack throughout the map, and occasionally use Bullshit cards placed at the start of the level. Jimmy Valmer will be found after each combat section and offer other cards or upgrades to preexisting cards before the player heads off to the next arena. Henrietta Biggle can also be found in places across the arenas to give players Tarot cards that can replenish Bullshit cards or hand out currency among other things. After completing the main story, Nichole Daniels will inform the player of Infernal Pacts, where they can find her during missions, and accept difficult tasks, which lead to rewards if they survive.

Plot

Eric Cartman comes home during an intense blizzard, excited over the prospect of a day off from school, while his mother, Liane, is shocked by the damage and casualties reported on the news. At night, Eric prays to God for a snow day, and in the morning, the news states that all Park County schools are to be closed. Afterwards, he jubilantly goes outside and tells everyone, including the New Kid, to get outside and play. Once everyone is in their fantasy costumes, Cartman tells the New Kid that he and the boys have created a new set of rules after the New Kid became too powerful the last two times, but due to disagreements with how they are implemented and interpreted, the town's children are at war with each other over which version of the rules are best. Cartman also mentions how Clyde Donovan has information about how the elves, led by Kyle Broflovski, are planning to attack Kupa Keep and tells the New Kid to investigate with three other New Kids. During the quest, the New Kid's party discovers Randy Marsh has been frozen at Stark's Pond. After getting him out, he informs the party of Kyle's whereabouts, and they head into the forest to battle him. After Kyle is defeated, Cartman questions him at Kupa Keep on why he was planning the attack. Kyle denies this and states that he was planning to talk to Stan Marsh, who he suspects to be responsible for the blizzard.

Cartman sends the New Kid to Stan's Marshwalker territory, but Stan has obtained a powerful axe in a quest, and instantly defeats the New Kid. This leads to Cartman insisting on putting the New Kid on a quest to find the same power that Stan has. After a fight with Kenny McCormick, the New Kid meets with Jimbo Kern and Ned Gerblansky, who are trying to fend off townspeople who are desperate for food and toilet paper. Jimbo agrees to help the New Kid who is to find several items desired by the townspeople. Other quests involve lighting braziers in SoDoSoPa, and stealing porn from sixth graders, who almost run over the New Kid's party with a snow plow. Eventually, the New Kid becomes powerful enough to fight Stan, who gets help from his father, Randy, who works cannons at his fortress in order to keep toilet paper from getting stolen, and defeats him. As Randy begs the New Kid's party not to take any toilet paper, Stephen Stotch runs in and takes it from him. Stan later reveals at Kupa Keep that he had access to dark matter from Mr. Hankey, who became vengeful after being banished from the town over his offensive tweets in the events of "The Problem with a Poo".

Cartman, being faced with the prospect of the blizzard's end which means returning to school, betrays the New Kid and brainwashes the townspeople through dark matter-infused hot chocolate. The New Kid's Party chases Cartman through the town's backyards and by the Church where they defeat brainwashed adults including Liane. In the forest, Cartman summons a snow clone named Balrog and fights. After being defeated by the New Kid, Cartman decides to join the fight against Mr. Hankey, and heads off with the boys to Hell's Pass Hospital which Mr. Hankey has turned into a fortress. Once they arrive to the top, Mr. Hankey absorbs the New Kid's dark matter, turns into a giant worm named Scheisse-Hulud [note 1] and fights the boys in a forest, but is eventually defeated with toilet paper cannons, ending the blizzard. As the snow melts, and Cartman reflects on having to go back to school, Jesus arrives to express disappointment towards the boys for not forgiving Mr. Hankey. The boys go to a toilet in Kyle's house and apologize to Mr. Hankey for abandoning him, in which he quickly forgives them. The boys ask for one more snow day and Mr. Hankey obliges, putting the town in another blizzard immediately after.

Development and release

Developer Question became acquainted with South Park Studios after they financed Question's previous game, The Blackout Club in 2019; the company's founder Jordan Thomas had previously worked with Trey Parker and Matt Stone on the South Park role-playing video games. [6] In 2021, Stone and Parker signed a $900 million development deal with ViacomCBS, with one of the projects announced being a new 3D South Park game in development. [7] In August 2022, the game was teased at THQ Nordic's digital showcase by a small teaser featuring a clip of Randy Marsh's voice exclaiming "Hot! Hot-hot-hot!", taken from the episode "More Crap" (2007). [8] In August 2023, South Park: Snow Day! was officially announced for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S. [9]

In an interview with Stone, IGN likened the gameplay to that of a "roguelike". Stone remarked on the deviations from the series' previous RPG iterations, stating, "We always thought we wanted to do that thing where we do a thing in a show and then like, it's in the game two weeks later, or three weeks, or whatever it is." [10] He also remarked the change from 2D to 3D allowed the development team more flexibility in how they built the game world, saying that creating a game on a 2D plane is "really, really hard when you think about what you have to work with." [11]

The game was released on March 26, 2024, in both physical (on consoles) and digital formats, for the budgeted launch price of $USD/$CAD29.99. [12] A collectors edition featuring a snow globe, toilet paper roll holder, soundtrack, and other bonuses was also made available for $219.99. [12]

Post-release content

DLC has been made since the game's release. Free DLC includes cosmetics and two game modes, To Danse with Ravenous Shadows and To Danse with the Veiled Horde, as well as a Season Pass with additional cosmetics, new weapons and cards, and a new game mode called Nichole's Home Brew. [13]

Reception

South Park: Snow Day! received "mixed or average" reviews from critics, according to review aggregator website Metacritic. [14] [15] [16] [17]

IGN reviewer Travis Northup called the game "dull, toothless, and a big step in the wrong direction for South Park". [19] He criticized the combat for being repetitive and believed that the humor and shock value were lacking. [19]

Kotaku writer Zack Zwiezen took issue with the 3D art style stating it "often, ironically, looks cheaper and cruder than the papercraft style of the beloved series." [27] The Kotaku review also noted a lack of humor and dialogue, citing an over reliance on grunt and pain noises in fights. Like other reviews, it also took aim at the combat, calling it "imprecise and floaty" and "dull". [27]

Game Rant ’s review negatively compared the game to its predecessors The Stick of Truth and The Fractured but Whole , stating that it was "destined to live in their shadows". [28] The review stated elements of the greater South Park universe were underutilized, such as side characters that could have had expanded roles in the snow setting and settings from the town itself that went unexplored. Like other reviews, it went on to criticize the combat mechanics and humor execution. The review’s author pointed to the limited amount of combat weapon combinations and an over reliance on toilet humor compared to its predecessors which, while also using toilet jokes, had "more range in displaying that beloved, crude South Park humor." [28]

Nintendo Life writer Jamie Ditchfield noted that technical issues made the game difficult to play on Switch, and also criticized the game’s writing. Particularly about the humor, Nintendo Life said there were "hardly any memorable comedic moments to reference, something we’d never expect to say when talking about South Park of all things." Ditchfield concluded that the game had "a lot of potential with some of its roguelike-inspired mechanics but ultimately fails to deliver an engaging experience whether you're playing it solo or in co-op.", and gave it a four out of ten. [20]

Video Game Chronicle gave the game three stars, and praised the 3D cut scenes, voice acting, writing, and music, finding that the game feels "authentically South Park". However, the review noted that the similar feeling snow environments, coupled with only having five stages available at launch, made the game feel repetitive and light on content. [25]

Sales

In its debut week, South Park: Snow Day! was the third best selling game of that week in the United Kingdom. [29] [30]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Scheisse is "Shit" in German, and Hulud is a reference to the Sandworms known as "Shai-Hulud" in Dune

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cartman Gets an Anal Probe</span> 1st episode of the 1st season of South Park

"Cartman Gets an Anal Probe" is the series premiere of the American animated television series South Park. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on August 13, 1997. The episode introduces child protagonists Eric Cartman, Kyle Broflovski, Stanley "Stan" Marsh and Kenneth "Kenny" McCormick, who attempt to rescue Kyle's adopted brother Ike from being abducted by aliens.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simpsons Already Did It</span> 7th episode of the 6th season of South Park

"Simpsons Already Did It" is the seventh episode of the sixth season of the American animated television series South Park and the 86th episode of the series overall. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on June 26, 2002. In the episode, which continues on from the events of the previous episode "Professor Chaos", Butters thinks up a series of schemes to take over the world, but realizes that each one has already been performed on the show The Simpsons. Meanwhile, Ms. Choksondik dies and Cartman, Kyle and Stan think that they are responsible.

"The Death of Eric Cartman" is the sixth episode in the ninth season of the American animated television series South Park. The 131st episode overall, it originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on April 13, 2005.

"Pinkeye" is the seventh episode of the first season of the American animated television series South Park. It first aired on Comedy Central in the United States on October 29, 1997. In the episode, Kenny is killed and brought back to life as a zombie through a freak accident, terrorizing South Park residents who believe that the rise of the living dead is an epidemic of "pinkeye".

"Starvin' Marvin" is the eighth episode of the first season of the American animated television series South Park. It first aired on Comedy Central in the United States on November 19, 1997. In the episode, Cartman, Kenny, Kyle and Stan send money to an African charity hoping to get a sports watch, but are instead sent an Ethiopian child whom they dub "Starvin' Marvin". Later, Cartman is accidentally sent to Ethiopia, where he learns activist Sally Struthers is hoarding the charity's food for herself. In an accompanying subplot, after genetically engineered turkeys attack South Park residents, Chef rallies the residents to fight back, in a parody of the film Braveheart.

"Merry Christmas, Charlie Manson!" is the sixteenth episode of the second season of the American animated television series South Park. The 29th episode of the series overall it originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on December 9, 1998. The episode was written by series co-creator Trey Parker along with Nancy M. Pimental and was directed by Eric Stough, in his directorial debut in the show and making it the first episode to not be directed by Parker or Stone.

"Chef's Chocolate Salty Balls" is the ninth episode of the second season of the American animated television series South Park. The 22nd episode of the series overall, it originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on August 19, 1998. The episode was written by series co-creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, along with Nancy M. Pimental, and directed by Parker.

"A Very Crappy Christmas" is the 17th and final episode of the fourth season of the animated television series South Park, and the 65th episode overall. It first aired on Comedy Central in the United States on December 20, 2000. In the episode, Kyle awaits Mr. Hankey on Christmas, but he does not show up. In an effort to spread Christmas cheer, Kyle and the boys create their own animated special.

<i>South Park</i> (video game) 1998/1999 first-person shooter video game

South Park is a first-person shooter video game based on the American animated sitcom of the same name. The game was developed by Iguana Entertainment, using a modified version of the engine used in the Acclaim Entertainment-published Turok 2: Seeds of Evil; both games shared the same publisher and were released for the Nintendo 64 in 1998 in North America, and for Microsoft Windows in 1999. South Park was released in Europe and ported to the PlayStation in the latter year to coincide with the film South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut.

"Make Love, Not Warcraft" is the eighth episode in the tenth season of the American animated television series South Park. The 147th episode overall, it first aired on Comedy Central in the United States on October 4, 2006. In the episode, named in a play on words after the 1960s counterculture slogan "Make love, not war", Cartman, Kyle, Stan, and Kenny enjoy playing the popular massively multiplayer online role-playing game World of Warcraft. When a high-level player goes around killing other players in the game, they start playing the game every day to try to stop him. The episode was written and directed by series co-creator Trey Parker. In 2015, he and co-creator Matt Stone listed it as their third-favorite episode of the series.

<i>South Park</i> season 1 Season of television series

The first season of the animated television series South Park aired on Comedy Central from August 13, 1997 to February 25, 1998. The creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone wrote most of the season's episodes; Dan Sterling, Philip Stark and David Goodman were credited with writing five episodes. The narrative revolves around four children—Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman and Kenny McCormick—and their unusual experiences in the titular mountain town.

<i>South Park</i> (pinball) 1999 pinball machine

South Park is a 1999 pinball game based on the American adult animated sitcom of the same name and released by Sega Pinball.

"Guitar Queer-O" is the thirteenth episode of the eleventh season and the 166th overall episode of American animated television series South Park, which first aired on Comedy Central on November 7, 2007. The episode was rated TV-MA L in the United States. The episode parodies the Guitar Hero video games, and aired ten days after the release of Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock.

"Margaritaville" is the third episode of the thirteenth season of the American animated television series South Park. The 184th overall episode of the series, it originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on March 25, 2009, as an Easter special. The episode is a satire and commentary on the global recession affecting much of the industrialized world at the time of the episode's broadcast. Kyle Broflovski is portrayed as a Jesus-like savior working to save the economy, and Stan Marsh spends much of the episode trying to return a personal Jimmy Buffett Margaritaville machine.

<i>South Park: Tenormans Revenge</i> 2012 video game

South Park: Tenorman's Revenge is a platform video game based on the American animated television series South Park. Developed by Canadian studio Other Ocean Interactive, in collaboration with South Park Digital Studios and Xbox Live Productions, and published by Microsoft Studios, Tenorman's Revenge was released on March 30, 2012, on the Xbox Live Arcade service for the Xbox 360 video game console. In the game, players can control the four main characters of the show, Stan, Kyle, Cartman and Kenny, and the goal is to battle minor character Scott Tenorman and his army of gingers, as the kids travel through time.

<i>South Park: The Stick of Truth</i> 2014 video game

South Park: The Stick of Truth is a 2014 role-playing video game developed by Obsidian Entertainment in collaboration with South Park Digital Studios and published by Ubisoft. Based on the American animated television series South Park, the game follows the New Kid, who has moved to the eponymous town and becomes involved in an epic role-play fantasy war involving humans, wizards, and elves, who are fighting for control of the all-powerful Stick of Truth. Their game quickly escalates out of control, bringing them into conflict with aliens, Nazi zombies, and gnomes, threatening the entire town with destruction.

<i>South Park: The Fractured but Whole</i> 2017 video game

South Park: The Fractured but Whole is a 2017 role-playing video game developed by Ubisoft San Francisco and published by Ubisoft in collaboration with South Park Digital Studios. Based on the American animated sitcom South Park, it is the sequel to the 2014 video game South Park: The Stick of Truth. The game's narrative occurs one day after the events of its predecessor; it follows the New Kid, who has recently moved to South Park and becomes involved in an epic roleplay involving two rival superhero factions vying to create their own superhero media franchises. The superheroes' game unintentionally uncovers a conspiracy to raise crime in the town, bringing them into conflict with supervillains, genetically engineered monsters, the police, crime families, and the new kingpin of crime.

<i>South Park: Phone Destroyer</i> Mobile action and collectible card game

South Park: Phone Destroyer is a free-to-play real-time strategy collectible card game developed by Ubisoft RedLynx and published by Ubisoft. It was released on iOS and Android on November 9, 2017.

<i>South Park</i> (franchise) American comedy franchise

South Park is an American multimedia franchise created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone. It is based on the television series of the same name, developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central.

References

  1. ↑ Wells, Cory (March 25, 2024). "Review: South Park: Snow Day!". Hardcore Gamer.
  2. ↑ South Park: Snow Day - From 2D to 3D. March 22, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2023.
  3. ↑ Callaham, John (February 24, 2023). "THQ Nordic shows off South Park: Snow Day and more during its Digital Showcase". Neowin. Retrieved February 24, 2023.
  4. ↑ Rivera, C. Anthony (December 21, 2023). "South Park Co-Op Game Gets Release Date and Budget Price". Game Rant. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  5. ↑ Moore, Tom (August 11, 2023). "THQ Nordic Showcase 2023 recap – TMNT: The Last Ronin, South Park: Snow Day, Alone in the Dark, and more". PlayStation.Blog . Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  6. ↑ "The Blackout Club Now Available". South Park United States. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
  7. ↑ Shaw, Lucas (August 5, 2021). "South Park Creators Sign Massive New $900 Million Deal With ViacomCBS". Bloomberg News . Retrieved March 7, 2024.
  8. ↑ Middler, Jordan (August 13, 2022). "Here's everything shown during the THQ Nordic Showcase 2022". Video Games Chronicle . Retrieved March 6, 2024.
  9. ↑ Harrold, Kate (August 14, 2023). "South Park: Snow Day officially announced for new-gen consoles and PC". GAMINGbible. Retrieved March 11, 2014.
  10. ↑ Weber, Rachel; Marshall, Bob (March 5, 2024). "South Park's Matt Stone on Making Snow Day! After 2 Huge South Park RPGs". IGN . Retrieved March 7, 2024.
  11. ↑ South Park Co-Creator Matt Stone Breaks Down South Park: Snow Day!. IGN . March 6, 2024. Retrieved March 7, 2024.
  12. 1 2 Lane, Rick (December 22, 2023). "South Park: Snow Day gets a release date and a $220 special edition with a talking toilet roll holder". PC Gamer . Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  13. ↑ South Park Snow Day THQ Nordic
  14. 1 2 "South Park: Snow Day! for PC Reviews". Metacritic . Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  15. 1 2 "South Park: Snow Day! for PlayStation 5 Reviews". Metacritic . Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  16. 1 2 "South Park: Snow Day! for Xbox Series X Reviews". Metacritic . Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  17. 1 2 "South Park: Snow Day! for Nintendo Switch Reviews". Metacritic . Retrieved September 22, 2024.
  18. ↑ Colantonio, Giovanni (March 25, 2024). "South Park: Snow Day! review: repetitive action makes for a co-op stinker". Digital Trends . Retrieved March 25, 2024.
  19. 1 2 3 Northup, Travis (March 25, 2024). "South Park: Snow Day! Review". IGN . Retrieved March 25, 2024.
  20. 1 2 Ditchfield, Jaimie (March 25, 2024). "South Park: Snow Day! Review (Switch)". Nintendo Life . Retrieved March 25, 2024.
  21. ↑ Faulkner, Cheri (March 25, 2024). "South Park Snow Day review – chaotic roguelike fun with friends". PCGamesN . Retrieved March 25, 2024.
  22. ↑ Talbot, Ken (March 25, 2024). "South Park: Snow Day! Review (PS5)". Push Square . Retrieved March 25, 2024.
  23. ↑ Chandler, Sam (March 25, 2024). "South Park: Snow Day! review: Grab your sword and snowballs". Shacknews . Retrieved March 25, 2024.
  24. ↑ Iwaniuk, Phil (March 25, 2024). "South Park: Snow Day! review – a crude, enjoyable playground tussle". The Guardian . Retrieved March 25, 2024.
  25. 1 2 Scullion, Chris (March 25, 2024). "South Park: Snow Day is an authentic, but repetitive co-op curse 'em up". Video Games Chronicle . Retrieved March 25, 2024.
  26. ↑ Terence, Anthony (March 25, 2024). "South Park: Snow Day review – a content drought erodes its slapstick combat". VideoGamer.com. Retrieved March 25, 2024.
  27. 1 2 Zwiezen, Zack (March 27, 2024). "New South Park Game is About as Fun as Reading a Phone Book". Kotaku .
  28. 1 2 Duckworth, Joshua (March 25, 2024). "South Park: Snow Day Review". GameRant.
  29. ↑ "UK Charts: South Park: Snow Day Skates Into The Top Three, Despite Slippery Reviews". Nintendo Life. April 1, 2024. Retrieved October 13, 2024.
  30. ↑ Square, Push (April 1, 2024). "UK Sales Charts: South Park: Snow Day Chills with the Bestsellers, Rise of the Ronin Falls". Push Square. Retrieved October 13, 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.