Anyone can build a snowman. A good snowman, though? That requires ice-cold nerves, high-level spatial reasoning, and a dash of love—or so A Good Snowman Is Hard To Build claims. Oh, and look at that: there are hugs!
I bring this upcoming Steam game to your attention largely because it's one of the most quietly adorable (read: not like, LOOK AT ALL THE FURRY THINGS WITH GIANT EYES) games I've seen in ages. Also, in case you hadn't heard, everyone at Kotaku has come down with a serious case of Christmas cheer. It will likely be fatal.
The basic mechanics of A Good Snowman are deceptively simple. You must assemble a snowperson (there are also snow ladies) from three balls of snow. One must be small, one must be medium sized, and one must be large. That, however, is where things get challenging. If a snowball rolls across a snow-covered space, it goes up one size. Meanwhile, each snowperson's tiny, frigid domain has unique confines, many of which are capable of stumping even the most brilliant of snow architects.
Oh, also each snowperson has a name. It's a weirdly endearing touch, seeing your little monster bellow things like, "Garry!" upon completing its project. And then you can GIVE YOUR SNOWPERSON A HUG. Sorry, sorry. It's just too much. I just really wish more games had a hug button.
Based on demos I've played, it's a cool little puzzler with charm warm as any crackling fireplace to compliment its chilly antics. It'll be on Steam "before winter's end," which sounds weirdly ominous for such a gentle game. I'm gonna go ahead and assume it's not gonna be home in time for Christmas, though. Oh well. I suppose that just means a good game about how hard it is to build good snowmen is hard to build.