South Park now has 26 seasons and number 27 is already in the starting blocks. Accordingly, there are also a number of video games that have reached a peak with the RPGs Stick of Truth (2014) and The Fractured But Whole (2017). This year there is now a multiplayer PvE title from Question and THQ Nordic South Park Snow Day. We therefore took a closer look at the PC version.
Snow in Colorado's South Park
The intro shows us Cartman fervently hoping that a gigantic snowstorm will cause a so-called snow day (i.e. closed schools) in South Park. His prayers are answered and so he has at least a day of fun and games in store. This intro could easily have appeared in the series and it catches fans off well. There is also a permanent reference to the above-mentioned RPGs, because the player character is once again “the new kid”. And because that new kid was pretty overpowered in Stick of Truth and The Fractured But Whole, the kids from South Park came up with new rules for their live action role playing stories.
This time the player is only allowed to take two special attacks and a handful of special rules in the form of cards into battle. And more importantly, Snow Day is no longer an RPG, but an action bludgeoning of opponents. The whole thing is controlled in the 3rd person perspective. You initially put together your new kid with a decent character generator, which you can then adjust later as you unlock more items of clothing with in-game currency.
Fart Jokes und PP Coins
After you are equipped with two swords and a bow and arrow, you have to fight through the snowy South Park. Along the way you'll see details like the school bus or Mr. Mackey trapped behind ice at school. Until then, the whole thing is still enjoyable, although the graphics are not impressive, even by South Park standards. The only exciting things here are the big special attacks, which are strictly limited, and sometimes the boss fights.
But then the fighting against kindergarten children and other known factions begins. And that just doesn't feel good. The close combat doesn't go beyond button mashing and you have problems staying focused on the opponent. At the same time, the opponents are always in the majority because you are only in a group of four. This group of four can either be filled with bots or consist entirely of human players. The latter is highly recommended, as the AI isn't particularly clever. At least you'll be revived quickly if you go down.
In addition to the standard melee combat, you can use special attacks like a fart jump (this is South Park after all) or a healing totem that distributes snacks. These skills bring a touch of tactics into the game, as you can of course coordinate in co-op. Also practical when the opponents play the so-called bullshit cards, where, for example, you no longer do any damage in close or long-range combat or carry bombs with you and should definitely not walk next to each other.
In the course of the fights you will then receive toilet paper, PP coins and Dark Matter. The former is intended for individual runs for upgrading, PP Coins, on the other hand, pay for new Cosmectics and Dark Matter ultimately pays for permanent upgrades between runs.
Just an average South Park episode
And yes, you heard right, there is no continuous world, but you are thrown into individual runs in which you have to stop Stan Marsh, for example, in the “Marshlands” because you suspect he is responsible for the snowstorm. The framework story describes the search for the cause of the freak weather. There's even a little twist towards the end, which of course we won't tell you for spoiler reasons. Overall, the story takes a back seat while playing as you have to fend off masses of enemies that range in difficulty from ridiculously easy to “oh I'm dead.” There is a little variety when, for example, you have to find bowling balls as ammunition or used condoms to repair a catapult on the battlefield. There are also permanent unlocks for completing smaller tasks such as setting several enemies on fire at the same time or upgrading a skill, which loosen things up a bit.
But no matter how you twist and turn it, neither the story, which is a comparatively very average South Park episode, nor the gameplay make you jump for joy. But there are original speakers who skillfully do their job as usual from the series. But that and a few laughs at Randy or Cartman's insults when you get hit by an archer don't disguise the chaotic combat, monotonous gameplay and overall clunky controls.
The idea is good, the execution is not
That's such a shame because the basic idea of South Park Snow Day sounds promising. You take the concept of RPGs, add a co-op hack'n'slay to it and offer upgrade routes like those known from roguelites. Unfortunately, these upgrades are not earth-shattering, the fights as described above are chaotic and not demandingly dynamic, and the atmosphere of the RPGs fades into the background. There is also no PvP, which would actually have been an option, although we have to admit that the balancing would have been a nightmare for the developers.
And then the small size of the game comes into play. You can get through the entire game in 4-6 hours on the normal difficulty level. There is then the option to increase the difficulty level by unlocking new cosmetics. But that doesn't change the fact that the levels remain the same. At the time of release there will be a free DLC that integrates a horde mode that extends the playing time a little. But since this mode consists entirely of the game's weakness, fighting, that's not exactly a good argument for the game. There will be a Season Pass, included in the Deluxe Edition for €50 (the Standard Edition costs €30 on Steam), which will add an additional two weapons to the existing six, as well as another mode. This also includes new cosmetics. However, it doesn't seem entirely clear here how price and performance should balance each other out.
Conclusion
Unfortunately, South Park – Snow Day is not convincing on any level. The typical South Park humor is simply not enough here because we simply didn't enjoy the game. Slaughtering enemies without rhyme or reason isn't necessarily any more fun in co-op and doesn't really require any skill. It didn't matter whether we were in the first or the last mission: button mashing was our friend, not tactics. Even die-hard South Park fans should consider whether they want to shell out the €30 for the standard edition.
Positive
Original speakers and South Park jokes create the right atmosphere. Allusions and details for fans come before connection to the two RPG parts online co-op for up to four players
Negative
The gameplay is repetitive and is largely limited to slaughtering a horde of opponents. Extremely short story time. Progression system does not offer any exciting upgrades. The controls and the look and feel when fighting are clunky. The AI competitors are stupid