In the spirit of the season, Santa’s Present Run is a game about delivering presents to the children of the world. As you fly along in Santa’s sleigh, your goal is to drop gifts down the chimneys of the houses you fly over. It might sound easy but Santa’s job is no cake walk. It’s a side scrolling game that sort of feels like it pays tribute to the PC games one played as a kid, with simple graphics and somewhat challenging gameplay that has a way of keeping you playing.
Santa’s Present Run is a casual arcade game compatible with pretty much any Android device that runs Android 2.3 and up, which at this point in time is virtually everything. All you need to get started with delivering gifts is download Santa’s Present Run from the Play Store.
The game includes a few different level difficulties for you to try your hand at, and there is also a little “how to play” guide to get you familiar with the game’s controls.
The gameplay and controls are fairly simple, your goal is to drop the presents in Santa’s giant bag onto the matching houses as you pass over them. You can see the next gift that’s going to pop up in the bottom bar of the screen which also lists other game details like how many gifts you’ve dropped and how many lives you have left.
The gifts are matched up with houses by design instead of color, making it simple for everyone to play whether colorblind or not, which was kind of a cool touch.
As you fly in the dead of night through a winter wonderland while children are fast asleep, you’ll encounter gifts falling from the sky, along with candies and gingerbread cookies to gain extra points and little Santa icons which give you extra lives.
Gifts are not the only things to watch out for though as the element of challenge is presented in the form of crows that are attempting to steal the gifts belonging to the good children of the world.
Avoiding the gift thieving birds and moving to collect gifts or other items is controlled by simply tapping on the area of the screen in the direction you want Santa to fly. No virtual d-pads or buttons. To drop gifts you simply have to double tap the screen when you’re over the house that matches the gift.
There are 30 unlockable levels each with an easy, medium and hard difficulty to power through, and there are 4 Christmas tracks included that play in the background during the game.
Lovers of simple arcade games will be able to appreciate Santa’s Present Run as it delivers a heaping helping of nostalgia. I found the controls a little awkward at first but then after reading the how to play description I got a much better hang of things. I do enjoy a more complex game normally but a simpler game which can be played rather casually is sometimes the best route. You might not have the ability to focus all your attention on a game and Santa’s Present Run provides that capability to play without having to focus too hard on stories or combat.
Ratings
- Speed (4/5) – Since this is a casual game you shouldn’t expect any issues running it on even some of the oldest devices. The game played smoothly and ran just fine on my Xperia Z3.
- Features (4/5) – Santa’s Present Run gives a simple set of goals in a casual setting allowing anyone to pick up and play for a few a minutes or an hour., and then challenge themselves to a harder difficulty if they find things too easy.
- Theme (4/5) – The graphics may be a little more simple but that’s part of what gives Santa’s Present run some charm. It makes you feel like you’re playing the games you enjoyed while growing up.
- overall (4/5) – A nice little game for anyone who wants casual play and especially for lovers of the Christmas season.
Pros
- Three difficulty levels for beginners or vets
- how to guide explaining the controls of the game
- Christmas music to accompany the gameplay and add a level of immersion
- takes advantage of full screen immersion mode
Cons
- Would like to have seen the How To guide pop up in game instead
- Sometimes controls felt like they were getting stuck, causing Santa to remain in place
Santa’s Present Run is a good little casual game that offers enjoyment to anyone who loves Christmas and needs a game they can pick up and play for a few minutes. You also can’t help but feel cheery as you’re flying around delivering gifts. The birds can feel a bit challenging at first too, which was nice that it wasn’t immediately easy to bypass them.