There are so many hangout, idle type of games that I fear there’s a lack of connection with other gamers that isn’t solely headshots and jokes about their mums. At the same time, I’m not an online gamer (typically for the reasons mentioned), so when I found that Sledding Game, not Sledders, is an open world online hangout title, I had mixed opinions. If I had paid attention to that, I probably wouldn’t have opted to cover this; however, I’m pleased I did.
What I expected was a simple snowboarding-type experience on a sled, maintaining high speeds and getting some gnarly jumps, either coming first and/or performing the best moves. A funny-looking frog was also on the horizon, though nothing much beyond that. So, when asked if I want to enable voice and text chat, immediately selecting no; the only other options were to start as a host or join. Regrets kicking in, I went for the biggest host that wasn’t the numerous two-person only examples on offer.
However, these expectations of hardcore, abusive gamers did not immediately present themselves as Sledding Game was very much that hangout aspect of socialising online with some new friends, or actually going off and doing as you please. I withheld from the latter and loitered around, taking note of the very high numbers required to purchase a plethora of goods such as hats, scarves, funny faces and custom sleds. Alright, maybe it’s not so bad, this social interaction malarky.
Another ‘however’, I was here to sled and as welcoming as the lodge is with some laid back folk, I wanted to go off for a slide. As stated, you can do as you please in Sledding Game, similar to The Coin Game, so I did. Initially, I jumped on a chair lift with the first tutorial pop-ups telling me to press A. I did that and dropped off the chair lift, flat on my froggy face. That’s alright. I dusted off the snow, pressed L3 and then hoped for the best as I slid down back to the lodge. It was quite an adrenaline rush – not due to the speed, but because there’s no real input besides barely steering left and right and hoping for the best.
With the chair lift my main objective, I’d managed to remain still and got to the top to repeat the same thing again. This time it was a little better, though you can’t prompt a jump or any tricks. You essentially head straight and get bonus points for maintaining speed, spinning, air, and moving about in the air as gracefully as possible. If you connect these and don’t bail, you keep the points and can exchange them for customisations. Those high numbers I mentioned? Not so high after all, and very achievable.
Sledding Game is incredibly cute and welcoming on so many levels, though it adds something very real to it, and no, it isn’t the physics. What goes up must come down, but to get up takes time. Like in real life, the rush from descending is thrilling, though you have to put your time into climbing that hill. Sure, the chair lifts are there, yet the time it takes to go up, to come down is even quicker, which is frustrating. That’s actual physics, not The Sledding Corporation’s game, so aside from the scenic views, stopping to pose with a very cool camera app that lets you lock the camera and move your froggy about is ace, you can go for a wander again and try something else.
Like Ludde, you can play side games throughout – ideally with a friend, such as a beanbag tossing game, which is apparently called Cornhole. I’d rather not say what my understanding of the term is. Another excellent feature is rolling a snowball and lobbing at passersby on the chair lift. Don’t knock it, it’s very rewarding. Interestingly, though, it’s all the other bits that make Sledding Game more fun than the actual sledding as that part is hit and miss, and ragdolling is often more fun.
The real charm is the cute lil’ frog and his bum. Frogs do nothing for me, despite some decent titles of late, but this is one of the best – especially with all the customisations that really are a lot of fun to experiment with. And on that note, you can change from a frog into something else, as my daughter immediately found out, switching to a bear. She face planted after a few lengthy climbs and decided she was going to spin repeatedly on the ice. See, you can make your own fun in this hangout experience. Bollocks to Roblox, give Sledding Game a look instead.
