Santa Gets A Shotgun

Santa Gets A Shotgun is an independent first-person shooter where you step into the boots of Santa Claus, who arms himself with a shotgun to repel an invasion of evil snowmen in a small town. It was developed by Hertzole and first released on December 16, 2018.

Set during Christmas, the FPS features a minimalist interface, chaotic survival-style gameplay reminiscent of Call of Duty Zombies in short sessions, and a retro aesthetic inspired by late 1990s low-poly 3D games. Its voxel-based visuals also make us remember titles such as Minecraft and Total Miner.

Published by Hertzole himself, Santa Gets A Shotgun is available for free for Windows, Mac, and Linux. The game spawned a series, being followed by Santa Gets A Tower (2019) and Santa Gets A Shotgun 2 (2023), at least up to the date of this publication.

Videos

This is a gameplay with no commentaries of Santa Gets A Shotgun.

This let’s play is one of the primary sources of this post.

Gameplay

Santa Gets A Shotgun is a survival FPS in which the Jolly Old Man must face increasingly challenging waves of enemies while accumulating points to upgrade his offensive and defensive capabilities. Each match takes place in a low-poly urban environment with elevated structures that can be used as tactical advantages.

The player controls Santa armed with a pump-action shotgun whose efficiency can be enhanced through an upgrade system that improves damage, accuracy (reducing pellet spread), fire rate, reload speed, ammo capacity, and grenade propagation. Points are earned by defeating enemies and can be spent at any time in the in-match shop to get the enhancements.

The arsenal includes grenades with a unique mechanic: once thrown, they can generate multiple secondary explosions depending on the grenade-spread upgrade level. At maximum level, this allows large groups of enemies to be wiped out simultaneously, functioning similarly to a large-area attack.

The game features several enemy types, including humanoid creatures, snowmen, and explosive variants that detonate upon death. Some enemies are capable of ranged attacks with firearms. Damage taken by the player is high even in early waves, and hit feedback is mostly limited to sound effects, offering few visual cues when Santa is struck.

Pickups appear on the map as wrapped presents, which may restore health or offer other benefits. The player also has access to a double-jump ability, assisting with rapid repositioning and escape from dangerous situations. Strategies such as grouping enemies into a train—similar to Call of Duty Zombies—can be used to optimize damage output and resource management.

Waves become progressively more numerous and aggressive, introducing tougher enemies and more frequent attacks. Santa Gets A Shotgun does not feature a defined final objective: the game is over when the player is defeated, and performance depends on efficient resource management, positioning, and upgrade pacing throughout the match.

Synopsis

The town has been overrun by evil snowmen! All the citizens are too scared to go outside during the Christmas season! Only Santa and his trusty shotgun can save them!

Play solo or with friends and save the town from the evil snowmen by collecting points and upgrading your trusty shotgun!

Trivia

• Santa Gets A Shotgun was built over the Unity Engine.
• The developer, Hertzole, is Swedish. He began his career in 2014 and, besides creating games, also produces Unity-compatible tools and assets “as a way of giving back to the community”. If you’re interested, his official website showcases the resources he offers.

Screenshots

More info and Christmas-themed shooters

• Hertzole – Official developer’s site.
• Santa Gets A Shotgun @ Gaming Room – Source, with more info and media. In Portuguese.
• Santa Gets A Shotgun @ Game Jolt – Alternative download link (all platforms available).
• Precise Cannon
• Santa Kills Zombies 2
• Gibbets: Santa In Trouble
• Save Santa Claus
• Snowball Fight
• Slenderman Must Die - Silent Streets
• Super Penguins - Christmas Island