Santa Gets A Shotgun

Santa Gets A Shotgun is a free and quirky survival FPS for PC (Windows, Mac and Linux) where each run drops you into a small low-poly town overrun by hostile snowmen and other strange holiday creatures.

Developed by Swedish creator Hertzole and first released in December 2018, this retro-styled FPS puts you in Santa’s boots during a very unconventional Christmas Eve. Think Call of Duty Zombies, but with a voxel Santa and a pump-action shotgun. Your only goal is to survive as long as possible while upgrading your weapon and abilities between waves.

This is small indie surprise is worth checking out, especially if you feel the need to shoot evil snowmen with Saint Nick…with a shotgun. The game runs on the Unity Engine and uses a chunky voxel aesthetic that feels like a mix between late-90s low-poly shooters and more recent blocky games like Minecraft or Total Miner. It has two follow-ups so far, Santa Gets A Tower (2019) and Santa Gets A Shotgun 2 (2023). Maybe we get these here too.

Contents

Video
About the game
How it plays
Screenshots
More info and FPS
Download Santa Claus Gets a Shotgun
Alternative download link

Video

About the game

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!

How it plays

This is a fun and kinda weird Christmas shooter with retro low-poly aesthetics and wave-based survival gameplay where you shoot some snowmen and call it a festive workout. You start with a basic shotgun, but defeating enemies earns points you can use to upgrade almost anything:

damage
accuracy (tightens pellet spread)
reload speed
fire rate
ammo capacity
grenade spread

The grenade system is one of the funniest parts: upgraded explosive multiply into more grenades, creating chain explosions that wipe out entire waves. Max it out and Santa basically becomes a holiday-themed tactical nuke.

There are different enemy types too—regular humanoids, snowmen, explosive variants, and even ranged attackers that break the “only Santa gets a gun” rule. They hit hard, and since damage feedback is minimal, staying alive depends a lot on movement and awareness.

Presents appear as pickups that restore health or offer bonuses, and you also get double jump, which helps when you need quick escapes or want to fight from rooftops. As waves progress, enemies become tougher and more aggressive. There’s no final objective—the run ends when Santa goes down.