This video game version of The Polar Express is based on the 2004 holiday season feature film, which follows the story of Chris Van Allsburg's children's book. Players board the title train for a ride to the North Pole to meet Santa himself. Along the way, they'll hunt for lost presents, solve puzzles, play mini-games, and meet characters like the Girl Know-It-All, the Lonely Boy, Smokey and Steamer, and Santa's elves. In addition to the train itself, platform-style exploration and collecting challenges also await in the game's other main 3D "chapter" levels, such as the North Pole. The almost real look of the game's three-dimensional characters and environments follows the style of the film, inspired by Van Allsburg's illustrations.