Two years ago, British broadcaster Channel 4 released a mobile game for The Snowman and the Snowdog, its sequel to the classic Christmas animation. A year later, it released a new version – this time free to play, with in-app purchases.

Now, in December 2014, the game has returned in a third incarnation, and this time it’s switching back to a pay-upfront model. The Snowman & The Snowdog 2014 was released this week for iPhone, iPad and Android devices.

So, it’s an updated version of the 2012 game, if you like. Except now children get to swoop over a lot more of the world: San Francisco, Japan, China and Australia, as well as London. That means they’ll see The Snowman (and Snowdog, of course) fly over the Great Wall of China, Sydney Opera House, the Golden Gate Bridge and other landmarks.

The gameplay remains the same: flying – or walking, if you insist – in the air collecting snowflakes as you go, to increase the time you have to stay floating. The game is accompanied by tunes from the film’s soundtrack, and the visuals are absolutely spot-on in their faithfulness to the film’s instantly-recognisable animations – which in turn hark back to the very first film of The Snowman.

2013’s freemium game has been removed from the app stores, so this is presumably a decision by Channel 4 to return to a pay-upfront model for one of its most famous children’s brands. We certainly think the game is worth paying three quid for.

The Snowman & The Snowdog 2014 costs £2.99 for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, and £2.99 for Android from the Google Play Store.