Snowbll Docs

Set up Snowbll in minutes.

Everything here assumes nothing: if you've never installed a developer tool before, start at the top and follow the steps in order. And if you don't want to install anything at all — that's fine, Snowbll works in the browser and over plain HTTP too.

Connect an AI agent No-install options

Paste this into any AI agent

Prepares an MCP-capable agent for the Snowbll developer preview.

Agent setup prompt

Set up the Snowbll MCP server for an AI agent.

Recommended — the hosted server (no install, no key — one-time OAuth sign-in):
1. Add the remote MCP server at https://www.snowbll.com/api/mcp.
   In Claude Code: claude mcp add --transport http snowbll https://www.snowbll.com/api/mcp
2. Trigger the connection (in Claude Code, run /mcp) and complete the one-time OAuth sign-in in the browser — no key to paste. Persona access uses the persona.read scope.
3. Verify with a read-only search_games call, e.g. "economy sim like Lemonade Tycoon with a deep economy".

Alternative — a local stdio server (needs Node.js 18+ and an API key; run "snowbll login" to mint one, or ask the Snowbll team for a developer-preview key):
1. Install and run setup, pasting the key when asked:
npm install snowbll-mcp
npx snowbll-mcp setup
2. Add this MCP server to the agent's MCP config:
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "snowbll": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "snowbll-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "SNOWBLL_API_KEY": "sb_YOUR_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}
   CLI shortcut: claude mcp add snowbll -- npx -y snowbll-mcp
3. Restart the agent, then verify with a search_games call.

Notes:
- Catalog and Forge tools are free for any connected agent; reading your persona uses the persona.read scope you approve.
- The live public search API is POST https://snowbll.com/api/search and needs no key.

Get started

Create your account

Go to snowbll.com/signup.
Sign up with email and password, or continue with Google or Discord.
That's it — the starting rank (Traveler) is free, and one account works across the marketplace, The Forge, the community, and these docs.

You only need an account for personalized features (your persona, backing campaigns, posting). Searching the catalog works without one.

Get started

Choose how you'll use Snowbll

There are three ways in, and installing anything is optional:

Path	Install needed?	Status
The website — search, persona, The Forge	Nothing to install	Live
An AI agent via MCP (`snowbll-mcp`)	One npm package	Developer preview
Plain HTTP — call the search API from any tool	Nothing to install	Live

If you just want to find games, use snowbll.com and skip the rest of this tab. The sections below are for connecting an AI agent or calling the API.

Connect an AI agent

Auth & API keys

Searching the catalog is free and needs no key. Connecting an AI agent or calling the keyed v1 API uses a developer-preview API key (issued by the Snowbll team to preview participants) — the same sb_ key works for both the MCP server and direct HTTP, in one of two ways:

API key header (HTTP)

curl https://www.snowbll.com/api/v1/games \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sb_YOUR_API_KEY"

MCP env (deployed agents)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "snowbll": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "snowbll-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "SNOWBLL_API_KEY": "sb_YOUR_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}

No API URL to configure — the server and CLI default to https://www.snowbll.com. Keep preview keys server-side or in trusted local agent config; never put a key in browser code, a public repo, or a shared transcript.

Connect an AI agent

One-paste setup

The card below is a complete setup prompt. Copy it, paste it into your AI agent (Claude Code, Claude Desktop, or any MCP-capable agent), and the agent walks itself through the installation.

Click Copy on the agent setup prompt card.
Paste it into a chat with your agent.
When the agent asks for a key, paste your developer-preview API key (issued by the Snowbll team to preview participants).
Restart the agent so it picks up the new MCP server.

Developer preview. This surface is not generally available yet; names, fields, auth, and quotas may change before launch. The live, no-key endpoint is documented under Search.

Connect an AI agent

Manual configuration

Two ways in. The hosted server needs no install and no key — your agent signs in once over OAuth. Or run the local stdio package if you'd rather self-host the process.

Hosted server (recommended)

claude mcp add --transport http snowbll https://www.snowbll.com/api/mcp

Then run /mcp and sign in when the browser opens — no key to paste. Any remote-MCP client works the same way: add a custom connector pointed at https://www.snowbll.com/api/mcp and complete the OAuth sign-in. Catalog and Forge tools work for any connected agent; reading your persona uses the persona.read scope you approve.

Prefer a local stdio server? You'll need Node.js 18 or newer (node -v; install from nodejs.org) and an API key — run snowbll login to mint one, or ask the Snowbll team for a developer-preview key.

Install the stdio server

npm install snowbll-mcp
npx snowbll-mcp setup

Then register the server in your agent's MCP configuration (the file or settings screen where your agent lists its MCP servers):

MCP config (stdio + key)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "snowbll": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "snowbll-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "SNOWBLL_API_KEY": "sb_YOUR_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}

Agents with a CLI shortcut can use one line instead: claude mcp add snowbll -- npx -y snowbll-mcp.

Connect an AI agent

Verify it works

Restart your agent, then ask it something a player would ask:

Try it

Use search_games to find: "economy sim like Lemonade Tycoon with a deep economy"

A working setup returns a short list of candidates, each with reasons explaining the match. If it doesn't:

Tool not found — the agent didn't reload its MCP config; restart it fully.
Auth error — the key was pasted wrong or revoked; re-run npx snowbll-mcp setup with a valid preview key.
`node` not found — install Node.js first (see Manual configuration).

Connect an AI agent

The snowbll CLI

Prefer the terminal? The snowbll CLI ships in the same package and talks to the live Snowbll API directly — sign in once, then search, inspect games, and read your persona from the shell. Add --json to any command for scriptable output.

Install + sign in

npm install -g snowbll-mcp
snowbll login     # signs in and stores an sb_ key in ~/.snowbll/config.json
snowbll whoami

Everyday commands

snowbll search "economy sim like Lemonade Tycoon"
snowbll game <id>
snowbll persona
snowbll forge --status live
snowbll keys list

Already hold a key? Skip the browser login with snowbll setup (it validates an existing sb_ key), or set SNOWBLL_API_KEY in your environment for CI.

No install needed

Use the API directly

The search endpoint is live and needs no key — any tool that can send an HTTP request can use Snowbll today:

One request, no setup

curl -s -X POST https://snowbll.com/api/search \
  -H "content-type: application/json" \
  -d '{"query": "cozy farming sim with deep crafting"}'

Full request/response details live in the developer tab: Search.

No install needed

Troubleshooting

Setup steps fail halfway — run them one at a time and read the first error, not the last.
Behind a corporate proxy, npm install may need your proxy configured first.
Still stuck? Ask in the community — the Snowbll Discord is linked in the site footer.