Do you remember whenSnow Bros. Wonderlandwas announced, a new 3D entry in Toaplan’sSnow Bros.arcade series? It was really unexpected. Well, ithas a release date now. Clear River Games says it’s coming June 03, 2025 to PS4, PS5, and Switch. No PC? Curiouser.
Part of what makes this really unusual is thatSnow Bros.isn’t the best-remembered arcade game you could make a latter-day sequel to. I have a slight fondness for it owed partially to encounters with it in my youth, but even I wasn’t asking for a new one. Therewas a remake/remasterof the first game released in 2022, which kind of affirmed that it’s fine. It’s okay. It isn’tBubble Bobble, but it isn’t a complete waste of your quarters in the arcade, either.
Snow Bros. Wonderlanddoesn’t even seem all that related to the arcade games. You play as either Nick or Tom and the main combat mechanic is rolling up snowballs, so that’s not nothing, but it’s a lot less arcade and more PS1. There’s a lot of very familiar-looking collecting and platforming.
That’s not to say it’s definitely going to be terrible. It’s in the margin of murkiness where the antiquated graphics and gameplay could belie some enjoyable gameplay. I do enjoy those early 3D platformers. It’s just such a strange sequel. There were a lot of casualties that came from trying to shift 2D formulas to 3D, and this looks so evocative of that era. If you told me this is a remaster of a canceled N64 game, I’d wander off to do my research.
Yeah, I’m curious. Whether or not I have time to get around to it in November remains to be seen. In the meantime, we’re still waiting on theSnow Bros. 2remaster.
Snow Bros. Wonderlandwill arrive on PS4, PS5, and Switch on June 12, 2025.
