Designer / Publisher / Year: Fernando Eduardo Sanchez / 2Tomatoes Games / 2024
Player Count / Playtime: 1-4 Players / 45-90 mins
Genre / Type / Mechanics: Worker Placement, Events, Travel, Grid Movement, Personal Board Management, Adventure, Exploration
Kickstarter Components: The Kickstarter edition of Through Ice and Snow comes with a handful of upgraded and bonus components that elevate the experience. It includes metal versions of key items like coins, a helm token, and a ship miniature, along with upgraded screen-printed wooden pieces for things like dogs and other tokens. There’s also a Big Box for storing everything together, plus additional solo scenario content and various stretch goal extras like extra cards and minor gameplay additions. Overall, it’s the same core game, just with more premium components and a bit of extra content mixed in.
Through Ice and Snow is a game that really stands out for how well it pulls you into its world. You and your group take on the role of explorers attempting to navigate the Arctic and chart a path through the Northwest Passage, all while trying to become the most accomplished member of the expedition.
What makes it stand out is that you actually feel the journey. This isn’t just exploration, it’s survival. You’re dealing with harsh conditions, limited resources, and constant pressure to keep your crew alive while still pushing forward. The story naturally unfolds through gameplay, and it creates those moments where things start going wrong and everyone at the table feels it.
At its core, the game is a worker placement and resource management system. You’re assigning specialists, like your captain, scientist, and carpenter, along with crew members to take actions such as gathering food, repairing equipment, exploring, or advancing the expedition. But space is tight, resources are scarce, and players can block each other, so you’re constantly having to adapt your plan.
There’s also this interesting shared expedition element. You’re all technically on the same journey, contributing to the movement of the ship and the overall progress, but at the same time you’re competing for prestige. That mix creates a really unique dynamic where cooperation and competition are always colliding.
What I really enjoyed is how tightly the theme and gameplay are connected. Every decision feels grounded in the setting, whether it’s choosing how to spend your limited supplies, deciding when to push forward, or dealing with the consequences when things don’t go your way. The struggle isn’t just mechanical, it feels real.
It also shines with a group. Playing this with others adds tension, interaction, and a shared sense of “we’re in this together… but also not really.” It led to some great moments at the table and made the whole experience more memorable.
Overall, Through Ice and Snow is a highly immersive, thematic game with great production quality and components. It’s not a light, relaxing experience, it’s a tough, strategic journey, but that’s exactly what makes it so satisfying when everything comes together
Score Breakdown
| Category | Description | Score (1–10) |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Aesthetics & Components | Visual design, artwork, tactile quality, and overall presentation. | 9 |
| 2. Rules Clarity & Accessibility | Ease of learning, clarity of rulebook, setup time, and iconography. | 6 |
| 3. Strategic Depth | Amount of meaningful decision-making and long-term planning. | 9 |
| 4. Luck vs. Skill Balance | How fairly chance and skill coexist. | 9 |
| 5. Player Interaction | Engagement and social dynamics between players. | 8 |
| 6. Pacing & Downtime | Flow, engagement, and smoothness of play. | 6 |
| 7. Replayability | Longevity, variability, and continued appeal. | 7 |
| 8. Theme Integration | How well the mechanics and story fit the theme. | 10 |
| 9. Enjoyment & Emotional Impact | Pure fun factor-excitement, tension, satisfaction. | 8 |
| 10. Innovation & Uniqueness | Creativity, originality, and distinctiveness from other games. | 6 |
| Final Average Score | 7.80 / 10 | |
Verdict: A tense, immersive Arctic expedition that blends strong theme, meaningful decisions, and great table presence into a memorable group experience.
Reviewed on 04/19/2026