Warm Snow for Windows

Slick action roguelike based on Chinese mythology

Warm Snow is a premium action game by developer BadMudStudio. It is an isometric roguelike adventure that takes place in a dark fantasy Asian setting. In it, players will set out to find the truth behind a mysterious phenomenon that has blanketed the world in perpetual snow.

Similar to Hades, Warm Snow will have players journey through multiple biomes, each one featuring unique environments and enemies. They will utilize a roguelike system that provides randomized perks and bonuses, making each playthrough unique and different. A demo version is available to let them get the feel of the gameplay.

Eternal frost

Warm Snow takes place in a dark, Chinese-inspired fantasy world wherein a mysterious, perpetual warm snow has fallen from the sky. Anyone who breathed this snow would drive them into insanity and turn into a monster. Set in the Longwu Era’s 27th year, you play as Bi-an, and you will embark on a journey to find the truth and save the people.

There are six biomes in this game, each one featuring a set of areas that lead to branching paths. Create a build from three skill trees, change weapons, and take advantage of the Broken debuff to deal higher damage to vulnerable enemies. There are also relics and artifacts that you can equip into four skill slots that provide bonuses, perks, and attributes for each run.

Then, there's the Flying Sword System which allows for more variation during combat. Unleash the Flurry skill to use your flying sword as a ranged projectile, increasing the damage output of your melee attack and granting a one-second Sheath cooldown reduction if the attack hits an enemy. Alternatively, execute the Hidden Strike skill to enjoy a 10% defense boost while releasing a frontal flying sword attack for every melee strike.

The only thing worth noting before you dive in is the localization issue that results in poor translations of the text in this title, which makes playing the game a little difficult to understand at times.

Take up your sword and continue the journey

Warm Snow features two DLCs: the free-to-download Ash of Nightmare and the premium The End of Karma. Released in November 2022, Ash of Nightmare DLC is a continuation of the base game’s ending, with Bi-an now imprisoned in the Nightmare World. 

In the Nightmare World, you must keep an eye out for their Lucid points as they gradually decrease while you’re in that place — potentially leading to your untimely demise if you have no points left. On top of the new Nightmare skills and NPC skins, the DLC also features three true and false endings — bringing a total of six endings — as well as five never-before-seen bosses. 

Meanwhile, the End of Karma DLC — which came out in December 2023 — follows Bi-an’s return to his now-corrupted Dragon Realm after the warrior’s decade-long slumber and entrapment in the Nightmare World. The content also digs deeper into the game’s intricate lore, so players can learn more about the five clans.

In addition to six menacing bosses and three endings, the DLC boasts an exclusive talent tree and talent system, a customizable talisman system, and new sects — Solar and Lunar, Yama Buddha, and Soul Blade Shura. 

Hell freezes over

Roguelikes are at an all-time high in popularity lately, and it is hard to understand the reasons why. They combine fast-paced action, intriguing narratives, and challenging but rewarding combat. Warm Snow is a great example of an action roguelike done right. It is well worth trying out if you're a fan of the genre despite some localization issues. You'll be glad that you did—it really is that good.