Snowfall Over Mountains Review

boardgamequest.com:

As I write this review, we’re headed into the first days of winter, but the temperature outside is hot and sweltering as an early summer afternoon. It’s a shame because I love to relax on a bitingly cold day. The air is crisp enough to feel the chill, but the soporific heat from a blanket or a fire keeps you comfortable, and a steaming cup of tea or cocoa ties those sensations together in a delightful, non-denominational bow.

Those cold, cozy days are the perfect setting for a cold, cozy game like Snowfall Over Mountains–unfortunately, the climate being as it is, l have to settle for playing in the oppressive heat. I’ll try not to let it impact my rating…

Snowfall Over Mountains is a tile-laying game for 1 player, and plays in 10-15 minutes.

In Snowfall Over Mountains, your goal is to create a harmonious winter landscape, while also maintaining a clean network of paths through the expanding wilderness. The woods start with a single domino tile representing your cabin, and each turn, you play one of two tiles from your hand, extending those woods in any direction. Alternatively, you may use the ability of one of your tool cards (randomly dealt during setup), which provides unique abilities to alter the landscape–swapping tiles, drawing extra tiles into your hand, etc.

There are no restrictions on tile placement, but there are a number of incentives you’ll want to keep in mind. Tiles may contain any combination of five distinct features (bear and rabbit tracks, bushes, ponds, and trees), and during setup, you set out a randomized scoring objective for each feature. Additionally, some tiles have walking paths snaking across them, and at game end, you will lose points for paths that don’t lead back to your cabin. Finally, while you can use your tools for their special power, you may also choose to keep them, which provides bonus points at game end.

Once all the tiles in the deck have been played, you tally up the points earned and lost from the objective cards, and