When did Snow Bros. release?

Snow Bros. was first released on April 1, 1990.

Snow Bros.

Apr 1, 1990PlatformArcadeArcadeSega Mega Drive/Genesis Game Boy Nintendo Entertainment SystemAndroid

Snow Bros. — frequently asked questions

What platforms is Snow Bros. on?: Snow Bros. was released on Arcade, Sega Mega Drive/Genesis, Game Boy, Nintendo Entertainment System, Android, iOS.
When did Snow Bros. release?: Snow Bros. was first released on April 1, 1990.

About Snow Bros.

The gameplay of Snow Bros is similar to Bubble Bobble, released in 1986. The game supports up to two players, with each player taking the part of one of two snowmen Nick and Tom. Each player can throw snow at the enemies. The player must throw snow at each enemy until it is completely covered, when it turns into a snowball. An enemy partially covered in snow cannot move until it shakes it off. Once an enemy has been turned into a snowball, the player can roll it. The snowball will re-bound off walls, until eventually shattering against a wall. Any enemies the snowball rolls into are eliminated and other stationary snowballs start rolling when the rolling snowball touches them. If the player manages to take out all of the enemies with kicking one snowball (this one snowball may be used to make others bounce around as well and increase the chances to pull this trick off), money in the form of large green bills will fall from the sky. These disappear in a very short amount of time but are worth 10,000 points each, the most the player can get as a bonus. Every tenth level there is a boss. Each boss can sustain being hit a number of times. In Sega Genesis port, after the 50th level, you play as one of the snow castle princesses. When a player bowls an enemy over, it may drop a potion bottle. The color of the potion lets the player know what special power-up he or she will acquire.

Summary via IGDB.

Game details

Platforms: Arcade, Sega Mega Drive/Genesis, Game Boy, Nintendo Entertainment System, Android, iOS
Developer: Toaplan
Publisher: Toaplan
Game modes: Single player, Co-operative
Themes: Action

Details via IGDB.

Reception

IGDB rating

74/100

from 46 ratings

Every version compared

Prices, contemporary reception and the studio credited for each release

Platform	Year	Loose	Complete	Sealed	Fake risk
Sega Genesis	1993	$369	$1,526	—	Medium

Also released on: Arcade · Sega Mega Drive/Genesis · Game Boy · Nintendo Entertainment System · Android · iOS. We haven’t priced or authenticated those versions yet.

Collector value & authenticity

Sega Genesis · PriceCharting sold data · Verified 2026-10-29

Loose

$369

few sales

Complete

$1,526

Sealed

—

How often it sells

Loose: about once a year
Complete: about 2 times a year
Sealed: rarely — fewer than one recorded sale a year

Prices marked “few sales” rest on about one recorded sale a year, so treat them as a rough guide: the next copy could sell well above or below. Expect to wait for one to come up.

Sales frequency from PriceCharting's completed-sale records, as of 2026-10-29.

Price over time

Loose
Complete

A loose copy sold for about $1,400 in Jan 2021, $1,400 five years ago, and $369 as of Oct 2026.

Show as table

Month	Loose	Complete
Jan 2021	$1,400	$2,800
Jan 2022	$468	$893
Jan 2023	$325	$931
Jan 2024	$338	$769
Jan 2025	$338	$896
Jan 2026	$373	$1,216
Oct 2026	$369	$1,526

Monthly price estimates from PriceCharting's completed-sale records, sampled quarterly, through Oct 2026.

Release record

Territory	Date	Product number	Barcode
Japan	28 May 1993	T-48083	4991425000101

Source: Product numbers: MAME's Mega Drive software list and the No-Intro serial records in the libretro database, published where both agree on the same cartridge dump, or from the libretro records alone where MAME lists no number for that dump. Board and ROM numbers: MAME's software list

Region: JP
Released: 1993
Authenticity: Med

Modern re-releases, such as Sega Ages, the Genesis Mini and Nintendo Switch Online, are not tracked hereMedium counterfeit risk

Sega Genesis prices, all games & how to spot a fake

A faithful Toaplan arcade conversion that exists only as a Japanese cart, and one of the priciest Japanese carts.

Snow Bros. is the Mega Drive version of Toaplan's arcade platformer, in which two snowman twins, Nick and Tom, roll enemies up in snowballs. Tengen released it only in Japan, on 28 May 1993, and Toaplan developed it themselves. It is included on both the Japanese and Asian versions of the Sega Genesis Mini.

Gamefan, previewing the Mega Drive game, said Toaplan had done a great job converting it with the humor and originality of the arcade game, and that two players is the way to play.

What the press said at the time

“In short, one of the best Jap import games we've seen in many a month, and I think this is a very worthy buy indeed.”
— MegaTech, July 1993

How the Sega Genesis version differs

GameFan praised the Mega Drive conversion as a faithful translation of the arcade game, noting it kept the humor and originality of the original.

Also on other platforms

Arcade · Game Boy · NES · Android · iOS

Arcade. The original arcade game was developed and published by Toaplan for Japanese arcades and distributed by Romstar in North America and Europe.
NES. The NES port changed the story: King Scorch turns Nick and Tom into snowmen and captures the princess twins Teri and Tina.

Before you buy

Among Japan-only carts this is one of the priciest, and the risk tier is Med, so ask for a clear photo of the board before you pay. A Japanese cartridge has a different shape from a Western one and needs an adapter, or two plastic tabs removed from a Western console's slot.