We had the opportunity to play through Moomintroll: Winter’s Warmth and found it to be absolutely wonderful. Read on to find out more!
I’ve had limited experience with The Moomins, my only previous encounter being with the 2024 video game Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley. Moomintroll: Winter’s Warmth is a spiritual sequel to that game and it takes place at the start of the winter season when young Moomintroll is meant to be going to sleep for the winter with his parents.
Moomintroll: Winter’s Warmth
Developed by: Hyper Games
Platform: PC via Steam, Nintendo Switch, and Nintendo Switch 2
Release Date: April 27, 2026
However, when an incident wakes Moomintroll up in the middle of winter, he finds himself thrust into an adventure that will take him all over Moominvalley, which has become a wintry wonderland.
For this review, I played the Nintendo Switch version of the game on Nintendo Switch 2 hardware.
The Story
As mentioned above, Moomintroll: Winter’s Warmth is set when winter has come to Moominvalley. During the winter season, Moomintroll is meant to be sleeping, as are his parents Moominpapa and Moominmana. But while his parents continue to sleep soundly, Moomintroll finds himself woken up in the middle of winter, unable to get back to sleep.
Seeking help, Moomintroll finds his way outside and discovers a landscape totally transformed into a world of snow and ice. With the help of his friend Too-Ticky, Moomintroll sets off on a grand adventure, during the course of which he learns that while winter can be scary, there is nothing to fear from the change of the seasons.
Everything about this game’s story is completely adorable. It’s clearly aimed at a younger audience, but it’s written in such a way that players of all ages can find a lot to enjoy. The game doesn’t shy away from darker topics either, with even death being alluded to at one point in the story. It’s all presented in a way to remind the player that change, even sad change, is a part of life and not something to be afraid of.
The Gameplay
In terms of gameplay, Moomintroll: Winter’s Warmth is a puzzle adventure game. The player controls Moomintroll as they travel across Moominvalley, fulfilling a series of quests that get the player closer to the goal of celebrating Winter with a great bonfire. Along the way, Moomintroll can encounter a variety of “winter spirits” who each need help in a different way. Moomintroll has the option to help all of these spirits, though the game doesn’t require all of those side quests to be completed before the endgame is unlocked.
To complete the quests, Moomintroll has to use a variety of tools that are acquired and subsequently upgraded through the course of the story. If you encounter an obstacle that you don’t have a means of bypassing, that just means you haven’t reached that part of the story yet. The game does an excellent job of providing everything you need when you truly need it and it feels very satisfying when you can race back and finally clear that one obstacle you’ve noticed during several hours of gameplay.
The puzzles in the game are all relatively simple. They’re the type that require pattern recognition and occasionally a bit of patience to solve. For example, one section involves moving across a ledge while alternating gusts of wind blow that will force you to start over if one hits you. It’s the cozy type of puzzle solving where there’s no real stress to finish quickly.
As popular as action games are, it’s nice to visit a cozy game like this one and just spend time running around the forest, collecting firewood and helping other characters out with their tasks. There’s no combat to worry about, no boss fights, in fact the only real “fight” you encounter is a snowball fight. Everything about this game is designed to help you relax and just have fun.
I also love how Moomintroll: Winter’s Warmth there’s such attention to the little details. For instance, as Moomintroll walks through the snow, the path he makes remains, even when you come back to the area much later. Little details like that: paths in the snow, trees that can be removed, all these things and more work to bring Moominvalley to life.
In conclusion, Moomintroll: Winter’s Warmth is one of the most delightful games I’ve ever played and it’s the perfect choice for any gamer looking for a change of pace in their gaming lineup.
