Back in 2022, I told you about Disney Dreamlight Valley, a game that I highly enjoy. Almost three years later, I still enjoy it - even though a bit of the shine has worn off. I used to blaze my way through all of the quests but now some of the newer quests are difficult, meaning I have to look up a walkthrough to finish it, or tedious, meaning I grow bored of trying to find x number of gemstones. Thankfully, Hello Kitty has arrived to help quell my boredom.
Hello Kitty Island Adventure started out as an Apple Arcade game in 2023. This year, it has been released for the Nintendo Switch and Windows computers via Steam. (Playstation 4 and 5 versions are supposed to come out later this year.) I currently have 64 hours of playtime logged so it is about time I tell you my thoughts.
To start off, I would like to inform you that this is not Hello Kitty’s game. She may be the face of the Sanrio brand but this is My Melody’s game. The entire reason the Sanrio gang drags us to this island is so My Melody can open a shop in a theme park. She is, in fact, the main character. I’m OK with this. Someone besides Hello Kitty deserves the spotlight. If only the game was named after My Melody.
With that said, I do thoroughly enjoy this game. Each of the Sanrio characters has a distinct personality and usefulness on the island. Chococat is a scientist that can help you with puzzle rooms. (More on puzzle rooms later.) Hangyodon is a fish character that runs the underwater comedy club. Cinnamoroll flies around the islands, helpfully delivering you to various locations as a fast travel feature. And so on. These characters have their own quests and storylines. You give them daily gifts to level them your friendship with them. Higher friendship levels results in more quests and their assistance in various tasks.
As for the gameplay, there is a ton of stuff to do. The basics include gathering materials (sticks, pineapples, iron ore, etc.) that will be used to craft items. These items can be gifts that you give to the characters, furniture to decorate houses, or clothing for characters to wear. When you get certain houses decorated properly, friends and family of the main group of characters will come to visit. After a certain number of visits, those characters will also become island residents. Currently, four of these characters have moved to my island. There are so many more I have to convince to live here.
But gathering materials and crafting isn’t the only thing you can do. Each of the locations on the island has a number of puzzle rooms. These are special rooms where you have a solve a puzzle in order to obtain a treasure chest. The chests can contain special furniture, crafting blueprints, or materials. While some of the puzzles can be frustrating, it’s exhilarating when you get that chest. And the doors to the rooms light up when you finish them. It’s pretty cool to see a bunch of glowing doors around the island.
Hello Kitty Island Adventure is pretty comparable to Dreamlight Valley, with the exception that the quests aren’t usually as time consuming. If you enjoy Dreamlight Valley or games like Animal Crossing, this would be right up your alley. You can spend as much or as little time on this game as you want with no consequences. Be careful, though, it can be addicting!