Hello Kitty Island Adventure review: Switch port is a match made in heaven

I appreciate that your local weather will likely be unlike my own, but I write to you on what is yet another cold and bleak January day in the UK. It’s so gloomy outside that this month, for the most part, I’ve had to keep my lamp on while working. That’s when you know the weather is truly grim. Perhaps you’re reading this from somewhere with sunnier climes, but if you find yourself in the same damp, miserable boat as me, I may have just the antidote to brighten the tailend of winter. You see, while physically, I remain in the UK, mentally, I’ve been spending much of the last couple of weeks soaking up rays on a tropical island … a virtual tropical island.

Hello Kitty Island Adventure couldn’t have landed on Nintendo Switch at a better time. While there’s no replacing the serotonin hit that comes with feeling the warm sunlight of spring, hopping on a jet with Hello Kitty and her Sanrio friends to a rundown tropical island resort may just be the next best thing. Beautiful weather? Check. Plenty of friends to have fun with? Check. A charming universe that allows you to escape the wiles of the real world? You’ll find that here.

I hardly think it’s revolutionary of me to say that the Nintendo Switch is the home of cosy gaming - and that’s not just because of exclusives like Animal Crossing: New Horizons. The ultimate cosy experience is one played on a handheld console, where you can truly snuggle up, grab a blanket, make a cup of tea, and settle down for several hours of wholesome entertainment. Hello Kitty Island Adventure is designed to be played in such a scenario which is why I’m of the opinion that this port is a match made in heaven.

You can see Hello Kitty Island Adventure in action below.

I had a feeling that Hello Kitty Island Adventure would be special. After all, the title launched on mobile in 2023, securing a very respectable score of 83 on Metacritic. Admittedly, I’ve never really taken to mobile gaming so when a Nintendo Switch port was announced last year, you best bet Island Adventure flew right to the top of my most-hyped list. I haven’t been left disappointed. Certainly, there’s nothing in Hello Kitty Island Adventure that reinvents the cosy gaming wheel, but nor is it your standard farmstead fare.

In place of a focus on growing crops and extending a rural abode, Hello Kitty Island Adventure centres around the rebuilding of an abandoned tropical tourist resort. You’ll begin the game aboard a plane with the various Sanrio characters, all heading to the island. Unfortunately, there’s an issue aboard the plane forcing everybody to make an emergency exit. While that may sound drastic, the jump from the aircraft is nothing one of Hello Kitty’s trusty balloons cannot handle, making the slow descent to the ground rather peaceful. There, you’ll find that the island has been left in disarray, with many of your new-found friends now scattered across it.

Hello Kitty Island Adventure sets itself apart from other cosy games by being much more quest led than it is your run-of-the-mill life sim. Certainly, you can decorate your cabin but you won’t particularly extend it, nor will you concern yourself with any farming. Instead, you’ll be tasked with helping repair the island, embarking on quests both with and for your friends, deepening those friendships at the same time. That being said, there are plenty of familiar cosy mechanics at play, with quests usually requiring you to partake in item gathering or crafting, although there’s a distinct land of grind here which I welcomed.

Sunblink/Sanrio

Usually when I play cosy simulation games, I end up feeling burnt out by the grind required because so easily can seemingly lighthearted tasks require demanding and repetitive actions. I haven’t found that to be the case here. Each quest, whether it’s opening a new section of the island or gathering the components needed for a snorkel, sees you team up with different characters in activities that always feel unique. Yes, oftentimes quests will still include an action like item collecting, but others require you to enter ruinous puzzle vaults, or restore broken down fairgrounds rides. One even had me make it through 10 trick-filled floors of a haunted house. There’s a great sense of variety.

And even where you do have to get involved with item gathering, precautions have been taken to avoid the activity ever feeling grindy. You won’t have to fight your way through any dungeons for mining materials. Instead, hop aboard a runaway mine cart and grab as you gleefully glide along the tracks. Simply can’t be bothered to gather wood? A trusty Nul, one of the island’s inhabitants, will be on hand to collect some for you, leaving the gathered items in a chest near to the island’s hub.

I also appreciated that next-to-nothing in Hello Kitty Island Adventure is locked behind the passage of time. Quests are unlocked via one of three ways, either via exploration, through the development of friendships, or simply by completing a previous quest. That means that if it’s a five hour session you seek, you won’t run out of things to do as nothing requires you to ‘rest’ or wait for the day to pass, nor is there any grindy stamina mechanic at play. Your character does have a stamina circle that increases with time, but this is only to limit your climbing in areas of the map you shouldn’t really be entering yet. Stamina has no other effect on activities, like gathering or mining.

I’ll admit, I’ve always found it hard to find something that lives up to the delights of Stardew Valley and Animal Crossing: New Horizons, but Hello Kitty Island Adventure is truly it. This is a game that does away with a selfish focus on your own homestead, instead encouraging you to explore and help others. In fact, my home is a rather empty sorry affair with just a few items within it, because I’d much rather spend my time checking the tourism board and decorating the island’s other abodes in a bid to tempt travellers, more of Hello Kitty’s friends, to our sunny island getaway.

With that in mind, if you struggle with the lack of guidance in cosy sims, then this is most definitely the one for you with its quest-based approach ensuring that you always have a goal in mind. Conversely though, you’ll still be rewarded if you do away with quests, instead exploring the island at your own pace. Oftentimes, you’ll stumble across new vaults or crafting recipes this way. It would be remiss of me not to also mention that you can partake in activities like bug catching, gardening, fishing, and baking. Whether you do these things for your own pleasure though or gift the fruits of your labour to your new island friends is up to you. Hint, the latter is much more rewarding. Gifting items to your friends will level up your friendship, unlocking new quests - and just like New Horizons, Island Adventure has an animal sanctuary you’ll want to fill up.

Sunblink/Sanrio

Amidst all of this, there is a story to be unearthed, addressing why the island came to be rundown in the first place, although I often forgot about this as I was so engrossed in my new virtual life. It’s also worth noting that I’ve not encountered any issues whilst playing the game. It runs wonderfully and there’s a great amount of freedom in how you can explore the island. You’re not limited to certain paths, with your character essentially able to jump, climb, swim, or jog anywhere they wish - provided you have the stamina on the climbing front.

Of course, as the game is concerned with restoring the resort, I do wonder about its longevity - and at the same time, I don’t. You see, all cosy sims tend to reach a point of conclusion, whether that’s induced by the game or by your own eventual boredom. I have a feeling that when I run out of things to do in Hello Kitty Island Adventure, which is a long way off, it’ll feel right. Eventually, I’ll have restored the island to its former glory, welcomed all of Hello Kitty’s friends as tourists, baked every good, crafted every item, and displayed every critter in my museum. If that’s the case, does longevity matter? Maybe it’ll simply be nice to say thank you and goodbye to my virtual pals. With, according to How Long To Beat, an average completion time of just over 18 hours, Hello Kitty Island Adventure is that rare thing: a cosy sim that doesn’t outstay its welcome.

If there’s anything about cosy gaming that appeals to you, Hello Kitty Island Adventure should undoubtedly be high on your to-play list. Developer Sunblink, in partnership with Sanrio, may have built a game on the foundations of those that have come before in the genre, but that doesn’t detract from the fact that the end result is a sunshine-filled tonic that’s sure to delight every single player who consumes it.

Pros: Quest-based approach, welcomed lack of grind, fun to explore map

Cons: Lack of home extension may bother some, feels like a finite experience

For fans of: Stardew Valley, Animal Crossing: New Horizons

8/10: Excellent

Hello Kitty Island Adventure is out now on Nintendo Switch (version tested), Windows PC, and mobile devices, with a PlayStation launch planned for later in 2025. A review code was provided by the publisher. Read a guide to our review scores here.