As a kid, one of my favorite pastimes was playing video games. If I wasn’t reading, I was playing video games. I jumped between Animal Jam, Movie Star Planet, Club Penguin, Poptropica, and Minecraft.
Once I got bored, I would switch to another game, but Minecraft was, and still is, one of my go-to’s. I’ve always preferred laid-back games rather than combat or shooting ones. That was until I played Fortnite for the first time in 2019, and it remains one of my favorite games to play.
I recently tried out Marvel Rivals and am still deciding if I can put myself through memorizing all the different buttons and combat moves. I’m still devastated that Club Penguin isn’t around anymore.
Animal Crossing and The Environment Around Me
I picked up Animal Crossing way back during COVID. It is described as a social simulation game and is often referred to as a “cozy game.” It was exactly what I needed to keep myself from going insane, being locked up at home with my cousins screaming bloody murder every day at 7 am while playing in the morning.
It kept me entertained, especially during those boring Zoom classes we all look back on. When I constantly played on my DSI, my dad mostly bought me educational games. So, when I discovered that Animal Crossing was available back then, I felt cheated. I loved playing the game so much that I know my younger self would have enjoyed it too.
My favorite thing about Animal Crossing is collecting all the cute clothes and villagers. My current residents include Olive, Chai, Tutu, Curlos, Maple, Chelsea, Gala, and Gayle. Rosie and Bones are the two most recent additions I found while villager hunting. It was my first time villager hunting, and I totally recommend it; it was fun, but sometimes disappointing when I encountered the ugliest villagers I ever thought could be real.
I love the seasonal changes and gathering materials around my island to pay off my debts to Tom Nook, but it can get rather boring after a while. I tried to spice things up by landscaping my island, but it is so difficult and expensive.
Not to mention the absolute sweats out there with decked-out islands that I could never achieve due to my lack of imagination and dedication. I’ll stick to admiring other islands until I find the motivation. I’m starting to think I need to hire someone to do the terraforming for me.
Game Review: Hello Kitty Island Adventure
Lately, I’ve been completely engrossed in Hello Kitty Island Adventure. I played it on Arcade when it first came out, but it didn’t hold my attention for long because I didn’t want to keep paying monthly once my gift card ran out.
I recently purchased the game’s deluxe edition, including exclusive quests, gifts, and plenty of cute clothing and decor. I’m all for cute things, but the game is enjoyable no matter which edition you choose.
One area where Hello Kitty Island Adventure outshines Animal Crossing is the quests. Not only do you have to collect items around the island, like in Animal Crossing, but there’s almost always something to do—from leveling up friendships to continuing the storyline to discovering new recipes.
As someone who can play for hours on end, I do run out of friendship flowers or bouquets to keep gifting the characters to unlock stories, so I’m sometimes forced to stop playing and get bored, but that usually happens after I’ve played for a while.
Overall, I really enjoy both games. They’re both cozy and cute and great for winding down after a long day or curing boredom. However, I can say with 100% confidence that I would pick Hello Kitty Island Adventure or Animal Crossing any day, and it’s not just because my cat Butters likes to watch me play.