When it comes to cozy farm and life sims on the Switch, the powerhouse duo of Stardew Valley and Animal Crossing would typically show up at the top of most lists. While they’re very different in their look and overall style of play, they’re both still very easy to throw many hours into, for the most part simply enjoying them without much in the way of urgency or stress. Undoubtedly looking to try to get a piece of that cozy gaming action, the Switch has had a deluge of titles designed in a similar vein, but few have managed to recapture the essence of what made both of those games so notable. Now we have Hello Kitty Island Adventure to add to the list of challengers for the crown, and I’m pleased to say that it absolutely manages to make a great case for itself if you enjoy cozy games, even if this license isn’t your favorite, or even familiar to you at all.

The first crucial thing to know is that no matter how little you know about the host of oddball Sanrio characters (for those who are confused, this is the company that created Hello Kitty and her friends) in the game, it won’t matter. You’ll simply get to know them and become friends as you go, interacting with them for some quests and discovering the things they like most, in order to bring them gifts and strengthen your bonds with them to unlock new goodies. For the most part quests will involve running around the ever-expanding areas of the island you have access to, looking for a pretty wide variety of objects. The thing is, for the most part you’ll be practically tripping over different quest and crafting objects almost constantly anyway, which is generally pretty liberating since they will allow you to simply explore and follow your curiosity as you discover hidden courses to run, puzzle dungeons, and all sorts of little surprises.

While perhaps this isn’t as refined or a directed total experience as some of its competition, I think you could make a case that’s a positive rather than a negative. Unlike most titles where you’re bound by waiting for a certain number of days to unlock something, or worrying about getting back to your bed to go to sleep, here you can really just do whatever you’d like. Yes, in order to unlock new areas of the island and other bigger picture elements you’ll need to complete some specific quests. That said, whether you happen to bump into them early or after you’ve exhausted pretty well everything in the areas you’ve already unlocked really doesn’t matter. This is a game that’s made for you to discover, unlock, and enjoy however you’d like, and that’s refreshing. In line with its peers, as you open new areas additional activities like bug collecting, cooking, photography, and more become available, giving you another excuse to explore and find every opportunity you can to make the most of what the game has to offer.

While only time will tell for how long the game will continue to get developer support and periodic updates, what already appears to be on deck from its time on Apple Arcade is promising. Daily login bonuses, new quests, and special periodic events should just be the minimum of what’s to come, with plans to continue to add new goodies still on the roadmap. Continuing to add value and reward people who stick with the game on a daily basis is a feat very few in the space have attempted, let alone succeeded in, but so far it appears that Island Adventure is moving in that direction. If you’re a cozy gaming fan, this should absolutely be on your wishlist.