If you were a fan of Hello Kitty Island Adventure and all its New Horizons-inspired cosiness when it arrived on Switch earlier this year, then boy, do we have a surprise for you. The life-sim’s first major content update has sidestepped its planned release date and landed on the Nintendo hybrid a week early — what a treat.
The ‘Friends, Furniture, and Frozen Peaks’ update arrived on Steam last month, with dev Sunblink adding a 22nd May release date for the Switch version. It seemed to be full steam ahead on the later launch until yesterday evening, when the studio appeared on Twitter to make the surprise announcement that the update is, in fact, available right now. What’s more, it’s free!
The update crams in a lot of content, with a new area to explore, friend gifting, new quests and puzzles and (the biggest addition of them all) furniture stacking. The full list of everything included was shared on the Island Adventure Steam page, and we have gathered it all together for you to check out below.
Hello Kitty Island Adventure – ‘Friends, Furniture, and Frozen Peaks’ Update (14th May 2025)
More Fun with Friendship
We improved gifting to make friendship even more fun! The more hearts a gift has, the more friendship you’ll get for gifting it! No more odd outlier gifts. Craft the best gifts to become friends faster!
Furniture Stacking
Next time you’re sprucing up a cabin, try placing an item on a table while in Edit Mode. No, seriously, this is our new favorite thing.
Item Overflow
Didn’t make it to Friendship Island today? No worries! Items and pick-ups now accumulate over three days to better fit whatever playstyle you choose.
New Area – Blizzard Peak & Snow Village
A new story takes you and your friends back to Icy Peak, discovering a whole new side of the mountain along with a temperamental weather contraption.
Chilly Chambers
Slide your way to success in new, frosty puzzles around Icy Peak. You might have to get a bit pushy to claim the rewards inside.
Sparkles
Introducing Sparkles! These special Sparkles appear all around the Island at their own pace — collect and exchange them for game tickets, so you can play mini-games without waiting for reset.
Flower Power
Garden in the clouds with Roseanne for the fluffiest, puffiest flower yet. Explore extreme environments with Nina to grow flowers in the most challenging places on Friendship Island. These special flowers unlock unique effects to make your garden even more beautiful.
Flowery Furnishings
Play the Crane Game to collect the fabulous floral Merry Meadows furniture set–and bring the Merry Meadows to all of your cabins!
Call Friend
Phone a friend (to join you!) – your tablet now has a ‘Call Friend’ function that lets you connect and companion together with Hello Kitty and Friends from anywhere on the Island.
New Visitors
Retsuko’s friends and co-workers are ready to visit Friendship Island for a well-deserved getaway! Pekkle and Keroppi have buddies and pals who will need cabins, too. And don’t forget to set up cabins for Hello Kitty’s Grandparents.
New Quests
Who will become the Island Champion? How will Retsuko balance work and her vacation? Can you soothe the storm on Icy Peak? Most important: is Pochacco’s workout outfit cuter than Badtz-maru’s superhero get-up? Find out the answer to these questions and more with dozens of new stories and quests!
We had a great time with Hello Kitty Island Adventure when it arrived on Switch earlier this year, stating, “it brings a fresh experience that is likely to subvert the expectations of any Animal Crossing expats looking for their next cosy fix,” in our review.
We weren’t alone in our admiration either. The game went on to shift an impressive half a million copies in its first 30 days. Never underestimate the power of Sanrio, eh?
