Hello Kitty no Hanabatake

"A Cute Little Game For Younger Gamers."

Well, there's few games for the younger audience out there, especially for the old NES. One of them is Hello Kitty No Hanabatake, a Japanese only game that pits you as Hello Kitty, as she tries her best to water her plants. It's a basic game and suitable for all ages, with minimal violence at best.

Story: Well, there isn't much of one. Basically, you're Hello Kitty and it's your job to water all your plants across 18 Stages. The challenge is very minimal and your child will easily have an fun time playing, if they enjoy Hello Kitty. Not much else to rate here, since for a younger game, these can't have complicated stories, so it gets points, but nothing amazingly so.

Rate: 6/10.

Controls: Very, very easy to grasp, to simply put it. You basically jump, whack Enemies and water your plants. Pretty simple, all the controls are easy to use and you shouldn't have a problem doing anything. Your child will have an easy time playing, so it can't any better than this.

Rate: 10/10.

Graphics: Bright, lush colors for a NES game and very friendly to the younger audience. You can easily see what's what, stuff looks nice and nothings out of place or inappropriate in any form of the sense. Hello Kitty looks just as you expect her to, stuff is very nicely animated, especially the Enemies. You can easily see where Flower Pots are, what's an Enemy and such, etc. Not much else to describe here, but everything looks how it should and for a NES game, it's got some great graphics, especially for a younger kid's game.

Rate: 10/10.

Sound/Music: Well, there's not much music in this game, but hey, for a kid's game and for how short it is, I'll let it slide. The music is upbeat and lively and gets joyous when you clear a Stage. Very pleasant and nice, nothing that'll make your kid cry in agony. For the Sound Effects, they're also nicely done, as everything sounds how it should and nothing is really out of place. Over all, not much to cover, but for what there is, you'll enjoy it.

Rate: 10/10.

Gameplay: Well, for a kid's game, it's short, nice fun and it'll keep them busy for a couple hours at most. I don't think there's much replay value, as they may give up on it after beating it once, but if your daughter loves Hello Kitty, this is a nice little game for her. The basic objective is to water Flower Pots until they're in full bloom and there's a smiley face on them, signifying you're done. When all the Flower Pots are watered, you'll clear the Stage. Along the way there's woodland creatures and Beach Balls trying to stop you, but nothing too violent. You use Hello Kitty's Hammer to stun Enemies, never really "killing" them, unless you become invincible and simply knock them away.

There's 18 Stages total, each getting slightly harder as you go on, but nothing too difficult. You have infinite continues and the only penalty for losing all your Lives is starting over at a 0 Score, so as long as your kid keeps at it, they'll eventually beat this game. There's also Bonus Stages that let them get 1-Ups and have additional fun trying to water Flower Pots. Over all, it's a fun little activity to have your daughter do and it's a bonus if they're into Hello Kitty.

Rate: 10/10.

Over All: Well, there you have it. Hello Kitty No Hanabatake is a fun little game for younger gamers. Although it may be only in Japan, if your child loves Hello Kitty and you're trying to find a game for them, look into Emulation and download the game for them. The game is Japanese, but there's only the Title Screen in Japanese, the game takes 0 knowledge of the language to play, as there's no text, etc and everything else is in English. So, with a sort of bland story, some crisp, solid controls, great graphics, very good sound and music and with fun gameplay, Hello Kitty No Hanabatake delivers for the younger gamers looking for something non violent or a change of pace.

So, down to renting or buying, well, it's an NES game, good look renting it, heh. However, if you find it, I really don't know. It's easier to just emulate it and I doubt it's even in remote circulation unless its in the hands of Hello Kitty collectors. It's a fun little game and your kid will enjoy it if you can get a hold of it. Enjoy!

Final Rate: 9/10.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 07/03/07