Pink was the color of the day as Level Up Games and Sanrio held the Hello Kitty Online Bloggers Party at The Podium. LUG pals Hazel and Lilith alongside the wonderful folks at the LUG Marketing Department asked us to drop by and join in on the fun. Sashimi, sake, and Sanrio surprises were in store for the gaming and lifestyle bloggers invited to attend.

So what is HKO? Unlike LUG’s prime commodities Ragnarok Online and RF Online, Hello Kitty Online Philippines is a free-to-play non-combative MMO closer in orientation to casual social networking site games like Facebook’s Pet Society or Poupee Girl. The main objective is to collect dress-up items for your avatar, decorate your “home”, and raise crops in your virtual farm.

Items can be acquired in two ways: either by fulfilling missions, or by purchasing them from the item mall. To buy items from the virtual mall, you are again presented with two options: either earn points by using HKO’s SNS functions, or by purchasing top-up cards with cash. The two systems in place ensure that players have a great gaming experience without feeling the need to be forced into purchasing game credits.

HKO is currently under Beta testing and everyone is welcome to sign up for a Founder’s account. Simply visit the Official HKO Philippines website and apply for a Founder’s Beta account. Client installers, basic how-to’s, and other important information can be found at the site. Have fun and place nice in the sandbox, kids 😀

Thanks to the ladies of the Creatives, Community, and Marketing Departments of Level Up Games for the event invite.