Barbie Fashion Designer is an interactive dress-up game developed by Mattel and released for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS in 1996. The game lets players design clothes and style outfits for Barbie dolls in a variety of themes. Players can print off their chosen designs and make clothing for their virtual dolls using the Barbie printer in the bedroom. The clothes can be sent to Barbie’s closet in the form of mail or left in her drawer in the bedroom. Players can also change accessories such as her hair and eyes with the click of a button. Changes made are saved in a folder and last until the next session.
Each stage of the game requires the player to select an outfit from a range of available options. When choosing an outfit, the player has a choice of over 40 different pieces of clothing. Changing the headpiece requires access to a bin where the various headpieces are grouped. Selecting an accessory leads the player to a screen that displays all of the accessories available to the doll, ranging from rings, bracelets, shoes, hats, sunglasses to hairstyles and makeup. There is also a calculator to determine how much money the player has to spend on each outfit.
This video game was designed to encourage children to become fashion designers through the use of technology. This is why the games focus on the interaction of designing clothes and accessories. A large amount of the interface is taken up by the various screens used to display the items. As young girls grow older, the challenge increases slightly as they will have to design an outfit for Barbie’s favorite toy, Ken. At the end, the outfit is submitted to Barbie for approval, and the player’s virtual work of art is selected for printing and production.
Each outfit can be selected, printed and sent to Barbie for her approval. If the design is unacceptable, she will choose another outfit. The process can be frustrating at times, as it is not possible to change or cancel an outfit once it has been selected. However, this game makes a fashion designer very easy to understand. There are many tips and hints included in the instruction booklet to clarify and simplify many aspects of the design process.
For those of us who made and distributed Barbie fashion designer games, we were able to earn 500,000 copies of the game. Many people enjoy playing these video games because they allow them to feel like a real fashion designer while playing with dolls. Some critics claim that the game is too “cute”, but most people agree that the cuteness factor works well for the concept. Barbie is an icon in herself, so she would make an excellent fashion designer.
Some critics also claim that there are far too many differences between the game and reality. However, the designers have taken great steps to ensure that all clothes are made consistent with the images in the game. The clothes are generally designed with cloth that closely resembles the fabric that is used on actual outfits. Clothes are crafted to look and feel like the real thing, down to the smallest detail. Each Barbie doll wears her hair the same way that teen girls wear their hair. All of the different dolls have their own fashion designer clothes, including Barbie’s fashion designer shoes.
While the paper doll fashion games focus on Barbie and other Barbie dolls, the Mattel games feature almost every major doll from the series. The Mattel brand includes such popular dolls as Ken, Barbie’s friend, Bridget, Cotton, Sasha, closure dress Milla and closure dress Kimberly. Paper dolls may be smaller than their larger counterparts, but they are no less adorable and attractive. Paper dolls to help children learn about the fashion industry while having fun.
The games are designed to encourage kids to ask questions and have fun. Games like, “What does that dress represent?” allow young girls to imagine what their favorite fashion designer outfits would look like on them.