''Barbie Fashion Designer'' is a

dress-up Dress-up is a children's game in which costumes or clothing are put on a person or on a doll, for role-playing or aesthetics purposes. In the UK the game is called dressing up. In the mid-1990s, dress-up games also became a video game genre in w ...

computer game developed by

Digital Domain Digital Domain (also known as Digital Domain Media Group or DDMG) is an American visual effects, computer animation and digital production company headquartered in Playa Vista, Los Angeles, California. Digital Domain has produced visual effects ...

and published by Mattel Media for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS in 1996. The game allows players to design clothing and style outfits. Players can then print off their designs and create clothing for their real-world Barbie dolls. ''Barbie Fashion Designer'' was the first commercially successful video game made for girls. After its success, many other girl games would be made, leading to the girls' games movement.

Gameplay

Players can design clothing and outfits through selecting different themes, clothing, colors, and patterns from various menus. Once players have designed their outfit, Barbie models their outfit on a 3D runway. The software also came with special paper-backed fabric, markers, and fabric paint so that the designs could be printed off and made into clothes for real-life Barbie dolls. The game complemented the way young girls already liked to play with their Barbie dolls and this has been said to have led to its success.

Release and reception

''Barbie Fashion Designer'' was the ninth best-selling PC game of 1996 in the United States, with 393,575 CD-ROM units sold and $14,044,994 sales revenue. ''Barbie Fashion Designer'' went on to sell over 500,000 copies in its first two months of release and over 600,000 within the first year of its release, outselling other popular games at the time such as '' Quake'' and ''

Doom Doom is another name for damnation. Doom may also refer to: People * Doom (professional wrestling), the tag team of Ron Simmons and Butch Reed * Daniel Doom (1934–2020), Belgian cyclist * Debbie Doom (born 1963), American softball pitche ...

.'' According to

PC Data PC Data was an American market research and point of sale tracking firm founded in 1991 and based in Reston, Virginia. Its founder, Ann Stephens, had worked previously as the head researcher for the Software Publishers Association. Initially, th ...

, which tracked computer game sales in the United States, ''Fashion Designer'' sold 351,945 units and earned $14 million by the end of 1996. It was the country's sixth-best-selling computer game of that year. Commenting on its performance that year, a writer for ''

Next Generation Next Generation or Next-Generation may refer to: Publications and literature * ''Next Generation'' (magazine), video game magazine that was made by the now defunct Imagine Media publishing company * Next Generation poets (2004), list of young ...

'' wrote that "''Barbie Fashion Designer'' has done an excellent job at expanding the market and scored well with the female population." It was also the top-selling SKU for Christmas 1997. According to Joyce Slaton of ''

GameSpot ''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady, and Jon Epstein. In addition ...

'', "Mattel's successful innovation asplacing ''Barbie Fashion Designer'' on toy aisles rather than in the boy-dominated software section in toy stores". Despite this success, the game has received criticism for using stereotypical feminine themes.

Purple Moon Purple Moon was an American developer of girls' video games based in Mountain View, California. Its games were targeted at girls between the ages of 8 and 14. The company was founded by Brenda Laurel and others, and supported by Interval Researc ...

founder

Brenda Laurel Brenda Laurel (born 1950) is an American interaction designer, video game designer, and researcher. She is an advocate for diversity and inclusiveness in video games, a "pioneer in developing virtual reality", a public speaker, and an academic. ...

has said the game “…perpetuated a version of femininity that was fundamentally lame”. However, its commercial success made it a catalyst for the girls' games movement and proved there was a market for video games designed for young girls. Jan Davidson of

Davidson & Associates Davidson & Associates, Inc. was an American developer of educational software based in Torrance, California. The company was founded in 1984 by husband-and-wife Bob and Jan Davidson, the latter of whom led the company as president until January 1 ...

said of the game, "It's interesting how that product sold more in a shorter time than any other product in history, including the best selling games! And it's just a niche for girls (there aren't too many little boys playing with that title, I don't think). So that tells you something. It was an incredible hit from a sales perspective. It also tells us how licensed characters can sell product." In 2023, the game was inducted into the

World Video Game Hall of Fame The World Video Game Hall of Fame is an international hall of fame for video games. The hall's administration is overseen by The Strong's International Center for the History of Electronic Games, and is located at The Strong National Mus ...

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1996 video games Barbie video games Children's educational video games Classic Mac OS games Mattel Interactive games Software for children Video games developed in the United States Video games featuring female protagonists Windows games World Video Game Hall of Fame

Gameplay

Release and reception

See also

References

Further reading

External links