Barbie is a video game for the Commodore 64 published by Epyx in 1984. The game is the first licensed software depicting the Mattel doll Barbie, and was marketed alongside a series of licensed titles labelled Computer Activity Toys. The game allows players to select and customise Barbie's hair and clothing to prepare for dates with Ken. Upon release, the game received mixed reviews, with critics praising the game's visual design and use of speech, but critiquing the limited gameplay options and considering the game was consumerist and sexist in nature.
Barbie answers a call from Ken at 1 o'clock in the afternoon, asking to go out on a date.
The objective of the game is for the player, as Barbie, to prepare and attend dates organised by Ken.[2] Ken will call Barbie on a telephone to suggest a date to a specific location, such as to play tennis, go for a swim, or attend a picnic.[2] The player has one hour against an in-game timer for Barbie to leave the house in her convertible and return on time; if the player returns too early or late, Ken will reschedule the date.[2] During this time, players visit stores that allow Barbie to select clothing, hair and cosmetic options to change her appearance for the date.[2] Players use the joystick using an on-screen hand to select items for Barbie.[2][3] If the player successfully returns home at the correct time, the doorbell rings, and Ken and Barbie leave to the location of their date.[2]
Development and release
Barbie was one of several titles in the Computer Activity Toys series by Epyx. The intent of the series was to create games that resembled "toys playable on a home computer", that encouraged "imaginative, creative non-structure[d] play".[4] These titles were targeted at younger players, featuring games using licenses purchased from Mattel, including G.I. Joe and Hot Wheels.[5][6][7][2] The publisher was one of the first to use toy licenses for software.[8] The game uses samples of speech in phone calls between Barbie and Ken.[9] The game was announced by Epyx at the Summer Consumer Electronics Show in 1984 along with the Computer Activity Toys lineup.[4][10][7]Barbie was also showcased by Epyx at an annual Barbie Convention in New York City.[11] Versions for the Atari, Apple II, and IBM PCjr were planned.[7][12][5]
Reviewers generally praised the game's visual presentation and sound. Run stated the game's graphics and sound were "superb" and "admirably rich in colourful, finely detailed graphics".[14] The game's inclusion of speech in its audio was praised as innovative,[15] with several critics impressed by the game's "realistic" speech.[9][14] Several critics disliked or did not recommend the game overall.[13][9][14] Some outlets questioned the use of computer software to imitate the qualities of a physical children's toy,[14] with Home Computer Weekly stating that the "tactile and manipulative enjoyment" of Epyx's Computer Activity Toys concept would leave "too much missing for the games to be considered equivalent to the real things".[5] Reviewers also critiqued the lack of options, with The Guide to Computer Living wondering if the game "would have allowed for more options [and] variance in the gameplay".[2]
A number of reviewers also critiqued what they saw as consumerist and sexist themes. Some of these reflected broader attitudes to the doll at the time, with Computer Gaming World describing it and the game as "repressibly empty-headed and sexist" over several years.[15][16] Several reviewers disliked that the game did not allow Barbie to independently call Ken or disagree with his proposed date.[14][13]Computer Gaming World stated the game promoted a "buy ethic" and "male chauvinism".[9]Run considered the game was sexist, critiquing Barbie's "embarrassingly underdeveloped" characterisation.[14]Computer Entertainer stated the game promoted "conspicuous consumption" and "encourages stereotypical, passive behaviour" in girls.[13]
↑ DeMaria, Rusel; Wilson, Johnny L. (2002). "Epyx". High score!: the illustrated history of electronic games. McGraw-Hill/Osborne. p.150. Katz mentions that Epyx was the first software company to make activity products from toy licenses, such as Mattel's Barbie...
1 2 3 4 Wagner, Roy (September 1985). "Sound and Fury". Computer Gaming World. Vol.5, no.4. p.40.
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