Wikipedia

Virtual dress-up game

A virtual dress-up game is a genre of video game which involves customising the appearance of characters using things such as clothing, hair and makeup. This genre has a female-heavy audience. The first commercially successful video game marketed for girls was Barbie Fashion Designer, an example of a virtual dress-up game[1]. In 2012, dress-up games were one of the top three most popular video game categories among tween girls.[2]

History

edit

Kisekae

edit
A KiSS doll

In the 1990s, developers began creating virtual dress-up games utilising drag-and-drop features; an early example of this is the Kisekae Set System. The Kisekae set system, commonly known as KiSS, is a Japanese file format developed in 1991 intended for coding digital paper dolls. These dolls were based upon shōjo manga characters.[3]

The word Kisekae in Japanese means "changing clothes" and commonly refers to the paper dolls found on the back pages of manga. It was these dolls which influenced the Japanese creator MIO.H to create this file format.[3] Kisekae may also be short for kisekae ningyou, referring to the act of using dolls to play dress-up.[4]

The primary audience for these games was male, and the dolls overwhelmingly represented teenage girls. The characters were often portrayed in a sexual manner, allowing players to undress the girls.[3][5]

Barbie Fashion Designer

edit

In 1996, Barbie Fashion Designer was released for Microsoft Windows and Macintosh by Mattel Media.[6] As the ninth most popular video game of 1996 it outsold both Quake and Doom. It the first successful video game targeted at girls, and as such, paved the way for the girls' video game movement.[7] There was a lot of risks associated with its release as many retailers refused to stock it, as they did not think that girls would be interested in video games.[8]

The gameplay included creating fashion designs which then could be printed on fabric paper, allowing them to be worn by real-life Barbie dolls.[9]

Many women have identified Barbie Fashion Designer as the first video game they played.[10] It has been inducted into the World Video Game Hall of Fame, the museum stated that the game was a "key part of a longer history of expanding audiences for video games, proving that girls enjoyed playing electronically as much as boys did".[11]

Dollz

edit

The Palace was launched in 1995 which allowed users to access different semi-anonymous chat rooms named palaces. Players could use avatars to differentiate themselves from others.[12] These avatars originally were just generic smileys, but eventually in 1997 users were able to comprise their avatars of nine pieces (three for the body and six for the clothing). [12][13]

Palace dollz were split into five main categories; preps, minis, wonderkins, silents and divas, more categories were added later. Doll creators were known as "dollers" and created communities, they often allowed people to use their creations if credit was given.[13][14]

Notable e-zines created by dollers include The Doller Express and Pixel Post Magazine. In 2007, DeviantArt created a dollz category.[13] Some palaces served as venues for dollz dress-up competitions known as pageants, which were peer-run and judged, with varying themes.[12][15]

Adobe Flash

edit

With the introduction of Macromedia flash technology, dress up games vastly increased in number. Flash allowed many people to create games easily and quickly.[16]

Popular flash dress-up websites included DollDivine, Rinmaru, Cartoon Doll Imporium, Stardoll and DressUpGames.[17] GirlsGoGames in particular was a very popular website which hosted dress-up games, with 7.6 million visitors every month from 2011-2012, making it the most visited website for tween girls in the United States.[2]

Adobe discontinued flash player in 2020 leading to many flash dress-up games to become unplayable or lost.[18]

Platforms

edit

Console

edit

"Pink games", notably including dress-up games became prevalant on consoles as female interest in gaming increased. Console dress-up games often will contain additional aspects such as retail management,[19] or fighting mechanics.[20]

Xbox and Playstation
edit
Computer
edit
Arcade
edit
Nintendo
edit
Casio Loopy
edit

The Loopy was a console released exclusively in Japan and marketed to a female audience. Ten games released,[23] three of which were dress up games.[24]

  • Dream Change: Kokin-chan’s Fashion Party - 1995[25]
  • Nigaoe Artist - 1995[26]
  • Anime Land - 1995

Mobile

edit

Around 2021, dress-up games began to become more popular due to their use as profile picture creators. Picrew, a Japanese dress-up game host, in particular gained popularity around this time. It was especially popular due to its diverse representation of LGBTQ identities, skin colour, and body types. It allowed users to create profile pictures which accurately reflected themselves and their identities, which was previously very difficult using older dress-up games.[27][28][29]

Everskies is an online dress-up mobile game, inspired by 2000s internet games.[30] It allows players to make and sell their own clothing and participate in competitions. In 2021, it had over one million registered users.[31] It collaborated with the Winx Club in 2024.[32]

Roblox

edit

Dress to impress, a Roblox game, was developed in 2023, it has had over six billion visits.[33] The game focuses on competition style gameplay, where players make outfits which are then voted on by each other.[34]

Benefits

edit

Dress-up games can encourage girls to work in the fashion industry. The lack of explicit story and the sandbox nature of the games can encourage creativity and allow players to experiment.[35] The games allow for self-expression, particularly with modern dress-up games that allow for diverse representation.[36]

Dress-up games were found to positively contribute to the cognitive development of children who played them.[37]

Controversies

edit

Body image and sexualisation

edit

Dress-up games have been criticised for sexualising women, mainly due to the clothing selection offered and the lack of substance behind the characters.[38] [39] Many of the games were found to not be suitable for children due to their sexual content.[37] Many of the games also centre celebrities and as such may promote unhealthy body image.[39]

Stereotypes

edit

Another criticism that has been made against them is that they promote the overgeneralisation of gender and strict gender stereotypes. Some see their supposed low quality due to the lack of quality games aimed at girls.[38] The games are often seen as putting women in boxes and socialising girls to fit beauty standards. They may also promote materialism and have been criticised for advertising real brands to children.[39]

References

edit
  1. ↑ Rhinewald, Shane (2025-08-23). "From Girl Talk to Girl Games: The Analog History of Games for Girls". The Strong National Museum of Play. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
  2. 1 2 "New study sizes up tween girls' online gaming behavior". kidscreen.com. Archived from the original on 2012-07-05. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
  3. 1 2 3 Zimmerman, Eric; Gorfinkel, Elena (May 2000). "Technologies of Undressing: The Digital Paper Dolls of KISS" (PDF). Sex Appeal: the Art of Allure in Graphic and Advertising Design. Allworth Press. pp. 159–166. ISBN 978-1-58115-048-3.
  4. ↑ "OtakuWorld! Anime and Manga". www.otakuworld.com. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
  5. ↑ "Lightness of Digital Doll Play". The Player's Power to Change the Game: 19–34. 2017-01-17. doi:10.1017/9789048525645.002. ISBN 978-90-485-2564-5.
  6. ↑ "Barbie Fashion Designer (1996)". MobyGames. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
  7. ↑ "Barbie Fashion Designer". National Videogame Museum. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
  8. ↑ The Making of Barbie Fashion Designer, retrieved 2026-06-30
  9. ↑ "FEMICOM". femicom.org. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
  10. ↑ "A Generation of Gamers Started Out Playing Barbie Fashion Designer". Harper's BAZAAR. 2022-12-20. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
  11. ↑ Dyson, Jon-Paul (2023-05-05). "Why Barbie Fashion Designer is a GREAT Selection for the World Video Game Hall of Fame". The Strong National Museum of Play. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
  12. 1 2 3 Carpenter, Nicole. "On 'The Palace,' you can be anyone you want to be". The Outline. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
  13. 1 2 3 "The History of Dollz - Drag and Drop 90s 00s Dollz". dollzmania.neocities.org. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
  14. ↑ "Dollie Dior | Dollz 101 📚". dolliedior.nekoweb.org. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
  15. ↑ "Dollie Dior | Dollz 101 📚". dolliedior.nekoweb.org. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
  16. ↑ Hawkins, Author Jack (2020-11-03). "A Farewell to Flash – The Games That Shaped a Generation". New Media: Storytelling in Literature, Films, and Games. Retrieved 2026-07-01. {{cite web}}: |first= has generic name (help)
  17. ↑ "The Evolution of Dress Up Games: From Paper Dolls to Picrew". www.dolldivine.com. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  18. ↑ Rinn (2024-11-12). "O Flash Games, Where Art Thou?". Loco Mag. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  19. 1 2 "In shops now: Nintendo presents: Style Boutique". Nintendo of Europe SE. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  20. 1 2 "Japan Game Awards 2007". awards.cesa.or.jp. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  21. ↑ segaretro.org https://segaretro.org/Love_and_Berry:_Dress_Up_and_Dance!. Retrieved 2026-07-01. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  22. ↑ "Love and Berry Dress up and Dance - JP Nintendo DS". Retro Island Gaming. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  23. ↑ "FEMICOM". femicom.org. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  24. ↑ "FEMICOM". femicom.org. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  25. ↑ "FEMICOM". femicom.org. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  26. ↑ "FEMICOM". femicom.org. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  27. ↑ "Playing with Ourselves: The Rise of Picrew, and Its Limits". QGCon. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  28. ↑ "TikTok craze: How to make those animated Picrew avatars of yourself". CNET. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  29. ↑ G, Sandra Gutierrez (2021-03-22). "Turn yourself into an illustrated avatar for free". Popular Science. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  30. ↑ Naeem, Fatima (2024-01-12). "Best Dress-Up Games Of All Time". GameRant. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  31. ↑ "Everskies - Loading". everskies.com. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  32. ↑ Kaser, Rachel (2024-04-08). "Pocket Worlds brings Winx Club sparkle to Highrise and Everskies". GamesBeat. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  33. ↑ Freestone, Camille (2025-05-13). "Adults Are Now Obsessed With Roblox, Thanks to This Fashion Game". Vogue. Retrieved 2026-07-03.
  34. ↑ Diaz, Ana (2024-09-14). "Dress to Impress is invading IRL fashion looks". Polygon.com. Retrieved 2026-07-03.
  35. ↑ Rips, Nicolaia (2024-12-23). "The Virtual Paper Dolls That Made Me a Fashion Writer". Vogue. Retrieved 2026-07-03.
  36. ↑ Wisconsin-Madison, Taylore WoodhouseUniversity of. "Fashion Games, Feminine Consumption, and Cozy Gambling | In Media Res". mediacommons.org. Retrieved 2026-07-03.
  37. 1 2 Özer, Bayram; Kurt, Büşra (31st March 2020). "An Analysis of Dress up Games Played by Preschool Children on Smartphones". Ondokuz Mayis University Journal of Education Faculty. 39 (2). {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  38. 1 2 "The awfulness and the importance of the dress-up game". Killscreen. 2014-02-26. Retrieved 2026-07-03.
  39. 1 2 3 Mascheroni, Giovanna; Pasquali, Francesca (2013). "Dress up and What Else? Girls' Online Gaming, Media Cultures and Consumer Culture". CM: Communication Management Quarterly. 8 (29): 79–102. doi:10.5937/comman1329079M.
edit
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Virtual_dress-up_game&oldid=1362444278"