Barbie Games and Glamour

It seems that when I played Barbie games of my own so many years ago, Barbie was glamorous. She wore clothing I could only hope of wearing some day and her hair and make up were always perfect – well, until I got a hold of her with a pair of scissors one day.

But walking down the pink toy aisle just the other day, I was surprised to see that while Barbie was still very pretty and pulled together, she wasn’t showing up as a fashion icon per se. Most of the Barbies I saw were actually dolls dressed up as different characters as well as Barbie doing “normal” things.

When I played Barbie games, we wanted our Barbies to live the life we couldn’t. Barbie dressed in gowns dripping with diamonds and rushed around in a Barbie corvette. I didn’t want my Barbie to be a “normal” person. I wanted her to star in her own expensive reality show. Today, I guess girls have more options of how their Barbie games will turn out, but I miss the elegant simplicity of Barbie in her dream gown from a generation ago.

Barbie Games and Younger Girls

Barbie games used to be really big with older girls and younger girls alike. Now, younger girls seem to be shunning baby dolls in favor of Barbie dolls and older girls have found other things to do. The change is due primarily to the number of options now available to girls of all ages in the toy department.

Fifty years ago when Barbie was created she was a truly novel creation. A complete break through in an industry that had been giving girls baby dolls to play with for years. Being able to dress up an older girl or even woman in contemporary fashions and fun styles was exciting and it still is for some.

Today, however Barbie games are not the only option available on the fashion menu. In fact, you’ll be hard pressed to find a traditional Barbie. Many of the Barbie dolls have developed new personalities such as mermaids, fairies and popular television characters such as the Hannah Montana Barbies. But regardless of their age, the Barbie fans are still very much present and for those under the age of eight or so, Barbie is a very present part of playtime.

Alternatives to Barbie Games

If you love Barbie games you always have something to play, but there are alternatives available if you take some time to dig around. Here are some of my favorites:

Bratz Games – if you love Barbie, you probably know about her enemies, the Bratz dolls. But when you play Bratz games online you’ll see that there is plenty of fashion to go around and you don’t have to feel pressured to pick one side of the aisle or the other. You can easily play both.

Fairy Games – As mentioned previously, Barbie has gone to the fairies and I totally approve. But the Mariposa Barbie games aren’t the only ones out there. Check out the true fairy, pixie and other games available from around the world.

Mermaid Games – I’ve noticed that Barbie games in the store occasionally fall into the Mermaid category, so you’ll likely love to play with the online version of mermaid games. Design your own mermaid and you can even put her in your own version of an underwater palace.

Fairy Barbie Games

A recent trip down the traditional pink aisle of the toy story showed me that Barbie has been up to something extra special. She’s become a fairy. I know, I know – the four-year-old readers out there have known for a long time about Barbie’s Mariposa line and how the slender Barbie dolls are truly fairy like with their brightly colored hair, tiny bodies and big beautiful wings.

I happen to like fairies, so I’m considering adding the fairy Barbie games to my collection. In addition to the largest of the fairies, traditionally blonde, of course, there is also a rather nice variety of other dolls with different wing and hair colors. In addition to dressing up these dolls, you can also change their wing patterns and colors by changing the interchangeable materials.

If I were to add the fairy Barbie games to my collection, I’d feel obligated to get them all. I believe there are four of the primary dolls to start. Just admiring them in the store, I’d have to say that Mariposa’s wingspan is impressive, but it is the brunette friend that is most adorable – at least to this brunette writer.

Goth Barbie Games

Okay, I’ve always wondered why Barbie dolls must be so perky and happy all the time. Wouldn’t it be fun if there were a goth Barbie doll with maybe a touch of emo? Barbie games wouldn’t know what hit them when Barbie shunned the high heels and showed up in combat boots and fishnet tights.

In my fantasy world of Goth Barbie, she’s have the same blonde hair, but she’d come with styling products and a special black and purple marker that lets you put color in her hair and then wash it out again to do again. You’d also be able to style her plastic hair into mohowks or spikes just to be amusing.

Her Goth Barbie wardrobe would be especially interesting. She’d have plenty of clothing in dark tones, particularly black. Purple and red would be part of her wardrobe as well and everything would be somber, long and slightly romantic. Gloves would be a part of the wardrobe and so would a few chains. Barbie wearing chains is enough fun for to imagine for days.

4 Ways to Improve Barbie Games

Love Barbie games? So do many women all over the world. But there are always ways to improve even your favorite games and Barbie games are no exception.

1. Let your friends play with your Barbies and you play with theirs. It will give you more options and let’s you experience trust by both giving and receiving it.

2.Cut your Barbie’s hair. Giving your Barbie a completely new haircut makes it more fun since now you can do whatever you want. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself giving Barbie more than one haircut, however – it’s rather addictive.

3.Make your own Barbie clothes. Don’t be limited to the Barbie clothes available in the stores. Put your scissors and thread (or super glue) to work and make your very own Barbie clothes to spice up the game.

4.Play Barbie Games with little kids. Little kids have so much fun making things up and using their imaginations. Let your imagination go wild and free when you play with little kids – suddenly everything is possible for a blonde plastic doll.

The Top Three Barbie Games

Barbie games are great fun, and as I’ve mentioned before there are too many to truly pick a top three. But because it’s fun to try, I shall.

Barbie’s Horse
Personally, I’ve always found that Barbie and her horse made for hours of fun. I like to build stables out of my brother’s blocks and use toilet paper to make streams and roads to gallop down or leap across. There are just too many stories that can play out on horseback to not enjoy the horse.

Barbie’s House
I have a large Barbie dream house of one kind or another, and my friends love to come over and bring their Barbies. When they come, we get everyone dressed up and have a huge party at the house complete with music and as many guy dolls as we can find.

Barbie’s Car
I like to drive Barbie around. Having a car in the Barbie collection means you can take Barbie on the road and let her see the sights. Plus you can have terrific break-up scenes with Ken where Barbie slams the door and drives away.