Barbie and Her Magical House
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| Barbie and her Magical House | |
|---|---|
| File:Barbie and her Magical House Cover.webp | |
| Developer | The Cute Company |
| Publisher | Hi Tech Entertainment |
| Platforms | Microsoft Windows, Macintosh |
| Release | October 1994[1] |
| Genre | Educational |
| Mode | Single-player |
Barbie and Her Magical House is a 1994 video game developed by The Cute Company and published by Hi Tech Entertainment for Microsoft Windows and Macintosh. It was the first Barbie-licensed CD-ROM.
Players use point and click controls to decorate 150 elements across thirteen interactive scenes of Barbie's house, including her bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and living room.[2][3] The game features several minigames, including 'What Should I Wear?', 'Popping Bubbles', a matching game with Barbie's clothes, and jigsaw puzzles.[3]
Development
Barbie and Her Magical House was developed by The Cute Co., a children's entertainment and educational software developer later aquired by Davidson & Associates,[4] hired by New York company Hi Tech Entertainment.[5] It was the first Barbie-licensed CD-ROM title.[6][7] Hi Tech Entertainment producer Leila Chang stated Barbie manufacturer Mattel was "very strict" about how Barbie should be represented, suggesting to The Cute Co. to make design changes to Barbie's face, hair and dress.[5] The game was showcased at the Summer 1994 Consumer Electronics Show in June,[5] and slated for an October 1994 release.[1] The game was simultaneously announced by Hi Tech Entertainment alongside other titles Barbie: Vacation Adventure and Barbie: Super Model.[6] Stating the game "wasn't anything special at all" and "sort of tedious", Mattel Interactive designer Nancie Martin stated that she felt the game didn't address what girls were interested in, which led to a different direction in the development of the next Barbie title, Barbie Fashion Designer.[8]