Development
The game was designed by Hi Tech Expressions in an attempt to get more girls to play video games, although the developers tried to make the gameplay appealing to boys as well. Following the 1984 release of an earlier title also called simply Barbie, the game became the second in the Barbie series. Together with the later Barbie: Game Girl and Barbie: Super Model, the Barbie series was aimed at a young audience that Hi Tech Expressions listed as 3 to 9, and that third parties recommend to those 3 to 8.
The basic sales and research data that Hi Tech Expressions examined in designing the game suggested that girls tended to prefer activity-based or puzzle-oriented games than the shoot-'em-up games that were popular at the time. To accommodate this preference, the team included puzzles and mazes while avoiding any reference to blood and violence.
The game was originally slated for release in October 1991, but delays caused it to be released on December 31, 1991.
Read more about this topic: Barbie (1991 Video Game)
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