I’ve never been crazy about the Bratz dolls ever since they came out. The look was just too much: ridiculously pouty lips and tiny bodies that if they were real, wouldn’t have enough bone structure to support the weight of the head. And the whole thing with the “z” in the name was part of some trend I didn’t care for.
I dreaded playing Bratz Rock Angelz even before opening the box, I thought I’d hate it right away. I didn’t, but I wasn’t too impressed either.
Bratz Rock Angelz is a third-person exploration game in full 3D in which you are able to play as all four Bratz girls: Cloe, Jade, Yasmin and Sasha. The main purpose of the story is to launch your own fashion magazine by doing a bunch of small tasks in order to put together a series of articles. Later on, you do a series of missions to help out the band.
As I watched the intro sequence, I came to a point where I thought I could actually customize the office where the girls would be working in. However, the office is magically fixed and the game begins after that, but I think that would have been an important part of the game to have worked on. I mean, here are four girls, all of a sudden they own a space in an office building and fix it all up. How? Who pays for it? Did this happen overnight? It feels like the story is missing something right there.
In the office, each of the girls has her own computer and her own tasks to complete. You can switch between them whenever you want. These tasks are extremely simple and most involve searching the mall for a certain shop: buy new makeup and apply it; buy new clothing and accessories and wear them; design a t-shirt; create a poster. Other tasks are given out by the various characters around the mall grounds: rollerblade racing, helping someone pick up their homework pages, rummage through a bargain clothes bin and pick an outfit for a friend. For each task you complete, you will have a new article for the magazine and money to spend, although you also find money laying around on the ground.
Obviously, the shops are where the main part of the game takes place. There are tons of outfits, shoes, makeup, hairstyles and accessories (such as glasses, hats and jewelry) to customize your characters with.
I used to dress and undress my Barbie dolls as much as the next girl, but sewing my own dresses was the most fun for me. Picking outfits for the Bratz pack was a difficult task. I can honestly say I didn’t like most of the clothes. Maybe I’m either too conservative (my mom has been telling me that since I was 15) or I’m just getting old, but short frilly skirts with high boots, platform shoes and bell-bottoms or tiny belly-baring tops and high heels aren’t my thing. Tons of detail has been put into all the clothes and accessories (you can tell that’s where the focus of the game goes to) as well as in the girls’ appearance, so graphically the game is very well done.
Modern teenager lingo aside (it’s almost like a new foreign language to me), the voice acting is good but it could have used a little less “cheerfulness” at some points. I don’t think telling me how to open the in-game cellphone needed the “Oh my god, like, this is the greatest thing since sliced bread!” tone. It sounds a bit too ridiculous when everyone sounds like that while explaining a menu or a task.
The rock/pop music will surely please the audience the game is catered to, the tracks resembling Avril Lavigne and Hillary Duff songs (with the option of being able to turn it off or change it if you come across a radio in the game). The graphics are pretty colorful and sharp, the loading times are considerably short and overall, the main storyline is entertaining.
Bratz could have used a little more “head on your shoulders” though. I’m sure a teenager’s life doesn’t sum itself up in blowing money on clothes and makeup and trying them on. Well, at least when I was a teenager, that’s not what I used to think about. That’s why I still find everGirl a better game for young girl gamers, since it provides a more down to earth view of a teen’s world , providing good values about school, friends and teamwork, while keeping it fun and enjoyable.
Parents thinking about buying Rock Angelz for their little girls, think again. Yes, the game appeals to creativity by letting players create their own t-shirts, posters or fun face paints by using several different elements. But it also passes along some wrong ideas to the impressionable minds of young girls: that it is ok to wear tons of makeup as a teen, that slutty outfits are fashionable, and that money is an easy thing to come across.
While the average female gamer demographic (myself included) probably won’t find this title all that interesting, Bratz Rock Angelz will more than likely appeal to the younger girl gamers with a passion for fashion out there.
Special thanks to Spencer Franklin and THQ for providing a copy of this title.