I Haven’t Played Nintendo Since 2001 — Bratz: Flaunt Your Fashion Lured Me Back

It’s bright and early at Bratz HQ and Jade’s arms are crossed, foot tapping. “We have our interview at the mall with famous Italian fashion designer Marco Baretti!” Cloe is being dragged out of bed for the first of many missions her day will bring. 

Cloe, Jade, Yasmin and Sasha are the team behind Bratz Digital (sometimes referred to as Bratz Digital Website, sometimes referred to as Bratz Magazine site), an occupation that sees them living in Stilesville’s most luxurious sharehouse. All four are fashion journalists, all four are late.

So begins my adventure with Bratz: Flaunt Your Fashion — a game that’s about “begin[ning] your globe-trotting adventure to become the world’s best fashion reporter.” Cloe, Yasmin, Jade and Sasha may be disorganised, but they do not dream small.

I haven’t played Nintendo since I was nine, and even in my heyday, I was more into PC games, like American McGee’s Alice (bring it back). But, the opportunity to play Bratz on Nintendo was an offer I couldn’t refuse, largely because it was my first opportunity to play with Bratz. 

Bratz sashayed onto Cheese TV ad breaks in 2001, right around the time I was packing up my dolls. They heralded a “vibe shift” from problematic but serene Barbie dolls to true Y2K baddie culture. Despite my waning interest in plastic women, I was captivated. 

Such low-slung jeans! So much lip gloss! When they asked me if I had “a passion for fashion,” I adjusted my $15 Supré skirt, clutched my Bonne Belle, Lip Shake Gloss and gave an emphatic yes.  But I was too busy trying to convince my mum that Impulse Vanilla Kisses was both necessary and age-appropriate to argue my way into a Bratz collection. 

Now, at 31, I’d been given the opportunity.

Imagine my surprise and delight when, 10 seconds into the game, the question “are you a Bratz or Barbie”? was finally answered for me. The Bratz girls are now journalists! Like me! 

Life on the Bratz Digital Magazine Team 

The Bratz girls do not have a sense of urgency. 

For every “quest” in the Bratz universe, there are a series of minigames or micro tasks, which is how we start our day. 

Cloe hops out of bed, but she needs to find Yasmin’s jacket. This task complete, she’s enlisted by Sasha, who has lost her makeup bag. As Cloe bustles around the apartment, I start to think she may be the beta of this group of girl bosses. Sasha does hit her back, offering to help with her makeup. She insists blue is the perfect lipstick for Cloe’s all-denim look. It is not.

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• Get the Game: buy Bratz: Flaunt Your Fashion on PS5 ($69)
• Get the Game: buy Bratz: Flaunt Your Fashion on PS4 ($69)
• Get the Game: buy Bratz: Flaunt Your Fashion on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One ($69)
• Get the Game: buy Bratz: Flaunt Your Fashion on PC ($58.50)

Quietly filing Sasha under “frenemy” I seize my first opportunity to dress up my Bratz doll. 

One deep burgundy lip and slay outfit later, we’re ready for the mall.  

When I’m offered the chance I happily switch players, selecting Jade. She seems the alpha of the group, and the most professional. 

But when we arrive, there’s no indication of Baretti’s whereabouts. 

Instead, the girls sit down for an iced latte, while Jade and I embark on our search.

On the Hunt at Stileville Mall

Stilesville mall has its charms. There are chests of money everywhere, and continuous prompts to take selfies at spots with good lighting. Well executed, these generate cash and online followers. You just have to make sure these shots are in focus, which is as much an issue for me in real life as a beauty journalist as it is in my role as a Bratz Digital fashion reporter. 

I’m officially stressed about time so I take Jade into a trendy shop, hoping it’s a Baretti hang.

He’s not here — but the opportunity to express my passion for fashion is. Jade and I find some Baretti-appropriate pants, but when I try to purchase the matching T-shirt, I learn that inflation has hit Stilesville. The matching T-shirt is $270, well outside my budget. 

Fortunately, opportunities to make cash are everywhere at the mall and a woman approaches me for a photo shoot in exchange for $200. Sure, letting strangers take pictures of you for cash is problematic, but my most pressing issue is solved and I’m ready for my interview. 

Jade is officially late, and I’m waiting for an angry call from a publicist when Baretti materialises. 

Considering Jade has been putting in all the leg work, I’m annoyed when the other girls join us and start firing questions. Surely this is Jade’s interview? Also, in what world are four journalists sent on one interview? I take comfort in the fact that despite the rising cost of living in Stilesville, publishing is clearly booming, and I finish the interview on a high note, guessing the right final question: “Is it true Italian rock bands inspire your newest line?” (The alternative is “I have no more questions.”) Mission completed, it’s time to “get this styling scoop on the Bratz Magazine site!” 

Is Bratz: Flaunt Your Fashion Our Parent’s Worst Nightmare?

How and when the story is written isn’t clear — I can only assume there’s an off-screen intern churning out copy. Once we’ve successfully uploaded with the click of a button, Jade replies to comments, claps her hands and watches new followers roll in.

Bratz win “tech points” as well as cash and followers for their stories. These tech points can be spent at the tech store, presumably on updated phones and ring lights, which translate to new followers.

This is the heart of the Bratz game: shopping and clout chasing.

It’s exactly as our parents feared. The Bratz girls spend money they don’t have to try to “look the part” rather than doing the work, and spend more time working on their followers than compiling strategy decks. In some ways, this makes them as relatable as they were back in 2001.

I’m now unsurprised there’s an increasing number of Depops with Bratz names and TikTok hashtags popping up online. 

While Bratz: Flaunt Your Fashion is not without its flaws, it is totally absorbing and occasionally heart-pounding fun. Mission complete, we return to Stilesville mall for our next mission: generating followers for a touring rock band. The reporters the publicist “hired” to cover the show haven’t turned up, presenting another exciting opportunity for the Bratz girls. They just have to find the missing ingredients for their friend’s trending smoothie first.