Now that I’m an adult with my own adult life, I thought it would be really fun to go back and play my old favorite game, Barbie Horse Adventures: Wild Horse Rescue. Although I did play quite a lot of games when I was younger, I missed out on a ton of different genres or properties I really would have liked if someone had encouraged me to try them. Everything from the look to the sound effects to the gameplay design of these types of games is eerily similar, with all of the pink and the cheery feminine voices and sparkly sound effects (if you know, you know). Of course, there isn’t anything inherently wrong with the content of these games, but it did put me in a box, so to speak.
Naturally, the games I played all fell into one of two categories: being under the umbrella of traditionally “girly” intellectual properties like High School Musical, Hannah Montana, or of course Barbie, or being about a traditionally feminine occupation or role, like Cooking Mama or Disney’s Princess Magical Dress Up. I found a sort of workaround, though, because I would watch Power Rangers and say my brother “made me” or watch him play Bioshock under the guise of spending quality time with him. I certainly felt drawn to things that were “made for boys,” but there was also an intense pressure to present as femininely as possible. I was raised in a fundamentalist Christian family in the heart of the South, and although I don’t recall anyone explicitly telling me I couldn’t play those games, I never really did. I can’t quite remember why I never played for myself, but I think it was a combination of unfamiliarity with dual-stick controls and the underlying belief that those games weren’t for girls. While my brother and our neighbor friends were playing Fallout, Halo, and Star Wars Battlefront, I would often sit and watch. This is in part because I spent the most time playing on that console, shoring up my allegiance to the PlayStation brand.
XBOX BARBIE HORSE ADVENTURES WILD HORSE RESCUE PS2
Of all of the various consoles we had, though, I’d say the PS2 was the most formative for me. My siblings and I had a few different consoles growing up, from a Gameboy Advance to a Wii to an Xbox 360. At least if I have to admit to this, it’s under the pretext of having a sweet job where I get to write about video games.Īnyway, it was only natural that that love of horses crossed over into my gaming.
I think because I repressed all the embarrassing stuff, like pretending to be a horse on the playground. I always forget it was such a big part of my life. I started horseback riding as an extracurricular when I was in third grade and continued through the end of middle school. It was only a matter of time before I outed myself as a reformed horse girl on the internet. What was my favorite game growing up, you ask? Well, Barbie Horse Adventures: Wild Horse Rescue, of course. For some, it was Super Mario Sunshine, or Ocarina of Time, or maybe GoldenEye. This game is broken - graphically and mechanically.Everyone has their favorite game from growing up. However, the universal downside that we can all agree on. The only real point of interest for everyone in the customization tools for Barbie and her horse, a real surprise considering the game feels it was churned out in record time. If you consider that, BHA: WHA is fine - but any other player would not be paying top dollar for this. The concept probably fits into the attention span of the child, though you sense this was unintentional.
As a general consensus, yes, it's pretty mundane and not very rewarding. Not much else will happen except some cringing dialogue and secondary objective of collecting coins. You won't be wrestling them - but petting them, lassoing them, and guiding them back to the stables. The player will gather the horses and tame them into returning home. Throughout the game, you will guide Barbie on her horse through the colorful environments. A simple basis for the trivial execution of search and rescue mechanics. The story revolves around horses being scared by a recent lightning storm - and it's up to Barbie to bring them back to safety. Barbie Horse Adventures: Wild Horse adventures adopt all those feats to tailor the game to its market. People judge the simplified mechanics and basic narrative against their complex ideals of a video game. This is a notion that seems to often forget. From a critical perspective, it's important to remember this game is made for children.
0 kommentar(er)
