I Remain Unsettled by the Creepy Barbie Game That Knew My Name.
When you think of leads in scary games, Barbie is not the primary idea that comes to mind. Yet individuals who experienced the charmingly eerie 1998 PC game Detective Barbie in the Mystery of the Carnival Caper knows that Barbie truly possesses survivor qualities.
The Unusual Storyline
The premise is suitably strange: Barbie and her friend Becky have recently completed from their area sleuthing college, since naturally that's an actual institution. A "seasonal fundraising festival" is taking place locally, and Ken is somehow the event organizer, even though he and Barbie are implied to be adolescents. However, the evening before the carnival begins, disaster occurs: Ken vanishes via a magic act accident, and the charity money vanishes with him! Of course, it's up to Detective Barbie, her friend Becky (who functions as her "support operator"), and the player to crack the case of his vanishing.
Investigator Barbie was uttering user names verbally long before Fallout 4 and Starfield used the feature β and she could pronounce nearly any name.
Things Get Weird
The peculiarity emerges almost right away. Upon starting up the game, users are asked to choose their name from a list, and Barbie will speak to the player by name throughout the game. I cannot emphasize how long and thorough this list of names is. For those who has often struggled locating souvenirs with your name on them at souvenir stores, you might assume you're unfortunate here, but you're wrong. There are thousands of names on the list, which seems to list almost all versions of every female first name in existence, from extremely popular to unexpectedly uncommon. Even though Barbie utters the player's name with a honestly alarming amount of cheerful excitement, it doesn't seem like text-to-speech, which has me pondering how long Barbie voice actress Chris Anthony Lansdowne remained in the studio rattling off damn near every girl's name under the sun.
Roaming the Festival
After users input their name, they gain control of Barbie as she explores the scene of the crime. It's late at night, and she's all alone (except for Becky, who periodically contacts via the Crime Computer). Looking back, I can't get over how much wandering around the game's creepy carnival grounds is similar to playing Silent Hill 3. Certainly, this carnival isn't covered in blood and rust, or infested with horrifying beings like Lakeside Amusement Park, but the vibes are decidedly creepy. It only grows more paranoia-inducing when Barbie begins observing a mysterious silhouette lurking in the fair. It becomes clear she's not alone after all.
Nothing like a anxious follow down a comically long slide to get your blood pumping.
Eerie Attractions and Pursuits
While controlling Barbie through progressively disturbing rides and attractions (the festive item stockroom still gives me nightmares), the player will discover hints, which she sends to Becky to analyze. The clues ultimately lead Barbie to the mysterious figure's location, and it's her duty to track them down, following Ken's captor through a assortment of fairground classics including dodgem cars, an massive chute with splitting ways, and a dimly lit tunnel of love. These chases were truly thrilling β the music turns suspenseful, and an incorrect action could lead to the suspect fleeing.
Surprising Depth
Detective Barbie in the Mystery of the Carnival Caper had a surprising level of depth, especially for a end-of-the-century interactive title designed for girl youths. Rather than costuming Barbie, or engaging with her equines, Detective Barbie concentrated on real game mechanics, had a engaging narrative, and was extremely spooky. It even had a degree of repeat play appeal β every game session changed the kinds of evidence players would discover, and regarding Ken's kidnapper, there were multiple suspects β the offender's persona changed each time you played. After the case was cracked, players could even print out a Junior Detective badge to display for ultimate peer respect.
A child's initial fright! The clues in this room groan audibly or appear abruptly as players scrutinize them.
Heritage and Follow-ups
Of course, after a few replays, you'd finally encounter everything the game had to offer, but it was incredible for its time, and even spawned two sequels: 1999's Detective Barbie 2: The Vacation Mystery, and 2000's Detective Barbie: The Mystery Cruise. Mattel is still producing Barbie video games nowadays β the next one is Barbie Horse Tails (yes, another pony care/styling experience), which releases soon. Even though the images are a certain upgrade over Detective Barbie, I doubt Barbie Horse Tails includes the same degree of interactive complexity, repeat appeal, or overall eeriness as its 1990s forerunners, which is a bit unfortunate.
A Gateway to Horror
Irrespective of the company's initial goals for the game, Detective Barbie in the Mystery of the Carnival Caper ultimately turned into my introduction to scary media, and I'd appreciate observing Detective Barbie appear in another playful-yet-eerie game that involves more than costuming and equestrian activities. The globe contains numerous pony lovers, but it could certainly benefit from more hard-boiled Junior Detectives solving high-stakes charity carnival crimes.
