| "Dress up" or also known as "Fashion" games have | | | | In the middle to late nineties, several websites began |
| become popular among girls around the world and | | | | creating these games which are often browser-based |
| across different cultures. They have become a | | | | in which a player can drag and drop different clothes |
| substitute for playing traditional dolls especially among | | | | onto a digital image of a doll. Since then, more robust |
| young female audiences and the reminiscence for the | | | | variances have been created with improved user |
| older. | | | | interfaces and multi-media features to employ the |
| These dress up games probably originated from | | | | computing power of today's personal computers. The |
| paper dolls that existed since the invention of paper. | | | | games usually require no installation and can be |
| The earliest traceable emergence of paper dolls were | | | | enjoyed using the "Flash" platform by Macromedia. |
| from Japan dating back to A.D. 900 the least. | | | | Majority of the game creators reside in Asian |
| However, they weren't used as toys but rather for | | | | countries and are often inspired by "cartoony" |
| rituals. These paper dolls were crafted to be | | | | big-eyed characters found in Japanese anime; which |
| 3-dimensional and are not flat like the paper dolls | | | | have shown to appeal to vast audiences worldwide. |
| many of us know today. In modem times, paper dolls | | | | Others strive for a more realistic feel where their |
| have sprung up from magazines to comics and often | | | | creation reflects on today's fashion which is a great |
| a welcome addition for readers. Barbie may have | | | | reference source for fashion designers and followers. |
| attributed for the decline in popularity of paper dolls | | | | The concept of paper dolls have not died down but |
| with their chain of merchandise. Ironically, their dolls | | | | rather being a transit to another media and |
| that people recognize today derive from paper dolls | | | | apparently is making a come-back. |
| themselves. | | | | |