When Bratz dolls first released in 2001, it was hard to tell what kind of impact they’d have on the doll industry. At the time, it was largely dominated by Barbie, leading to a poor initial launch for “the girls with a passion for fashion.” However, sales picked up and Bratz became a cultural staple for many kids, creatingtons of different doll collectionsas well as movies and video games. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Bratz franchise, and the core four girls (Cloe, Jade, Sasha, and Yasmin) are being re-released for the “20 Yearz” line that will debut in-stores and online.
The new dolls won’t be available until later in 2021, but the designs have already been revealed and show the girls looking as stylish as ever. To pass the time until the new Bratz dolls release, it might be a good time to revisit some of the Bratz video games.Bratz: Rock Angelzdebuted in 2005, but it still stands up as a fun game from an older console generation.
RELATED:PS Plus Free Games for June 2021 Wish List
The Bratz: Rock Angelz Soundtrack
TheBratz: Rock Angelzgame takes inspiration from the movie of the same name and focuses on fashion as the Bratz girls start their own fashion magazine. EachBratz: Rock Angelzdoll was released with each girl having her own instrument and a mini-CD that featured the mainRock Angelzsong, “So Good,” alongside a song from theBratz: Rock Angelzmovie that related to the character.
Both theBratz: Rock Angelzmovie and video gamefeature fun, catchy original songs, which is part of the appeal of the game. Any time players enter a store, they can go to the radio and choose whichRock Angelzsong they’d like to hear. The soundtrack features entries from Aly and AJ in addition to the fullBratz: Rock Angelzoriginal soundtrack. It’s hard to not sing along to the songs, even stopping gameplay to hear the full song before continuing gameplay.
The Fashion of Bratz: Rock Angelz
With a tagline like “the girls with a passion for fashion,” it’s hard to imagine that theBratz: Rock Angelzgame wouldn’t feature trendy outfit choices. Playerscan purchase tons of different clothing itemsand accessories from the different areas they explore and then dress up the four girls as they please.Bratz: Rock Angelzfeatures fashion from the doll line of the same name, but as well as a ton of others like “Ooh La La,” “Treasures!,” and “Birthday Bash,” to name a few.
One catch, and a bit of a funny detail, about fashion in-game, is that NPCs will react to how players have styled the girl they’re playing as. Whether it’s Sasha, Cloe, Yasmin, or Jade, people they pass by will give a remarkabout their outfit, hair, and makeup(all of which are customizable by the player.) If something doesn’t match, though, NPCs will give a derogatory comment and say how out of style the girl looks, so it’s important players piece together outfits that actually make sense.
The Voice-Over Cast of Bratz: Rock Angelz
As with most video games, the voice cast can make or break a player’s experience during the game.Bratz: Rock Angelzmay not win for best one-liners or having a superb script, but most of the voice acting is done well by some surprising actors and actresses. Sasha, given the nickname Bunny Boo from the other Bratz,is voiced by former Disney actressTia Mowry. The “Tweevils,” so nicknamed because they’re twins and evil, Kirstee and Kaycee are voiced byThe Big Bang Theory’s Kaley Cuoco andMean Girls’ Lacey Chabert, respectively.
Additionally, there’s a bit of a cameo from well-known voice actress Jennifer Hale inBratz: Rock Angelz. She voices both Phoebe and the French female shop assistant when players visit Paris. Phoebe is actually the twin of Roxxi, the lead singer of theBratz: Rock Angelzgroup.
RELATED:9 PS2 Games That Deserve A Sequel
The Diversity in Bratz: Rock Angelz
The cast ofBratz: Rock Angelzis diverse, but that’s also because the dollswere designed with diversity in mind. Sasha, Jade, and Yasmin are all BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, or People of Color) and they remained the core group throughout all of Bratz marketing. As more characters were added to the roster, more diversity was added to the franchise.
Though it took until June 2020, celebrated as Pride Month in many areas, for Bratz to finally have a confirmed LGBT couple, the Bratz Instagram consistently posts about them. Roxxi, a key part ofBratz: Rock Angelz, is confirmed to be a lesbian, while her partner Nevra is bisexual.Bratz have a passion for fashion, but they seem to have a passion for diversity as well.
Bratz: Rock Angelz is Fun
Perhaps the most important reason of all to play any game is the fact that it’s fun.Bratz: Rock Angelzgives players creative liberty to style the girls’ hair, hand-draw their makeup, and assemble cute outfits for each girl. Even if NPCs make snooty comments about the looks players make, there’s no denying how fun it is to listen to catchy music and makeover each Bratz girl.
Besides the details, the gameplay is easy to grasp and execute. There are mini-games that letplayers participate in modeling competitions, or they can roller skate around to help a friend retrieve some papers thrown by the wind. There’s even a mission that has players lead bunnies back to the park after straying too far into the city. It’s wholesome and doesn’t require a lot of brain power—something not all games allow players to do.
Besides playing the game while waiting for the re-release of the original Bratz dolls, fans of theRock Angelzline are in luck, as theBratz: Rock Angelzdolls will also be getting a re-release in 2021.Until the dolls release, the game will be there as a positive, nostalgic experience for any age.
Bratz: Rock Angelzis available now for Game Boy Advance, GameCube, PC, and PS2.
