Common Sense Media Review
By Carolyn Koh
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Facebook game is fun, if pricey, materialistic, and buggy.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 14+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Play
Videos and Photos
Crowdstar's It Girl
What's It About?
The goal of CROWDSTAR'S IT GIRL is to acquire the best wardrobe and boyfriends, attend parties, and win Hotness Show Downs. Players build up their wardrobe by shopping, then attend themed parties by dressing up in their hottest clothing based on that theme, and compete in Show Downs for the best rewards. Each piece of clothing has a theme assigned to it -- such as Black Tie, Classy Casual, Outdoor, Nightlife. Show Downs are won by having the highest Confidence stats -- which is determined by your level, your hotness, the size of your clique, and wardrobe. Boyfriends are virtual and provide a boost as well, and you attain them by finding one a few levels higher than you and flirting with them. They give you gifts each day, which can be clothing and boosts of Confidence or energy for shopping. When you outlevel your current boyfriend, you break up with him and find a \"better\" (higher level) boyfriend.
Is It Any Good?
Crowdstar's It Girl can be viewed as a harmless game where girls can play dress-up and strive to be the belle of the party; or it can be seen as a game that promotes materialism and thoughtless behavior. Since players of the same level shop at the same stores and each store carries a limited number of items, the only way to distinguish your character is to pay for select items from the cash store. Players who start at a time when the game is giving out free gifts of clothing with high hotness rating (as was the case during the 12 Days of Christmas) will have an advantage, but these items may also be purchased with real cash.
Since Confidence points are important during Show Downs, the ability to call a friend for a Confidence Boost is an important part of the game. Unfortunately, a frustrating bug we encountered quite a number of times is the one that prevents you from Calling a friend for a Confidence boost. This bug is known and has existed since launch in September 2010. All boosts can also be bought, as can clique members.
Online interaction: To get ahead in this game, the player needs to have a large social circle of friends all playing the game so as to create a clique. The size of the clique is a factor in winning "Show Downs," and in giving, sharing, and receiving boosts. This play mechanic opens up privacy issues as players may feel pressure to add "friends" they do not know to their social network via "It Girl Add" pages on Facebook.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about online privacy and staying safe online. Should you be chatting with people you really don't know? Do you know how to set your Facebook Privacy settings?
Families can also talk about values. Are boyfriends all about moving from one to a better one? What defines "good" and "better" in a boyfriend? Does the size of your wardrobe really count in life?
Game Details
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