Forget the cat litter, all-hours dog walks and outrageous vet bills; the Barbie Pet Patrol CD-ROM features some of the most realistic, adorable animals ever seen in a computer program-and without all the work involved in owning a real-live pet. Visit Barbie and her kid sister at Pet Rescue Center, where you'll wait for rescue missions, explore in the playrooms or tend to pets in the Care Center. Rescue missions come in over the phone or via e-mail; after learning which pet is missing where, travel with Barbie on her scooter to one of three different environments in which to search for one of eight lost pets. In many missions, you'll have to use your wits to figure out how to entice scared animals to come to you, or how to retrieve pets trapped in trees or other sticky situations. If you get stuck yourself, Barbie's full of helpful hints to send you on the right direction. With each successful mission, you'll receive a printable Paw & Purr Award that hangs on the PRC wall. Rescued pets come back to the Pet Rescue Centre with you and Barbie to wait for their owners and receive a little TLC. Nurse them back to health in the Care Centre, where you'll give recovered pets water, treats, vitamins-even baths and brushings; sometimes you may also need to bandage a hurt leg or pick burrs from ruffled fur. After creating a file for them in the computer and giving them a name you select from a list of suggestions, the animals go to one of two playrooms to wait for their owners. In the meantime, you can play with them, plus all the other pets already in the playroom-a kitten, bunny, hamster, puppy, and even a turtle-in what is perhaps the best of the game's activities: petting! Select which animal you'd like to pet, then use the cursor to stroke an animal's head or back, or perhaps scratch her under the chin. [+]

Don your tiara and pick up your wand, for only true, good princesses can enter the enchanted world of Barbie as Rapunzel. Rapunzel and Prince Stefan have organised a masked ball, but they didn't invite the local wicked witch, Gothel. When Gothel finds out, she is furious, and promptly casts an evil spell over the castle and its inhabitants. The Prince is turned to stone, the jewels from his crown scattered around; and the enchanted castle is merged in darkness. When Rapunzel and her trusty purple (and very cute) dragon friend enter the doom-filled castle, they are challenged by the witch to restore the castle to its former glory, then find the jewels in order to rescue the Prince. One of the most magical creative packages on the market, this interactive adventure really is a superlative package. The graphics are fantastic, and do not pixellate or "stick" between screens. The movement is fluid and controlled and the sound is excellent. Players must move their cursor around the screen, and it will twinkle when it finds an object that needs restoring. The magic paint box then opens, revealing magical tools that can be used for restoration. [+]

Create a winter wonderland for Barbie lovers with the Barbie Sparkling Ice Show, a creative extravaganza that enhances basic PC skills while entertaining little girls for hours. Join Barbie and friends Christine and Teresa, and visit five exciting venues: the International City Park, Misty Mountain, Island Paradise, Rose Garden and the fifth, mystery location that is only accessed when the other four levels have been completed. Put on impressive performances, (each venue offers more of a challenge than the previous one), learn how to jump, do tricks, and speed skate. A level is deemed to be completed when you have mastered a Practice Session and put on a show. After the first one has been completed, the Exhibition Area will open, and when the other locations have all been visited, extra features-including decorations, music, costumes and more-begin to appear for use in the Exhibition show. Installation is guided and is quick and easy. Accompanying the CD is a multi-lingual instruction pamphlet in black and white that is fully comprehensive and very easy to follow. The program is designed for children aged five years and above, but help will be needed to complete all tasks at the early end of the age range. -Susan Naylor.

If your child loved Barbie Fashion Designer, this upgrade will be a definite hit. Running along similar themes, it allows children to choose outfits for their real and virtual Barbie (and friends) dolls. Once the doll has been chosen, the next decision to make is where they're going. shopping, office, beach, and so on. Then the serious work begins-assembly in the dressing room. Once an outfit has been assembled and accessorised, it can be viewed on-screen, modelled by Barbie, or it can be printed out on fabric paper, meaning kids can make real clothes for their doll. (All necessary assembly items are included, even the now iconic Barbie shoes). Teaching your children to be creative, Barbie Cool Looks Fashion Designer doesn't really develop beyond its obvious function of dressing dolls, but it does teach children to follow instructions, and the upgrades give them more to go at than before. [+]

Forget the cat litter, all-hours dog walks and outrageous vet bills; the Barbie Pet Patrol CD-ROM features some of the most realistic, adorable animals ever seen in a computer program-and without all the work involved in owning a real-live pet. Visit Barbie and her kid sister at Pet Rescue Center, where you'll wait for rescue missions, explore in the playrooms or tend to pets in the Care Center. Rescue missions come in over the phone or via e-mail; after learning which pet is missing where, travel with Barbie on her scooter to one of three different environments in which to search for one of eight lost pets. In many missions, you'll have to use your wits to figure out how to entice scared animals to come to you, or how to retrieve pets trapped in trees or other sticky situations. If you get stuck yourself, Barbie's full of helpful hints to send you on the right direction. With each successful mission, you'll receive a printable Paw & Purr Award that hangs on the PRC wall. Rescued pets come back to the Pet Rescue Centre with you and Barbie to wait for their owners and receive a little TLC. Nurse them back to health in the Care Centre, where you'll give recovered pets water, treats, vitamins-even baths and brushings; sometimes you may also need to bandage a hurt leg or pick burrs from ruffled fur. After creating a file for them in the computer and giving them a name you select from a list of suggestions, the animals go to one of two playrooms to wait for their owners. In the meantime, you can play with them, plus all the other pets already in the playroom-a kitten, bunny, hamster, puppy, and even a turtle-in what is perhaps the best of the game's activities: petting! Select which animal you'd like to pet, then use the cursor to stroke an animal's head or back, or perhaps scratch her under the chin. [+]

Barbie is off on her adventures, once again, running, diving, jumping, climbing, Lara Croft like, through many different scenarios. She travels to unfamiliar and exciting territories including Africa, Egypt, Tibet and other secret exotic places, to find missing pieces of a mystic mirror to unlock its secrets, and to discover clandestine passages in ancient temples. Adding to the fun and excitement are traps, puzzles to solve, obstacles to negotiate and precious gems to discover. There are different levels of play: Barbie can run faster, jump higher and walk on quicksand, thus helping the player practice and improve keyboard skills. The games can be played alone or with a friend. Barbie-lovers everywhere will enjoy this game, and the manufacturers recommend it is suitable for children aged six years and older, though some help will be needed with installation. The accompanying pamphlet is somewhat disappointing, and though it contains 28 pages, there are only five in English, the rest being in French, German, Spanish and Italian. Subsequently, there is only information concerning installation and keyboard controls, so adult help is imperative. (Six to eight years) -Susan Naylor.

Barbie is finally a woman of action. Taking up international espionage in Secret Agent Barbie, she travels the world in pursuit of justice in this game-based CD-ROM. A thief has stolen valuable clothing from a friend of hers, a fashion designer who is just setting up for a big show. In order to bring the thieves to justice, Barbie has a full team of helpers and a complement of gadgetry. To get past a guard who won't let her through a door, she uses her compact to blow foundation in his face. To investigate areas too tiny for her to access, she has a robotic spy puppy. Her Pinkvision goggles can seek out the combinations to otherwise secured doors. Finally, Barbie has two gymnastic skills-dive rolls that carry her past guarded areas, and jumps to get over obstacles and laser alarms. By virtue of its emphasis on gizmos, this game makes itself a distant relative of pop culture heroes such as James Bond or the Mission Impossible team. However, Secret Agent Barbie lacks the defining characteristic of this milieu: violence. [+]

Not too many software packages will have you jumping and spinning, but that's what Barbie Gotta Groove is all about. Work with Barbie and her gal-pals Tori, Nichelle, Ana and Chelsie (plus set designer Lara) to make cool clothes, rockin' stages and swinging dance routines, then put them all together for the big show. Get creative on the dance floor with hip-hop, salsa and other styles-once you've got the virtual girls going, you can try the moves out yourself. The interface is supereasy-for the most part, pointing and clicking is all that you need to do. The CD works in stereos, too, so even if you're not around a computer you can practice your jams. Use the Barbie Digital Camera (not included) to put yourself in the action-make CD covers or your own personality page! You can save your favourite outfits and dance pieces and watch them again and again, plus you can challenge yourself by watching a dance and then playing back the moves in just the right order. If you want, you can even compete with your friends to see who's got the right moves. Just imagine-all the lights, colours and glamour of show business without the stress and heartbreak. Barbie and all her Generation Girl friends need a little direction-slide into your choreographer's chair and get busy. -Rob Lightner.