Gamertell

Title: Clueless
Price: $19.99
System(s): Windows XP or better
Release Date: February 12, 2009
Publisher (Developer): Legacy Interactive and Paramount Digital Entertainment (Legacy Interactive)
ESRB Rating: N/A
Pros: Lots of clothing options, a free style dress-up mode can be unlocked, interesting game premise.
Cons: Characters look frightful, you can guess and still succeed, too much to focus on at once initially.
Overall Score: One thumb up, one thumb down; 75/100; C; * * 1/2 out of 5

Casual games tend to fall into either the puzzle, simulation or action categories. Every once in a while, there’s a game which isn’t exactly one, but isn’t exactly the other either. Clueless, inspired by the original movie and part of the OMG! High School series, is one of those games. It’s part puzzle game, since players have to put together outfits that fit certain guidelines and specifications in a set period of time. Yet, it’s also part simulation, since the overall goal is to create perfect outfits that the characters and their boyfriends will adore.

Making people fall in love through fashion.

Cher in the original movie wasn’t simply a matchmaker, though she did offer that sort of assistance. She also attempted to help a less fortunate student rise up the social ladder. Here, you’ll be focusing on matching making in a way - matching through outfitting.

Trying to be a better person, Cher decides to devote herself to making her friends more fashionable and lovable to their boyfriends by picking out the perfect clothing ensembles. That’s right - no focusing on similar interests or what people are like inside. We’re going to make people love each other because their outfits match!

I bet you never thought clothing would be the way to bring peace, understanding and love to the masses.

Even if you’re clueless, you can still play the game and win.

The game itself isn’t all that challenging, once you decide to throw restrictions and caution to the wind and make your own ensembles without playing attention to what the girls’ boyfriends want. Basically all the clothing presented to players in a round are going to conform, at least initially, to the style presented in the beginning - like Beverly Hills Preppy or L.A. Grunge. I found that just dressing the characters however I wanted was usually enough to make it through a round with a B or C grade. Clothing is randomly dished out to you in small doses, so often you won’t even have items the boyfriends would want anyway.

In an attempt to make it challenging, a timer appears below each girl. So you’re on the clock while making outfits. As you get to higher levels, checking boyfriend wants/needs can be a waste of valuable outfitting time. So even if you wanted to play the correct way, you could still find yourself scrambling and tossing any available clothing onto characters.

The character designs/art are downright scary. It’s like they’re all part mannequin, part human. I wouldn’t be surprised if one of these things jumped out at me in Silent Hill instead of Puppet Nurses. I will admit that they do, vaguely, look like the original actors. But still - looking at some of them freaks me out

A supplement to the Clueless movie, rather than a complement.

The Clueless game saps out most of the poignant, endearing and clever sentiment and dialogue that was present in the original Clueless movie. It isn’t a bad game, it just doesn’t properly pay homage to the source material. I could see young children and teenagers falling in love with the Clueless game, with all of its dress-up potential. Older gamers who remembered or loved the movie may still spend an enjoyable afternoon or two with the game, but will find themselves longing for the real thing.

Besides, when you don’t really have to expend a lot of effort, or even color coordinate to win, its difficult for older gamers to sit still and play.

Clueless is best suited for younger fans of the OMG! High School series Legacy Interactive and Paramount Digital Entertainment are releasing, while Mean Girls: High School Showdown.

Site [Clueless]

Check out the gallery: Clueless the Game