Early 2000s dress-up games are a core memory of mine and mark my first forays into gaming. I look back on these games with a bright pink-tinted nostalgia. From the likes of browser games such as Stardoll, My Scene, Barbie MakeOver Studio, and console classics like Style Savvy, the 00s were a time when I saw my girlhood reflected back at me in gamified form.
Many of these dress-up game websites have long since shuttered. 404 errors are all that mark the graves of childhood gaming experiences that, from time to time, I crave a return to, if only for a moment. It seems I’m not alone in feeling this way. Content creators across TikTok and Instagram are bringing back the good ol’ days, recreating the 2000s dress-up game experience in short-form videos, and I’ve never been happier.
The NPC Makeup Trend
One of the biggest social media stars at the forefront of the dress-up game-style wave is Nyane, who boasts 2.2 million followers and over 50 million likes across her videos on TikTok alone. Her NPC makeup content—which features bright and eye-catching looks that she suggests the viewer either helped ‘create’ or remove—is littered with comments reminiscing about old “girl games” from a time long since gone.
Her soothing voice, high production value, and custom cursors evoke memories of coding old homepages with the most visually overwhelming widgets and add-ons possible. It’s like I’m back at the old family PC, racking up god knows how many viruses, clicking away at makeup and outfit combinations to my heart’s content. Nyane herself has even responded to comments likening her content to My Scene and shared her love for them, too, so it’s pretty clear where the inspiration comes from.
Nyane isn’t the only content creator leaning into dress-up game nostalgia or ‘NPC vibes’, though. Pinkydoll, who gained notoriety in 2023 for her NPC TikTok livestreams where she reacted to different viewer ‘gifts’, is also on the make-up game trend. Across the social media ditch on Instagram, mamadeenaofficial has skyrocketed in popularity since late March when she began a series of Monster High-themed, Nyane-inspired videos giving iconic characters a makeover, gaming style.
Domino effect
It’s pretty clear from the comments that viewers identify with this kind of “girl gaming” throwback content. Even those who were likely born well after the wave of dress-up browser games had become a distant memory seem to flock to it. For me, I think these brightly coloured games, so hyper-feminine in their presentation, felt all the more accessible than the gaming heavy hitters of the same era, geared as they were toward teenage boys. As a seven-year-old in 2004, Stardoll and games like it were my gateway into other games like Pokemon Emerald. These games set me on a trajectory that, twenty years later, sees me covering video games as a job. It’s dizzying to consider the domino effect that these games have had on my life, and it is perhaps why this kind of content has such a pull.
@jessicajehaa Let’s Do My Makeup 💗 Ps : ternyata cape bgt editnyaaa 😭 Ib @Nyane @Tasya Farasya #npcmakeup#makeupchallenge#makeupgame#gayaditiktok♬ Romantic – ADTurnUp
In the same way that playing remasters of childhood favourites stokes a warm feeling, these TikTok creators are often bringing happy, long-forgotten memories to the surface in HD clarity. I wonder if a remaster of some of these classic makeup and dress-up games wouldn’t stir nostalgia in the same way these videos seem to be doing.
It doesn’t look like the popularity of this NPC dress-up game content is likely to taper off anytime soon. Many of these creators have been making videos for months now, and fans of stylised Get Ready With Me content are eating it up (myself included).
I’ll continue to spend my winding down time each evening watching one social media star or another get ready with soothing background music as they comment on ‘my’ choices for their look. In another time, two decades ago, little Emily was doing much the same. I think she’d be happy to know at least indulging in this little joy of ours continued well beyond childhood.
Image: Nyane, mamadeenaofficial
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