, stylized as poupéegirl, is a Japan-based

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

 avatar

Avatar (computing)

In computing, an avatar is the graphical representation of the user or the user's alter ego or character. It may take either a three-dimensional form, as in games or virtual worlds, or a two-dimensional form as an icon in Internet forums and other online communities. It can also refer to a text...

 and fashion

Fashion

Fashion, a general term for a currently popular style or practice, especially in clothing, foot wear, or accessories. Fashion references to anything that is the current trend in look and dress up of a person...

 community

Virtual community

A virtual community is a social network of individuals who interact through specific media, potentially crossing geographical and political boundaries in order to pursue mutual interests or goals...

 where users can dress-up

Dress-Up

Dress-up is a game played mainly by children. It involves dressing up, usually to impersonate someone or something, like an animal or character in a fairy tale...

 their avatar and earn the website's currency, ribbons, to buy more clothing and keep track of the latest fashion with the Fashion Dictionary. The name is a portmanteau of the French word "poupée", meaning "doll", and the English word "girl." As of 2009, there were about 500,000 registered users, with 98% being women and 35% living outside of Japan.

History

On February 28, 2007, the website was launched and was initially managed by CyberAgent. However, on March 3, 2008, Poupéegirl, Inc. was officially established and extended services to mobile phones. In 2009, the website moved to Ameba Blogs.

On December 17, 2009, a DS game was released for Poupée Girl and was published by Alvion

Alvion

is a Japanese video game and publishing company.- Corporate history :*September 1996 - Alvion formed.*1998 - Headquarters founded in Suita, Osaka.*2004 - Established ACE, a career preparation school.*2005 - Alvion founded Ullucus Ltd....

.

Gameplay

The currency of the game is "ribbons", which can be earned by completing various tasks, including posting fashion items and commenting on other user's photos. These ribbons can be used to buy clothing for avatars. In 2009, the website implemented a new currency, "jewels", a pay-to-play system where some users are able to access clothing items for their avatar that non-paying users cannot. Jewel clothing items can be purchased exclusively with jewels during events or by bidding competitively for them at the Jewel Auction.

Closet

Users can post photos of actual clothing and accessories which other users of the website can view and comment on as well as create their own virtual closet. Fashion items can be categorized according to brand name (listed under the brand name in the Fashion Dictionary) and type. Every item has a yellow "Suteki" (or "Cute") button. If a user gets many suteki rankings or comments, he or she is eligible to win ribbons.

Avatar

Each user has a customizable avatar, which they can dress up with clothing and accessories. The avatar was carefully detailed to make it appeal to female users. Dressing up daily leads to earning more ribbons, with each daily dress-up recorded in a calendar on the user's profile. During events, the background of the avatar will change from a normal room. Occasionally, the website has a contest with a selected theme for the best dressed avatar, which leads to a ribbon prize and a new item.

Shops and events

Poupée Girl has a marketplace where users can buy or sell their avatar's clothing. The website's mascot, Katherine, owns a shop that regularly sells clothing pertaining to seasonal styles or monthly events. The items she sells cannot be sold in the marketplace until months later.

Well-known brand names and celebrities have endorsed a campaign on the website and allow users to buy items for their avatar specially designed by them or based on real-life products. These include Coach, Kose's Happy Bath Day Precious Rose line, Shiseido

Shiseido

is a major Japanese hair care and cosmetics producer. It is the oldest cosmetics company in the world and the fourth largest cosmetics company in the world.-History:...

, Sanrio

Sanrio

is a Japanese company that designs, licenses and produces products focusing on the kawaii segment of Japanese popular culture. Their products include stationery, school supplies, gifts and accessories that are sold worldwide and at specialty brand retail stores in Japan...

, Reebok

Reebok

Reebok International Limited, a subsidiary of the German sportswear company Adidas since 2005, is a producer of Athletic shoes, apparel, and accessories. The name comes from the Afrikaans spelling of rhebok, a type of African antelope or gazelle...

, Revlon

Revlon

Revlon is an American cosmetics, skin care, fragrance, and personal care company founded in 1932.-History:Revlon was founded in the midst of the Great Depression, 1932, by Charles Revson and his brother Joseph, along with a chemist, Charles Lachman, who contributed the "L" in the Revlon name...

, Kaela Kimura

Kaela Kimura

, born , is a Japanese pop rock singer, songwriter, model, and TV presenter.- Career :Born in Adachi, Tokyo, Japan to a British father and Japanese mother, Kaela started working as a model in 2002 for the Japanese magazine Seventeen...

, Aya Hirayama

Aya Hirayama

is a Japanese actress who has appeared in various films including Waterboys , as well as appearing in two television programs in her native Japan, Waratte Iitomo and Itsumo futari de. Aya was born in Kuroiso, Tochigi, Japan which is now part of Nasushiobara...

, and Nozomi Tsuji

Nozomi Tsuji

, known professionally by her birth name of is a Japanese tarento and a former member of the pop idol group Morning Musume, its subgroup Mini Moni, and the duo W. She has participated in the shuffle groups 10-nin Matsuri, Odoru 11, and 11Water, H.P...

.

Earning ribbons

Ribbons are the main currency of the game, and there are many ways that players can earn ribbons, including:

• Commenting: Each time a user makes a comment on another user's item or receives a comment from another user, they earn two ribbons, and if they are friends, they earn five. Comments are only rewarded for the first twenty a user makes per day.
• Posting clothes: Users are rewarded ribbons for the first five pictures uploaded to their closet per day. Users can also receive a dress-up item, which can be sold on the "Poupee Market" for ribbons. After five items have been posted in a day, it is more likely the user will receive a shell instead.
• Daily log in: Users are rewarded 10 ribbons each day if they log in to their account.
• Daily Dress-up: Users are rewarded 10 ribbons each day if they save a "Daily Dress-up". Users only receive this pay for their first dress-up of that day. Bonus ribbons are rewarded for consecutive dress-ups.
• "Perfect attendance": Users receive a bonus of 500 ribbons for completing their "Daily Dress-up" for each day of the month.
• Selling: Users can sell items on the Poupee Market.

Shells and the shell spring

A shell is another item in the game that can be exchanged for items. There are three types of shells: Scallop Shell, Pink Shell, and Pink Plaid Shell. Shells can be obtained through photo uploads or visiting other users' profile pages (where occasionally one is "dropped" via random event). At the Shell Spring, users can exchange five shells for a dress-up item, which will be chosen by the game randomly. Shells can also be sold on the Poupee Market for ribbons.

Along with shells, certain holidays drop shells and special items. For example, on Halloween candy might be dropped. Users may replace candy with other candies or regular shells, as long as the total number of shells or candies equals five. These special drops may be sold in the Poupee Market.

External links

• poupéegirl
• oribon