For those of you who have grown tired of Farmville, Mafia Wars and whatever other gaming options are out there for Facebook and the web in general, or you’re just someone who can’t get enough of online shopping, we have some good news for you.
Women’s shopping portal PopSugar has merged social gaming with virtual reality and e-commerce and backed it all with some big names from the world of fashion to develop a new chic game called Retail Therapy, which you can play it either on Facebook or on the game’s own stand-alone site now.
The premise is simple: players create their own avatar and then dress the avatar in realistic fashion designs by the likes of Diane von Furstenberg, Tory Burch, Banana Republic and others; design and decorate a virtual high-end clothing boutique which they can stock as they see fit with other real-world brand names, and shop with other players who are doing the same.
“The idea is that you are running your own fashion boutique, so you start out with not a lot of money, stuff, or shoppers, and your goal is to build a thriving boutique with the best brands,” says Molly Goodson, PopSugar’s editor and creative director.
As players advance up through the game’s levels, new items are unlocked for a character’s avatar to wear or sell in their store. Users can build a virtual shopping neighborhood with their Facebook friends as well, sharing ideas or shopping in each other’s stores.
Retail Therapy came about after PopSugar staff noticed the popular series of games on Facebook and elsewhere lacked shopping-centric options. The site partnered with fashion heavy hitters like Barney’s Juicy Couture and Gap as well as the ones previously mentioned, some of which actually have functioning storefronts within the game that users can browse through.
You can play Retail Therapy for free if you chose, but users may opt to advance quicker and stock their shops by adding virtual goods from all of the participating sponsors, which run anywhere from $1-100. And if you like something you see within the game, you can find that actual item for sale on the sponsor’s e-commerce website with just the click of a mouse.
Given the tremendous amount of detail involved in the game—the boutique store builder can tailor layouts and add customized furniture, for example—coupled with its unique nature as the first social game of its type that we’ve heard of and plenty of prospective users, we expect Retail Therapy to be a big hit.
Goodson also says that users can expect the first of many giveaways in the coming weeks, including the chance to win some of the brands you’ll see in the game itself. Weekly contests for the best stores and best characters will also be launched as well.
Head on over to the game’s page and let us know what you think. We’d love to get some great reviews from Junkie readers on this new game!
After Farmville’s success companies are starting to appreciate the power of interactive games. This is only one of many more to come.