Game: My Universe Fashion Boutique
Genre: Simulation
System: Nintendo Switch (Also on PC, PS4 and Xbox One)
Developer|Publisher: Black Sheep Studio| Microids
Age Rating: EU 3+ | US Everyone
Price: UK £35.99 | EU € 39,99 | US $29.99
Release Date: October 27th 2020
Review code provided with many thanks to Microids
Being a big fan of the Nintendo games Style Boutique (or Style Savvy as it’s called in the US) I’ve been on the lookout for a good fashion game since the Switch was released. Nintendo themselves are pretty quiet on the Style-front, so I started looking at other contenders.
A couple of weeks ago I looked at SELFY COLLECTION in hopes that it would be a good one too, but that’s more of a dress-up game then a management game. (My review for that game is here) Now it’s time to look at another contender, My Universe Fashion Boutique.
Busy Job Ahead
Your uncle Nathan sends you a letter telling you about the Fashion Store that is run by Rose. Rose is a friend of Uncle Nathan, and she is happy to help you to become a great fashion designer. All in good time of course, first you have to learn how to run the store and make the clothes you can sell. After lots of customisation options for your character you get started while Rose takes you step by step through the motions.
Fashion Boutique has a lot of elements. Before you open the doors for the day and invite customers in, you have to make sure that you are ready. You have to listen to requests from the customers that come through your door and try to help them in the best way you can. So first, make sure the mannequins that are in the store are dressed, advertising your stock. It may be a good idea to have some stock at the ready too of various items of clothing, so you are prepared for requests.
When the customers come in you have to try and fulfill their requests as best you can. You also have to clean up the dressing room (no worries, just holding down A does the trick). And take care of the taking their cash too, as money makes the world go ’round!
Make the Clothes Yourself
In Style Boutique, you can shop for the clothes you need, and you have to buy enough items of each, depending on your expectations of how much in demand they will be. In Fashion Boutique you have to make them yourself. All of them…and there are a lot of variations.
Tops, jackets, several sorts of trousers, dresses and more. And for each of the items, you can choose if you want them short, long or in between, and whether they have short or long sleeves (not for the trousers, obviously). Of course, there’s a choice of materials too and colors as well. The colors aren’t just pre-determined, there’s even a color wheel to make it just the way you want it.
You have to play several mini-games to make the garments you want to sell. For every item, you have to make the pattern by applying different tools. After that, you press at the right time to cut the fabric and lastly, you have to handle the sewing machine. To be honest, that’s not really my cup of tea. It takes a long time to make an item and it can get repetitive. To my relief though, as soon as you have mastered a clothing item you can get it instantly afterward.
You get a mobile phone to see how many coins you have amassed, with which you unlock patterns, materials, clothing items and accessories. On it, you can also see your calendar and requests that customers have made in advance. The calendar shows fashion shows you get invited for when your hard work gets noticed.
My Universe Games
Fashion Boutique has a lot of content with lots of clothes, designs and fabrics. The shop expands when you reach a certain level, you can participate in fashion shows and change the interior of your store as well.
Keep in mind that the My Universe series of games is designed specifically for kids, that want to play make belief in an adult profession. Hence the mini games I think and the way the game introduces new things into the gameplay at a high tempo.
In graphics, I felt however that the game is a little rough around the edges. The characters look a bit rough and when your models walk a fashion show, it all feels rather empty. The music is a relaxed background tune and the game handles well in handheld.
Conclusion
As I mentioned in the intro, I was looking for a Style Boutique-like game. Fashion Boutique does have a bit of store management included, but it lacks stock management. You don’t shop for clothes keeping an eye on fashion trends. In this game, you make the clothes yourself by doing mini-games. That can get repetitive but luckily once a pattern is mastered, you don’t have to do the mini-game for that particular item anymore.
The game has wide variety of things to unlock and expand, and works hard to keep the gamer entertained. It’s visually not as pleasing however, and feels a bit empty and rough around the edges.
In the end I do like the game, keeping in mind its intended younger audience. You can easily fritter away the hours while working on your stock and keeping your customers happy. I do feel that the American price is fair, but the European price point is a bit high for my taste.
Final Verdict: I Like it 
Thank you for the helpful review! I love seeing perspectives from people who already are fans of the types of games I am. This was super helpful for me and I really appreciated how you presented your opinion as well.
Hope you’re having (or had) a nice day!