Wizard101’s collaborative play style supports an environment where players benefit from working together in adventure quests and lower level characters can play alongside higher level ones. A three-tiered chat system and pre-defined character name generator create a safe community for younger players. The game contains no blood, and characters don’t die if they are defeated in a duel of spells—they simply go to a safe area on campus to regain health. An Arena provides a spot for more traditional gamers to show off their player versus player spell-casting skills.

Wizard101 is a family-friendly virtual world of wizardry in which magic comes to life in a quest that involves a massive cast of good, evil and frequently silly characters. Players take on the fantasy role of a Wizard apprentice at the prestigious Ravenwood School, where they learn, collect and cast spell cards, make friends, play mini games and more. Wizard101 is designed for all ages with the safety of young players in mind. The game contains no blood, and characters don't die if they are defeated in a duel of spells-they simply go to a safe area in the game to regain health.

As part of the character creation process, players will take a quiz to determine which of Ravenwood's seven schools of magic best suits their personality before they begin to collect and cast spells summoning imaginary and frequently silly cinematic creatures. As the player adventures through 3D environments encountering scenarios and characters based on history, mythology, pop culture and pure fantasy they will be able to upgrade their costume and magical accessories, adopt bizarre pets, solve puzzles, make friends and more.

Wizard101 players showed their strength as a community in benefiting two worthy organizations – Austin Children’s Shelter and Child’s Play. From Dec. 14 to Jan. 5, players were able to purchase an in-game riding mount, the “Meowmodon”, for approximately $15 with all proceeds from the sales going to the two charities. The $126,000 raised by Wizard101 players will be evenly distributed between the charities. The endeavor was the first for the award-winning, magic-themed massively multiplayer online (MMO) game.

Wizard101 selected the two beneficiaries – Austin Children’s Shelter and Child’s Play – to support the local Austin community as well as the global gaming community. Austin Children’s Shelter provides emergency shelter and care for abused and neglected children, and Child’s Play is a game industry charity dedicated to providing games and toys to children in hospitals worldwide.

“Wizard101 fans have shown that there truly is strength in numbers,” said Elie Akilian, CEO of KingsIsle Entertainment. “We were thrilled to see the Wizard101 community band together to benefit these two great organizations.”

Features include:

• Extensive magical 3D worlds, each with its own creative theme such as a feudal countryside run by Samoorai cows, or an ancient Egyptian-inspired land where the treasured relics are being carted off by dogs from another world.
• More than 101 collectible spells that come to cinematic life as players learn to summon creatures such as Ninja Pigs and a Leprechaun that slides in on a rainbow and showers opponents with gold.
• Seven different schools of Magic, each with its own unique style and gameplay experience.
• The ability to adopt magical pets, like a flying dragon or a mischievous imp.
• A wide variety of outfits and accessories for customizable Wizard avatars.
• Puzzles and mini-games that challenge players and provide a place to rest and rejuvenate after duels.

Anybody with a Windows based PC can join the Free-to-Play areas of the game for as long as they like. KingsIsle lets players choose subscription or microtransaction methods for advanced content. Family plan subscriptions are $6.95 per month, and general subscriptions are $9.95. Microtransaction zones give permanent access to particular streets or areas within the game for as little as a $1.

Wizard101 is free-to-play, with advanced play content available by subscription at the rate of $9.95 per month. Discounts are available for six-month and one-year subscriptions. For a limited time a 12 month subscription can be purchased for $60. Gift subscriptions are expected to be available online soon. The new family subscription plan enables family members to purchase multiple accounts charged to the same credit card at the rate of $6.95 per month for each account. Discounts to the general subscription plan are also available for six-month and one-year subscriptions. Additions to both the free-to-play and subscription game environments are planned on an ongoing basis.

To play Wizard101, rated E10+, PC users may simply go to the official Wizard 101 website and download the game installer.