Wizard101 Finds Its Voice

Hey all . . . press release from the boss! Lot's of great stuff here. J. Todd Coleman had mentioned voice overs in the interview with Nelson Everhart . . . he's a man of his word! Also, the shared bank is discussed . . . you read it here first! Work it, Kingsisle! Work it!

KingsIsle adds voiceover, shared item banks for players

Plano, Texas--March 12, 2009-- Online entertainment company KingsIsle Entertainment, Inc. announced today that the first two worlds in Wizard101 (www.wizard101.com), which recently surpassed its one millionth player, will soon feature voiceovers in all quests, cinematics, and boss encounters. Wizard City and Krokotopia voiceovers will be implemented on March 16, with Marleybone, Moo Shu, and Dragonspyre to follow.

"The voiceovers add an amazing amount of personality and richness to the world" said J. Todd Coleman, director of Wizard101. "In particular, the seasoned voice of Merle Ambrose is very entertaining and in line with our vision for the Headmaster of Ravenwood."

Additionally, players will be able to share in-game items they collect between all the characters on their account. Items can be stored in the player's dorm room and used by any characters the player has created. Each account may create up to six characters. "When a boss drops a really cool item after a battle that is meant for a different School of Magic, players can now share it with another character that can use it," explained Coleman.

Wizard City will be wearing green in celebration of St. Patrick's Day, with special wands, staves, and a unique pet available from Pat O'Gold in the Shopping District.

Wizard101 has received high praise for its wide appeal. Dragonspyre, the recently-launched first major world expansion, continues the storyline in an ancient haunted world where players face challenging new battles and ultimately discover the truth about renegade Death Magic professor Malistaire Drake's sinister plans. Several Player vs. Player Arenas were also added where players can challenge each other in either Practice or Ranked duels, with up to four Wizards per team.

Wizard101's family-friendly safety features include a collaborative play style, a chat system with many options and a character name selector. The game was awarded a 2008 Parent Tested Parent Approved Media Seal of Approval and has an ESRB rating of E10+.

Anyone with a Windows based PC (that meets the game's minimum specifications) and a high speed internet connection can play the Free-to-Play areas of Wizard101 indefinitely. KingsIsle lets players choose subscription or microtransaction methods for premium content. Family plan subscriptions are $6.95 per month and general subscriptions are $9.95. Micropayment zones give permanent access to particular streets or areas within the game for as little as a $1.