It’s Throwback Thursday again, so why don’t we take a trip down memory lane in the Spiral? Hop in the B.O.X. with the Professor and let’s travel way, way back to this month seven years ago, in 2009!
Back in Wizard101’s second year, the game celebrated its first big milestone of one million players. To commemorate this achievement, a fountain was placed outside of Merle Ambrose’s house, dedicated to the millionth Wizard, Fiona AshBlood. For a limited time, players also received 101 Crowns to celebrate. It was an exciting time in the early days of the Spiral. Were you one of the first million Wizards to join the game before February 2009?
Since that time, Wizard101 has continued to grow with millions more Wizards continuing to join the adventure in the Spiral. Later in 2009, the fountain was removed and a new statue added in Wizard City, to celebrate the 5-millionth player. You’ve no doubt seen it while fishing in the Commons pond. The statue features two Wizards and a piggle pet with an inscription that reads “Gratias Ago Vos.” This message means “thank you” in Latin and serves to honor all of the players who have helped make Wizard101 the wonderful game that it is today. In honor of the most recent milestone in 2014, players were given a gorgeous monolith housing item to celebrate 50 million players in the Spiral.
Another notable event in February 2009 was the game update that improved the True Friend system. True Friend codes are a great way to share Wizard101 with friends and family. When you generate the unique code and give it to someone, they can then enter it and will be added to your friends list with their name in green.
Booster Packs are common in Wizard101 today, but that wasn’t always the case. Back in 2009 the first ever Treasure Card Booster Pack, Eye of Bartleby, was introduced. Since then lots of new packs have been added with housing items, mounts, spells, jewels and more!
We hope you enjoyed this nostalgic trip through days of the Spiral’s past for this Throwback Thursday. Share your memories from the early days of Wizard101 in the comments!
Did you know that we’ve recently soft launched our second new mobile game? It’s true! AlphaCat is a brand new match-three game from KingsIsle that’s coming first to Canada and then to the world shortly after.
We’ve got a lot of great information in this blog post to get you started. Read on for the basics about AlphaCat, a couple of helpful starter tips and even some important links to social pages that you can ‘Like’ and ‘Follow’ to keep an eye on KingsIsle’s newest game.
But first things first–you have to check out all the awesome feline power featured in the official trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xlx3oRagIY
To anyone wondering, “who is this AlphaCat anyway?” Well, the AlphaCat is planet Whiskar’s first space explorer tasked to battle and defeat your planet’s enemies! Playing as the AlphaCat you’ll seek out treasure, treats, and crew members across the galaxy while watching out for tough enemies on the prowl.
Watch out! Running into an opponent in a dungeon pulls you into battle. It takes matching strings of tiles to win—the longer the string of tiles you match, the more damage you and your crew members deliver. PURRFECT!
Here’s a helpful tip for new players: Don’t forget to take advantage of the abilities your crew members build up while in battle. Those cute buddies of yours can really pack a punch! Different crew members have different abilities, so try to find a diverse crew that will best help you with the mission at hand.
Here’s another helpful tip: Don’t forget to upgrade yourself and your crew members! As you progress, you’ll face tougher and tougher enemies and tricky obstacles.
Ready to pounce yet? If you are, AlphaCat is currently available in Canada with world launch coming in Spring 2016! If you’re in Canada, please find AlphaCat in the Google Play store, with Amazon and Apple Stores to follow, and be sure to review the game to let us know what you think. For the rest of you, follow us on our social media outlets for late-breaking information on the upcoming world release of AlphaCat.
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AlphaCatGame
- Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/AlphaCatGame
- Google +: https://plus.google.com/111472241548100658155
If you’re looking for even more information, you’ll find a wealth of knowledge on AlphaCat’s homepage https://www.alphacatgame.com — planet Whiskar needs you!
Did you know today, February 16th, is Innovation Day? This is a special day that’s set apart and dedicated to paying tribute to all those amazing innovative ideas around us. Every day at KingsIsle we see innovation happening both from our employees and from our amazing players. Let’s take a look at a couple of amazing and recent innovations that have happened from both sides of the fence.
KingsIsle recently released a really cool bundle for fans of Wizard101 to purchase called, the Jewel Crafter’s Bundle. Josef Hall, vice president and creative director at KingsIsle Entertainment, wanted to have our Crystal Unicorn Mounts, crystal butterfly pets, and shard warrior armor and hammer be SHINY! In fact, he wanted them to be shinier than our light mapping techniques currently allowed. The team went to work so the shiny items wouldn’t fall flat and figured out a way to push the envelope a little more to bring those items to life – that new innovative technique is now integrated into Wizard101, and we’ll be able to use it on all kinds of things now (including a certain funny item coming up for April Fool’s Day).
Other innovations have also been made with the release of Polaris. We now have slippery ice and new NPC characters that blink their eyes! It’s the innovative touches like these that make Wizard101 get better and better with time.
Our players show innovation every day. We love the innovative efforts our player groups like the Mercenaries for Hire and Duelist101 put into figuring out strategies for beating those big bad cheating bosses in the Spiral. Not to mention that every day our players come up with very innovative strategies to duel each other in the PvP arenas. Our more creative fans even innovate with their fanart and fan fiction where they blend their personal talents with our original characters. It’s a lot of fun and makes for amazing pictures like this one from Aaron ShadowRider (aka Dark Rapier).
Currently, the final boss in Wizard101 is a big mean character known as Rasputin. This is a difficult instance that should require a group, but thanks to innovative players like Skelemystyk, there’s now a really innovative strategy to solo this very difficult boss. That’s innovation every soloing wizard101 player can appreciate.
Do you have an example of something innovative you do in Wizard101, Pirate101, or one of our mobile games? We’d love to hear about it in the comments below. Happy innovation day!
It’s fun to compare yourself to video game characters, and the Spiral is full of great ones! Which Wizard101 characters are you like?
If you’re single-minded…
After Malistaire’s wife Sylvia died, he left his post as professor of the Death School in Ravenwood and turned his focus toward stealing the powerful book known as the Krokonomicon. His goal? Making the Dragon Titan bring his wife back. It’s hard not to admire that kind of stubborn determination!
If you’re stylish…
Some Wizard101 players select clothing items based primarily on how fashionable they are, then stitch on the properties of other garments so they’re able to pack a punch in battle and look great while doing so! If that sounds like you, chances are that you identify with Dalia Falmea, professor of fire magic. Dalia can usually be seen wearing her trademark red and orange gown, but if you’ve ever encountered her in the Wizard City Telegraph Box during the Five B.O.X.E.S event, you’ll probably recall she has a stunning blue outfit as well. One thing’s for sure: Whatever color she’s wearing, Dalia is dressed to impress.
If you love to travel…
Most Wizard101 characters only frequent certain regions of the Spiral, but Prospector Zeke isn’t one of them. In fact, he can be found in the main area of each world, selling mounts and assigning quests. He’s one of the first characters you meet as a young Wizard, and you’ll still find yourself interacting with him at Level 100! If you enjoy visiting different places and trying to blend into the local culture wherever you go, you’ve got something in common with Prospector Zeke!
If you’re always willing to lend a hand…
When Malistaire disappeared following his wife’s death, classes at the Death School were canceled indefinitely. Without a professor, the school faced an uncertain future, and that’s when Malorn Ashthorn stepped in to ensure the practice of necromancy didn’t die out—no pun intended. This student-turned-teacher can be found in Ravenwood, making sure new Death Wizards know the basics of their school. Once they’ve picked up a few skills and spells, Malorn directs them to Nightside, where they can continue their studies with Dworgyn, a more seasoned instructor.
If you simply love being yourself…
It’s fun to find similarities between yourself and video game characters like the familiar faces in Wizard101, but at the end of the day, you’re one of a kind—and that’s something to celebrate! Wizard101 lets you show off your uniqueness by giving you the opportunity to choose your character’s name, school, outfit and even hairstyle, so no two Wizards are the same!
Many games have cheat codes, and although Wizard101 players aren’t cheaters, they are pretty smart! Here are some Wizard101 tips and tricks to help players advance their characters, get free stuff and improve their overall gaming experience.
Skip the test
When a new player sets up a Wizard101 account, Merle Ambrose will guide him or her through the process of creating a character. This involves choosing the Wizard’s gender, name and appearance, as well as taking a test to determine which school the Wizard belongs to. The quiz, which can be found in the Book of Secrets, includes questions about the player’s personality, preferences and priorities. While it’s great for newbies who are unsure which school will fit them best, it’s not as useful for seasoned players looking to create secondary characters who belong to particular schools. Rather than trying to guide the quiz toward recommending a specific school, these players can select the “Skip the test” option—or simply select a different school if the quiz doesn’t suggest the one they’re hoping for.
Find the bizarre at the bazaar
The wide variety of wares on offer at the Bazaar is one of the best-kept Wizard101 secrets. It’s possible to sort the items on sale at the Bazaar in several different ways: alphabetically, by rank, by school, by cost and by number. Players who love snagging rarities to use, wear or display can click the “#” sign in any category to see what’s in short supply. Crafted items even appear at the Bazaar from time to time!
Sidestep item limits
Wizards’ backpacks, banks, houses and attics all have item limits, but players with more than one character on their accounts can take advantage of the shared bank. The shared bank is often used to transfer items between players—a Life Wizard who wins a pair of Storm boots could pass them along to a Storm Wizard created using the same account, for example—but it’s also a great option to keep in mind when storage space gets tight. Meanwhile, players who want to place more items in their houses than the usual restrictions allow may want to purchase the Bric-a-Brac Elixir from the Crown Shop for a permanent 50-item increase.
Play mini games on FreeKIGames.com
Mini games like Potion Motion and Doodle Dug are a fun part of the Spiral, but players don’t have to be inside the Wizard101 universe to play. At FreeKIGames.com, Wizard101 fans can play the games they know and love, and win exclusive free game codes in the process. They may not be Wizard101 cheat codes, but they’re prize codes, which is even better!
Follow Wizard101 on social media
Players who follow Wizard101’s Facebook and Twitter accounts can win free items by being among the first to redeem codes for pets, mounts, reagents, treasure cards and more. There’s no telling when the next flash offer will pop up, so players should keep their eyes peeled and their fingers ready to type in the next code at a moment’s notice!
Do you have any Wizard101 tips and tricks of your own to share?
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