I played “Wizard 101”, a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed by KingsIsle Entertainment. The game was originally released in 2008 and is intended to be played by children and young teens, primarily available on PC and now accessible for certain Playstation and Xbox versions as well as the Nintendo Switch. “Wizard 101” immerses its players in a vast, magical universe called “the Spiral” as they play as young student wizards in the Ravenwood School of Magical Arts. Despite its fantastical setting and often absurd, referential humor that targets younger players, “Wizard 101” successfully moves players of all ages to care about the Spiral. It uses both a multilayered, complex world as well as a plot motivated by clear threats and objectives to immerse players as they defend this magical world.
The Spiral is a vast and detailed universe that could be quite daunting to understand all at once. Upon downloading the game, I appreciated the immersive introduction that gave me information in easily digestible chunks. I was told that I was a student wizard and had the opportunity to both customize my character and take a quiz that identifies my style of play. This helped with world building as I built my “main character” and gained a better understanding of what my role was—as written in “The Psychology of World Building”, the “main character anchors your story and gives your world a point of focus”. My character, being a young wizard, gave the perfect filter through which I could understand “Wizard 101”. Since my character was assumed to know little about magic and the school, I was walked through many important mechanics like how battles worked (how to defend, how to attack, etc.) during my first fight with the main protagonist Malistaire. Since it was my character that I had customized and named who was navigating through this world, I felt personally invested in what was happening and wanted to see her succeed as an extension/representation of myself.
Quiz that players take at the beginning of the game
The “supporting cast” layer of world building also contributed to my immersion and made me feel more invested in the universe. For instance, the non-playable characters (NPCs) all had so much personality and were often both fun to interact with and helpful as I was getting a hang of the game. In particular, Merle Ambrose, the wise old headmaster, is a supportive and kind character who guided me through my first battle and continues on to assign me quests. He is also a large part of the world’s history, especially as the founder of Ravenwood. Ambrose and many other side characters are well fleshed out with their own personalities and desires. As a mentor figure, Ambrose serves as a good reference for what my goals should be, and, playing as both a character and a player, I came to value his role. So, when this kind, grandfather-like figure expresses concern over a threat and assigns me to subdue it, I feel inclined to fulfill his request. The magical system and visual setting of the universe also motivates me to feel more emotionally invested in protecting the Spiral. The world is bright and beautiful, visually teeming with the magic that I and other characters also possess. Even as a new player, I can see that “Wizard 101” has so many new settings and worlds to be unpacked and explored. I want to proceed forward and progress the plot even only if it’ll let me unlock new settings, like Unicorn Way.
Unicorn Way, the town the player is first sent to for their mission.
This desire for exploration also ties into the formal elements of the game. One of the formal elements of any video game is “objective”, which includes incentives for progressing. In this case, “Wizard 101” motivates its players through the desires to explore, rescue, and outwit. As a player, I have to defend Ravenwood; I am constantly presented with active and pressing threats that make me more protective of the setting my player consciousness was born into. These threats are also linked to the formal element of “conflict”. In “Wizard 101”, my immediate opponent is Malistaire, a former Death Professor at Ravenwood who is sowing chaos across the Spiral as he seeks dangerous ways to revive his wife, who has died. With this, I find that the goal of this game is to not only protect myself and find individual success, but it is to help the broader world of players and NPCs who inhabit the Spiral. This incites a similar protectiveness of the in-game world as what I feel for my real-world communities.
My first battle with the main antagonist
To respond to the ethical question, I appreciated the amount of customization “Wizard 101” allowed as I designed my character, and I believe it avoided implying biological association between traits and race. I did notice that, despite various options for skin color, hair color, and other attributes, the characters could only be of one body type. Though this is probably a result of the limited early game graphics, ideally more body options would be available for players to best immerse themselves in their characters. Additionally, players are able to choose what type of wizard they are, but this is determined either by completing a personality quiz or by skipping the quiz to choose it themselves. Each player’s type of magic is where their power is sourced from, so their chosen magic category might be the closest in-game parallel to real world cultural distinctions. You are also unable to edit your chosen type following selection, which further supports the functional purpose of this magic type being to divide characters in a similar way biology did in early Dungeons & Dragons. As such, one suggestion I would make would be to offer the opportunity for players to move into a different magic style so, if this initial commitment doesn’t resonate with them, they might try out varied options with heightened flexibility/chances to accurately express themselves.
My customized character on the loading page
