Wizards of Waverly Place

 Review

Common Sense Media says

TV's magical tweens star in adventure with logic puzzles.
greenON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
yellowPAUSE: Know your child; some content
may not be right for some kids.
redOFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
not for kidsNOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age.

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Quality
 
Sometimes media can be age appropriate but a real waste of time. Our star rating assesses the media's overall quality.

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Parents say

Not yet rated

Kids say

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that Wizards of Waverly Place is an adventure game that emphasizes puzzle-solving and interacting with other characters rather than combat. Spells occasionally backfire, resulting in broken science experiments or people being temporarily frozen (hence the "Comic Mischief" disclaimer), but the tone is cheeky rather than mean-spirited. Alex is somewhat preoccupied with her crush, Dean, but it's innocent. One of the mini-games asks trivia questions about the TV show, which might trip up players unfamiliar with Waverly "lore." The game also supports Disney's DGamer online features that let players unlock costumes and achievements.

  • While the Russo siblings occasionally cause mischief with their magic (sometimes intentionally, and sometimes as the result of a spell backfiring), they strive to help their parents and teachers.
  • Alex is slightly preoccupied with a boy (Dean), and fashion, and sometimes tries to get out of doing chores. But overall she's helpful and proves to be a good friend.
  • This game is easy to play using the DS stylus and offers a variety of things to do.

What's it about?

Based on the Disney TV show of the same name, WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE is a Nintendo DS adventure game that follows the story of three siblings (Alex, Max, and Justin Russo) who also happen to be wizards-in-training. Players alternate between controlling all three Russo kids as they try to balance their "normal" lives attending TriBeca Prep and working at the family's sandwich shop in Waverly Place with honing their magic skills in secret at the WizTech magic school. When people randomly start being frozen by some kind of strange magic, the siblings must get to the bottom of the mystery.


Is it any good?

 

Players will spend most of their time figuring out which items or spells are needed to solve puzzles – for example, the guys can't play dodge ball until they've found the coach's missing whistle, which another student dropped in the park. Players can use a variety of magic spells to manipulate objects in the environment – including "move," "levitate," and "freeze," – by tracing the correct pattern with the stylus. There are a variety of mini-games too, such as making sandwiches, hitting targets with a catapult, and popping bubbles to mix potions. Older, more experienced gamers might find the "fetch quest" aspect of the gameplay a bit transparent, but Wizards of Waverly Place is a solid game with plenty of different things to do, none of which are overly difficult or frustrating. For its target audience, namely the same 'tweens that watch the TV show, the game shouldn't disappoint.

Online interaction: This game can connect to D-Gamer, a place for kids to interact with others, as well as unlock costumes and achievements found in the game.


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What families can talk about

  • Families can talk about what it would be like to lead a double life. Why was it important for the kids to keep their magic skills a secret?

  • Which school do you think it would be more fun to attend? TriBeca Prep or the WizTech school of magic?


This review was written by Erin Bell
Kid, 12 years old
December 21, 2009
 
Fun,but challenging
It's fun,but also challenging

Flag as inappropriate 
Teen, 17 years old
August 31, 2009
 
cool and wizardy
i bet eveybody love this game and i am not 14!

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Kid, 11 years old
February 25, 2011
 
everyone! it even says on the cover of the game e 4 every1!
everybody who can play video games its perfect 4! its a magical game and u can play as alex russo, and learn spells!

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Kid, 10 years old
September 21, 2009
 
love it

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Parent of 15 year old
December 12, 2009
 
it is for any age
i love it. i played the whole game. it is a little hard though.

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Kid, 13 years old
October 3, 2010
 
This is an awesome game. A must have if you like WOWP(Wizards of Waverly Place)

Flag as inappropriate 
Teen, 17 years old
October 27, 2009
 
good for 8+ and also 4 teens
actualy i couldnt open it!!!!!!! but have heard a lot from ma frnds

Flag as inappropriate 

This review was written by Erin Bell
Topics:magic and fantasy
Platforms:Nintendo DS
Available online?Not available online
Genre:Action/Adventure
Developer:Disney Interactive
Release date:August 25, 2009
Price:$29.99
ESRB rating:E for Comic Mischief

This review was written by Erin Bell

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About our rating system
ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids.
OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
Learning ratings
BEST: Really engaging, great learning approach.
GOOD: Pretty engaging, good learning approach.
FAIR: Somewhat engaging, OK learning approach.
NOT FOR LEARNING: Not recommended for learning.

 

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