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  • Is it age appropriate?

    About our ratings

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    Not age appropriate for kids under 11, age appropriate for kids over 15; suggested age 13.

  • Is it any good?

    4.0

  • Common Sense says

    Beautiful virtual world has games, filtered chat.

On this site kids can:   chat, connect with friends, play in a virtual world
updated 09.18.09

Why We Rated This iffy for Ages 13–15

The good stuff

  • Educational value:

    Not an issue.

  • User-created content:

    Not an issue.

  • Messages:

    Not an issue.
 

What to watch out for

  • Violence:

    Some of the games feature shooting; one shows stick figures dying.

  • Sex:

    Not an issue.

  • Language:

    A filter catches foul language.

  • Consumerism:

    In order to do certain things on the site and to buy some items in the store, teens must pay real money to become a member ($6 a month or $50 a year). Flow (the site's "energy"), can be used to buy hairstyles and clothes -- and can be used to spin a prize wheel that can generate "coins," the site's currency, which is also used to buy stuff.

  • Drinking, drugs, & smoking:

    Not an issue.
 

How safe is it?

  • Personal privacy:

    Users could disclose personal information in the online chat rooms or when creating user profiles.

  • Online interaction:

    The Easy Chat function -- which players under 13 must use unless they have parental permission for open chatting -- lets kids choose from a limited selection of phrases, such as "Good Morning." Teens can also leave messages for each other via an online email-type system (kids under 13 can't use the system without parental permission, and the email accounts are locked and can't be accessed until a parent's email is confirmed). But it's fairly easy to just enter any email when registering to give you access.

  • Parental controls:

    Parents who allow a child younger than 12 to log in must provide an email address and are given priviliges to make changes to their child's account settings.
 

What Parents Need to Know

About OurWorld

Parents need to know that this visually impressive virtual world's chat functions are filtered to remove bad language and words like "email." In order to do certain things on the site and to buy some items in the store, teens must pay real money to become a member ($6 a month or $50 a year). Also, some games feature shooting.

Did this review help you decide?

Families Can Talk About

  • Families can talk about why it can be dangerous to chat openly online with strangers. Why is it safer to have preset responses, or to have some words blocked? Families can also talk about what type of information is safe to share with others online. A discussion about how to handle an unwelcomed invitation to chat or inappropriate comments may be helpful before entering the site.
Tools and tips that can help

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Our Members Say

Use this Web site? Review It!

  • What did you think about OurWorld?

  •  I think this Web site is

    for ages

  •  I also give it

  •  Any concerns?

  •  Any highlights?

  •  Love it? Hate it?

  • or to post a review
See all 30 member reviews

Most Recent Reviews

  1. Teen Reviewer Age 14
    kiko123
    I rate this title on for age 9 and give it 5.0
    My concerns are:
    • Excessive violence
    • Inappropriate sexual content
    • Inappropriate language
    • Excessive consumerism
    • Drinking, smoking, or drug use
    • Negative message
    • Safety is an issue
    • User content isn't age appropriate

    • My highlights are:
    • Educational
    • Positive messages
    • User content is age appropriate

    iv'e beem on 4 a year abd there was no prob at all!

    This review...

    Helped me decide | Had useful details | Read my mind
    Flag as inappropriate
  2. Teen Reviewer Age 14
    kiko123
    I rate this title on for age 9 and give it 5.0
    My concerns are:
    • Excessive violence
    • Inappropriate sexual content
    • Inappropriate language
    • Excessive consumerism
    • Drinking, smoking, or drug use
    • Negative message
    • Safety is an issue
    • User content isn't age appropriate

    • My highlights are:
    • Educational
    • Positive messages
    • User content is age appropriate

    iv'e beem on 4 a year abd there was no prob at all!

    This review...

    Helped me decide | Had useful details | Read my mind
    Flag as inappropriate
  3. Kid Reviewer Age 12
    buckethead6787
    I rate this title on for age 10 and give it 5.0
    My concerns are:
    • Inappropriate language

    • My highlights are:
    • Positive messages
    • Safety isn't an issue
    • User content is age appropriate

    Perfect for kids 10+

    I've been on ourworld for, pretty much two years, and I don't have a tendency to see anything "bad". You mainly have to try to get some bad input, but mostly, the filter will carry it out or make the message ***.

    This review...

    Helped me decide | Had useful details | Read my mind
    Flag as inappropriate
  4. Teen Reviewer Age 13
    gigi13
    I rate this title on for age 9 and give it 2.0

    O.M.G

    people in this game are swexy and they want to have it with u?

    This review...

    Helped me decide | Had useful details | Read my mind
    Flag as inappropriate
  5. Kid Reviewer Age 10
    smallfry99
    I rate this title on for age 9 and give it 5.0

    AMAZINGLY FAB!!!!!!

    This site is incredible!!! I am Resident and I am addicted to OW. All my friends are on it which means I have an easy way to talk to them when I'm not at school. The chat is filtered so slang swear words are blocked too as is anything that could possibly be used as a swear word. Shortcuts to rude words i.e (lezzo) is also blocked so quite safe!

    This review...

    Helped me decide | Had useful details | Read my mind
    Flag as inappropriate

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