Ganz’s Webkinz virtual pets and world seem to have found a permanent and stable home on the internet. The stuffed toys come with a special code which allows users to unlock that pet at the Webkinz site and begin playing in the virtual environment. While it is primarily geared towards kids, many parents have also become fans of the toys and residents of the Webkinz world.

Now, Ganz has expanded the line of toys to very young children with Webkinz Jr. This division is geared specifically towards toddlers and kindergartners, roughly between the ages of three and six. The goal is to offered a simplified environment which allows younger children to also begin building computer skills and other abilities while also playing in a completely safe, virtual, online environment…

Webkinz is becoming more and more like a mini-massive multiplayer online (MMO) game for kids. The latest addition to Webkinz, the Webkinz eStore proves it. A premium shop now exists for the popular children and casual gamer’s browser virtual pet. Players can visit the Webkinz eStore and purchase furniture and clothing for their characters – for a premium price.

You see, unlike most MMOs, the items in the Webkinz eStore are quite expensive. Ridiculously so. The rocket and picnic basket “Super Beds” both cost $9. Other costly items include a $8 pool, $7 waterfall or suit of armor or 2 $6 modular sofa packs. Players can purchase a train set, fridge or stove for $5.

The cheapest item is a $4 chair, but it may just be the most expensive item of all. Even though all transactions involve Ganz just emailing you a code for the items you’ve purchased after you give your Visa/Mastercard/Amex card information, there is a minimum order of $5. So if someone just wanted to buy the $4 chair, they couldn’t. They would have to either buy two chairs, or a chair and another item, to break the $5 barrier.

On April 29, 2008, the Webkinz web-based virtual pet game for kids celebrates it’s third anniversary. While real world events were held on April 25-27, 2008 at various Webkinz toy retailers in the US and Canada, a special event in the virtual world was planned for the actual anniversary. Users logging in on the day are greeted by a pop-up announcement saying a special gift has been placed in their docks, and the front page ‘newspaper’ has a news story celebrating the day.

The package is filled with rare items. There is a slice of Webkinz Day 2008, a Webkinz Day 2008 group picture, a Webkinz Day 2008 trophy and a wish token. The cake can be fed to a pet, the token can be used in the wish factory for an exclusive item, and the trophy and picture can be used as decorations in rooms.

Webkinz has disappointed countless players yet again. The game’s latest ‘blessing’ has become a curse. On April 3, 2008, a stadium was added to the Webkinz online world, where members would be able to gather to enter their pets in contests for large kinz cash prizes. The stadium events are usually held in the evenings, and users must pay a kinzcash entrance fee and register for an event two hours ahead of time. It sounds like a fun concept for the kids who play the game, right? Wrong. Instead of bringing joy, it brings up a new problem for users.

A Spring Festival is coming to the Webkinz world on March 23, 2008. Like previous festivals, a gift will be delivered to the dock of each Webkinz user who takes the time to log in on that specific date. Like most of the festivals for the internet game, there will also be items flying by that, when clicked, provide users with a random treat. WebKinzBlog already has reported that Ganz has put users on the alert for flying eggs. Users with quick reflexes can click on the floating eggs to receive chocolate eggs.

An interesting move has been made by Ganz, the creators of the popular online web-game Webkinz, and by ‘interesting’ I mean bad for the users. The company has recently revamped the game’s Curio Shop, a place where rare and discounted items can be found. Before, there was a way for fan sites to determine which rare items would be available each day, and players could then be on at that time and buy as many as they wished. Now Ganz has altered the structure so fan sites can no longer determine what will be there. It gets worse – a limit has been placed on how many rare items can be bought when they are available.

Ty, the company responsible for the Beanie Baby fad in the 1990s, is trying to steal 15 more minutes of fame. It has recently released new Beanie Baby 2.0 dolls and an accompanying online environment to compete with Ganz’s Webkinz dolls and game. Like Webkinz, each Beanie Baby 2.0 toy comes with a secret code which allows the owner to go online and play with the virtual pet in a virtual, flash-based world.

A new promotional campaign on Webkinz is hoping to build a buzz about the upcoming Alvin and the Chipmunks movie. A series of special advertisements began appearing on the sidebar alongside the newspaper page on December 1, 2007. There are so far three types of ads, one which is just a normal advertisement and two which provide free items.

The free item ads clearly say on the ad what they will provide. One ad states that Theodore wants to share his favorite food and clicking on it will add a plate of waffles to the user’s dock. The other ad mentions getting a chipmunk costume for your pet, and clicking on it will send one of three different outfits sets to your dock. The Simon and Theodore costumes each come with a hoodie sweatshirt and a pair of glasses with a chipmunk face attached. The Alvin costume comes with the chipmunk glasses, a hoodie, and a decorative toy guitar.