Petra's Planet, a New Virtual World for Children Aimed at Stimulating Curiosity

LONDON, May 22, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

Unique educational insight into different cultures

Today sees the launch of an exciting new virtual world aimed at children between 6-11 years old.  Petra's Planet (http://www.petrasplanet.com) is an educational virtual world that stimulates children's natural curiosity and encourages exploration of other cultures through play in a virtual environment.  

There are four countries to discover in Petra's Planet, including Sami land, Senegal, Sri Lanka and Jordan.  Children can explore the different cultures and lives of the people from each country, learning about their lifestyles, as well as discovering the different animals that live in each country, the landscape and climate.  

Aside from the strong educational element, Petra's Planet offers children the chance to enjoy hours of fun exploring the world; playing mini-games and taking part in quests and challenges, either individually or playing with friends in a safe and controlled environment.  With learning through play a key part of Petra's Planet, the virtual world offers one of the UK's richest game content, boosting over 47 individual educational and fun mini-games.

Other players in the virtual world are visible and the site gives children the opportunity to communicate with each other but only using pre-defined phrases, signs, expressions and funny gestures, thus ensuring the complete safety of visitors.  

Tomi Heinonen, CEO of Dramaforum, the company behind Petra's Planet said, "Young children are naturally curious and we wanted to create a fun, educational and above all else, completely safe environment in which to explore unfamiliar countries around the world."  

He continued, "Every country offers something different to discover, nurturing children's curiosity and provoking interest and the opportunity to learn about different cultures.  Each location that Petra visits is incredibly authentic and enables children to get a real feel for each country."

New content will be created and added to Petra's Planet continuously, with new regions being introduced in the months ahead.

Petra's Planet is free to play or membership packages are available.  Alternatively, virtual items can be bought via micro transactions, called 'Kipps' starting at £1 for 200 Kipps or earned by reaching certain levels on quests and challenges.

Parents and children can keep up-to-date on all the latest Petra's Planet news by following on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest.

Editor's Notes:

About Petra's Planet

Petra's Planet was created by Dramaforum Oy, a Finnish media company specialising in children's products, with the virtual world developed by Leeds-based Dubit and Kzero.

The virtual world has been inspired by Eevamaria Halttunen's book series with the same title and based on the adventures of seven year old Petra who finds a way to travel around the globe. The virtual world continues the theme of curiosity, safety and adventure.  

The team are passionate about valuing childhood, partnering with UNICEF in Finland, and keeping Petra's Planet as commercially free as possible.

For media enquiries, site reviews, photography, logos, and interviews or to discuss competition prizes please contact one of the UK PR team at KISS Public Relations:

Laura Brown/Natalie Job/Justine Smith
T: +44(0)208-12345-75
E-mail: laura@kisscom.co.uk
natalie_job@kisscom.co.uk
justine@kisscom.co.uk