We've received word from both Perfect World Entertainment and KingsIsle Entertainment that Ether Saga Online and Wizard101 were both named Honors Award winners in the 2009 National Parenting Publications Awards (NAPPA) Children's Products competition. The awards acknowledge that both MMOs are standouts among the video games available for children today.

For an example of the criteria that is sought among judges, here's a quote from NAPPA judge Alex Chisholm regarding Wizard101: "This multi-player online adventure game encourages social activity and collaboration among players. While other online fantasy games may be too mature for some kids, Wizard101 hits a nice balance among fun, adventure and competition as players are summoned to help save Wizard City."

We'd like to congratulate both games for earning these awards. What other family friendly MMOs do you play? Free Realms immediately jumps to mind.

In honor of Veterans Day on Nov. 11, KingsIsle Entertainment is thanking all veterans, current military personnel and their families by offering them an exclusive Wizard101 in-game item. All you need to do is head over to the Veterans Day promotion page and submit your .mil e-mail address. If you don't have one, you can "enter you or your immediate family member's enlist date and where you were most recently stationed."

All veterans, military personnel and family members who fill out the form by Nov. 11 at midnight Central Time will receive a code for a Valor Sword via the provided e-mail address after Nov. 13.

The newest Wizard101 update is now live and adds a number of changes to the game, including mounts, a new Crowns Shop, henchmen and a seamstress. We reported on the new mounts last month, and the first four that have been implemented in the game are Brooms, Horses, Cats, and Dragons. You can rent them for a day or a week, or even purchase them permanently.

A new Crowns Shop icon will appear on your screen that will give you access to the store at nearly every point in the game. Henchmen are hired Wizards you can purchase in combat to help you with a duel, while the seamstress will transfer the stats of one item to the appearance of another.

Check out the full patch notes for more information on the update, which also includes new elixers, gift giving, housing previews, transmutation crafting and more.

Wizard101 players both young and old alike will be able to ride brooms, horses, cats and dragons when Wizard Mounts are added to the game in October. A wider variety of mounts will be available in the future, but these four will be the only ones you can purchase at launch.

The mounts can be rented for one day or a week, and they may also me permanently purchased with in-game gold or Crowns. One-day rentals add a 20% movement increase, while seven-day rentals and permanent purchases add a 40% speed boost. The full announcement can be found below.

As we've reported, KingsIsle Entertainment is celebrating the one-year anniversary of Wizard101 this month with numerous events, such as the Wonders of Wizard101 screenshot contest. While the contest ends tomorrow, Sept. 12, at noon Central time, the in-game party is in full swing! The team just decorated the Commons, Shopping District and Ravenwood with streamers and balloons to make the world more festive. All players can even get their own party hat by following the instructions that are posted after the jump.

In addition to the new decorations, KingsIsle has announced that more than five million players from around the world have registered to play Wizard101 in the past year. Keep an eye out for more events this month on the party page.

Wizard101 launched one year ago today, which means it's time for a celebration! KingsIsle Entertainment is currently hosting the Wonders of Wizard101 contest that asks players to explore Spiral worlds and take screenshots of amazing sights in the family friendly game.

To participate, all you need to do is become a fan of the Wizard101 Facebook page and follow these instructions. If you're a player under 13 who can't use Facebook, you can still e-mail your screenshots directly to the Wizard101 team. You can submit up to three screenshots before the contest ends on Sept. 12 at noon.

All contests have prizes, right? According to the Wizard101 Web site, three first-place winners will receive a signed poster and 10,000 Crowns, and 12 second-place winners will get 5,000 Crowns. More party contests and events are planned for all the young Wizards who play the game, so stay tuned to the party events page for more information.

Eric Bloom may not be a kid, but he enjoys the family friendly Wizard101. The Blue Öyster Cult vocalist and longtime gamer has written an article for Massive Online Gamer explaining why adults can enjoy the magical game, and it all boils down to two words: "It's fun." While Bloom admits the game is targeted toward children, he says "it's sophisticated enough for adults, sort of MMO-Light. ... Technically, it loads very quickly, entrance between areas load almost instantly, a pleasure compared to more modern MMOs. You don't need a high-end computer to play."

Bloom says he's trying to get his other gaming friends to try out Wizard101, especially so they can play with their children. If you're not familiar with the singer's gaming history, he recently joined members of the Warhammer Online crew to record "Kiss My Axe (While I Drink My Beer)!" and we talked with him back in November 2007 about World of Warcraft, EverQuest II and Star Wars Galaxies.

We've reported on the world of Grizzleheim when it was announced and when it became available on the test realm, so all of our Wizard101 players should have a good idea of what the expansion brings to the game. Well, now you have the chance to try it out yourself because Grizzleheim was released today!

This is the largest expansion to date for Wizard101. It not only introduces Grizzleheim, an outdoor area inspired by Norse mythology, but also adds a bazaar, crafting system, grouping mechanic and open chat for players 18 and older.

You can read more about Grizzleheim below or in the official patch notes.

If you're interested in checking out the new world of Grizzleheim before it goes live in Wizard101, you're in luck! Grizzleheim can currently be played on the test realm, which is available to subscribers and Crowns Players who have made a purchase in the last 30 days. All the information you need to log on to the test server can be found here.

As we previously reported, Grizzleheim is an outdoor area inspired by Norse mythology. More information on the update, which the Wizard101 team says is "one of our biggest updates yet," can be found on the patch notes page.

Grizzleheim introduces Viking Bears, Ravens and Wolves to the game, as well as a bazaar so players can buy and sell items. A new crafting system will let you create your own equipment and Treasure Cards, and the grouping feature will let you team up with your friends. Also, the update will introduce chat channels and open chat for players ages 18 and up.

According to a post on the Ravenwood News section of the Wizard101 Web site, 18+ chat will be added to the game to allow older players more open communication with each other. In order to keep younger players safe, this option will only be available to active subscribers with a valid credit card on file.

Children under 13 will still only see menu chat, while players 13-18 will continue to see only dictionary chat. The new 18+ chat will be turned off by default until you turn it on in the account management section, and it will be filtered for profanity.

You can read more about the new chat enhancements below.