In 6th grade, I was hanging out with two of my closest friends. They introduced me to an online virtual game called "Virtual Magic Kingdom." It was a Disney game, of course - one that allowed users to create their own character, build their own virtual rooms, chat with other players, and participate in quests to win virtual prizes. I was instantly interested. These were virtual characters all walking around in a virtual space designed after the Disney parks. Imagine: virtual characters wearing mouse ears, Mickey Mouse shirts, and princess dresses (the options extended far beyond this). 

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My fascination with the game led me to create my own account. It didn't take long to sign-up and create a user. My character was named "sarastrawbellar." Was there a particular reason as to why I selected this name? At the time, I was inspired by one of my dolls named "Sara Strawbella" who was scented like strawberries (the brand was called "Yummi-Land Soda Pop Girls"). Upon signing up and designing my character, I was even awarded a few clothing items and a "guest room" - which was a room I could decorate with items.

 

Here I was, represented by this virtual character, in a virtual world designed with famous places at Disney Parks. For example, VMK had a room designed after the Sci-Fi Dine-in, which is a restaurant at Disney's Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World. In this room, characters could click on the seats of the car to sit down. The room was also used for advertisements for upcoming Disney films, or in-game promotions. Talk about a fun and creative way to use product placement. And then, there was also one of my personal favorite rooms: The Blue Bayou. Just the background audio was enough to remind me of all those wonderful memories of eating at the Blue Bayou restaurant in New Orleans Square at Disneyland. In this room, users could sit down at one of the tables, and even order food by typing "gator waiter" into the chatbox and ordering something like a Monte Cristo or Mint Julep. From what I can remember, the gator waiter (a non-character player) would register this request and bring over an actual dish of food for your own virtual character to eat. 

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Besides the plethora of virtual rooms available to visit on the map, VMK players could create their own rooms. Indeed, they did. There was a button toward the top of the map that said "guest rooms." Here, you could visit any range of rooms created by players. Here was a perfect example of "using your imagination." Users created gingerbread houses, restaurants, waterslides, dark rides, and hangout lounges. Users could purchase furniture from the shopping catalogs, and make purchases from earning in-game credits from games and quests. The VMK staff members even opened rooms, occasionally, and hosted games to win prizes, and even created virtual rides. 

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I'll never forget when VMK added two virtual ride experiences: Peter Pan's Flight and Alice in Wonderland. You simply went to Fantasyland, which could be accessed on the main map for VMK, and visit a place called the "Fantasyland Courtyard." Here, users could ride in a pirate ship on Peter Pan's Flight, traveling through London, entering Neverland to visit the pirates and the mermaids. This virtual ride was filled with the classic music to accompany the ride, as well as plenty of sound effects - such as the ticking of the clock to signify the eery presence of the crocodile, and the clinking of swords during the battle between Captain Hook and Peter Pan. In the Alice in Wonderland ride, VMK users could ride in a caterpillar and travel down the rabbit hole to Wonderland.

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VMK closed in 2008. Like many other users, without a doubt, this was devastating. VMK was a place for users to make friends with other Disney fans; it was a place to bring ideas to life by creating wildly imaginative rooms. VMK was a way for Disney fans to experience the magic of Disney from the convenience of a computer. Apparently, VMK closed its virtual gates as Disney wanted to focus on other virtual games, such as Club Penguin. The news of the closure caused such disappointment in users, that a petition was created called "Save VMK." Signatures were collected, in hopes that Disney would change their mind. I logged on to the game as much as possible to savor my last moments on VMK. I had befriended multiple other players on the game, designed my own rooms, and obtained many virtual items. I wasn't ready for everything to disappear. I wasn't ready to lose my virtual character, who had become my virtual identity. Desperately, I wanted to remember VMK and take screenshots of my experiences to hold onto. Yet, I was unable to "print" the screen, as the game loaded in a separate window. At the time, I didn't know how to take a screenshot, either. My flip phone camera quality was a dud, although I tried to capture a photo of my sweet character dressed in cowboy pants, princess shoes, and mouse ears.

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On that dreaded day in May of 2008, VMK closed. I felt lost - what could possibly replace VMK? Which other game would offer the same sort of magic? I tried looking for other games, but nothing could compare. 

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But the magic came back. 

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It's called MYVMK. It's a re-creation of Disney's Virtual Magic Kingdom, and it's the same exact layout. You can still create a character, build your own rooms, and go shopping. You can still experience the joy of the original VMK. The staff of VMK have brought many new ideas to the game, as well, such as new clothing, pins, items, and even VIRTUAL PARADES. Now, I don't remember any virtual parades in the original VMK. In MYVMK, I've watched the virtual parade representations of Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Parade, as well as the Mickey's Once Upon a Christmastime Parade. The parade soundtrack plays in the background, and the floats pass through the virtual Main Street U.S.A. 

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VMK was a large part of my childhood, and what makes it even more special is that I can still experience the joy of the game until this day. I thought the game would be gone forever after the original game closed, but I was in for a surprise. I suppose that "dreams came true" in this case.  Below, I've added the link to MYVMK as well as a a few screenshots I've taken from MYVMK.