ORLANDO, Fla. -- More than 11,000 people have signed a petition to save Disney's Virtual Magic Kingdom massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) after an announcement was made that the site will be closing.

---

IMAGES: Disney Game Images

---

The free Disney VMK gaming site debuted in 2005 as part of an online promotion for the company's 50th anniversary. The game has continued to grow in popularity.

Currently, there are more than 15,000 players who chat and game every day, Local 6 reported.

"You can form some tight friendships in here and to lose them all, it is very sad," VMK player Brianna Gill said.

Some parents were angered over Disney's decision to close the game and have begged the company to reconsider.

"Just because it is a virtual game as far as friendship goes does not make the friendships any less real," angry parent Kenny Gill said.

"VMK was created as an online promotion," Katie Gerber of the Walt Disney Internet Group said. "It exceeded our expectations…to the point that we left it open much longer than originally anticipated. All good promotions must come to an end."

"A promotional thing is one thing but we are talking three years," Gill said.

Some well-known Disney bloggers have discussed the end of VMK in recent weeks.

"Needless to say, this is causing an uproar among the games fans who have invested time and effort in building their characters, rooms and friends in VMK," John Frost of The Disney Blog wrote earlier this month.

Disney will formally conclude its 50th promotional online game as of May 21, 2008, the savevmktoday.com site reported.

Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.