After 2-1/2 years of work and an investment of about $10 million, DreamWorks Animation has started rolling out its first online virtual world — a browser-based Web theme park tied to its “Kung Fu Panda” movie franchise.

The marketing push for “Kung Fu Panda World,” which comes at a subscription cost of $5.95 per month, but can also be sampled after watching an online ad, kicks off Monday after a soft launch at the end of March.

DreamWorks’ first effort in the virtual world space targets 8- to 12-year-olds, and follows the creation or acquisition of virtual worlds for young demos in recent years by such rivals as Walt Disney (Pixie Hollow, Club Penguin) and Viacom (Neopets, Petpet Park).