Software:Toontown Online

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Short description: 2003 Disney video game
Toontown Online
Toontown-Logo.svg
DeveloperDisney's Virtual Reality Studio
Schell Games[1]
Frogchildren Studios[2]
TypeMassively multiplayer online role-playing game
Launch dateAugust 2001[citation needed] – January 16, 2002 (Beta 1)[3]
September 10, 2002 – October 21, 2002 (Beta 2)[3]
[3]
October 21, 2002 – June 2, 2003 (sneak preview)[3]
June 2, 2003 (2003-06-02) (official launch)[4]
DiscontinuedSeptember 19, 2013 (2013-09-19)[5]
Platform(s)Macintosh operating systems and Microsoft Windows[6]
Websitetoontown.go.com
(archived on August 24, 2013)

Toontown Online, commonly known as Toontown, was a 2003 massively multiplayer online role-playing game based on a cartoon animal world, developed by Disney's Virtual Reality Studio and Schell Games, and published by The Walt Disney Company.[4]

Players created characters known as Toons and used weapons referred to as Gags—commonly slapstick comedy items, such as a thrown cream pie—to fight and destroy Cogs, robot businessmen who served as the game's antagonists.

Various servers hosting Toontown Online were shut down throughout the game's tenure, with the United States servers and the game itself closing in September 2013. Since the game's closure, various fan servers have been created using most of the game’s original assets. The most popular of these, Toontown Rewritten, was created some days after Toontown Online's closure.

Gameplay

Toons

Players could create characters called "Toons". Players were able to customize their Toons in various shapes, colors, clothes, and sizes, as well as their species, with choices consisting of cats, dogs, ducks, mice, pigs, rabbits, bears, horses, and monkeys.[7]

Combat

Cogs were the antagonists in-game, stylized to be corporate robots that wanted to take over the town to propagate business culture. Cogs came in four types: brown-clad Bossbots, blue-clad Lawbots, green-clad Cashbots, and maroon-clad Sellbots, each with increasing levels throughout the game that increased their health and damage.[8]

Toons began with basic 'Gags' and a 15-point 'Laff' meter and had a maximum of 137 point Laff meter at the end of the game. Gags, rooted in old cartoon slapstick humor, were weapons used to destroy the Cogs in Cog battles. Each 'Gag track' had Gags with different properties that could be unlocked by completing 'ToonTasks' and each gag track would get progressively more powerful as Toons used their gags more.[9][10] The Laff meter functioned as a health meter, representing how much damage Toons could take from the Cogs before going 'sad' – in-game defeat.[11] Cogs were battled using a timed turn-based combat system with up to four Toons in a battle. Cogs could be fought on the streets of the game, in 'Cog Buildings' or in their own designated 'Cog HQ', with each Cog HQ having a boss that could only be fought by obtaining a full set of the HQ's Cog disguise. These include the Senior V.P. (Vice President, Sellbot HQ), C.F.O. (Chief Financial Officer, Cashbot HQ) C.J. (Chief Justice, Lawbot HQ), and C.E.O. (Chief Executive Officer, Bossbot HQ).[12]

A Toon in Toontown Central, the first playground available in-game.

Non-combat activities

Playgrounds were the only areas of Toontown permanently safe from Cogs. In the playgrounds, Toons could regain lost Laff Points, receive or complete ToonTasks unique to each playground, purchase gags, play trolley games, go fishing, kart racing, or golfing. By completing ToonTasks, Toons would grow in strength through additional Laff Points or new Gags. Laff Point increases were also available through fishing, racing, and golfing challenges. There was a playground in each neighborhood of Toontown. Each playground featured one of Disney's classic animated characters as a non-player character. The main playgrounds were Toontown Central, Daisy Gardens, Donald's Dock, Minnie's Melodyland, The Brrrgh, and Donald's Dreamland, along with extra playgrounds such as Goofy Speedway and Chip 'n Dale's Acorn Acres.[13]

Every Toontown Online account came with a player's estate. Each estate consisted of a fishing pond and six houses for each Toon on the player's account. Players could customize their Toon's appearance and home with objects ordered from the in-game catalog ('Clarabelle's Cattlelog') by using jellybeans, the in-game currency. Wardrobes and accessory trunks held clothing and accessories that were not currently being worn by the player's Toon. Other elements of estates included Doodles (pets), gardening, fishing, and the ability to purchase various types of in-game items from Clarabelle's Cattlelog.[14]

Online safety features

Toontown Online was marketed and developed for players of all ages, which is why a chat restriction was placed on the game. Players could initially only chat using "SpeedChat", a list of pre-approved phrases set by Disney that the player could select. It included general English phrases, in-game strategy phrases, and, occasionally, seasonal phrases. Players could purchase more SpeedChat phrases using, most of the time, 100 jellybeans. "SpeedChat Plus" and "Secret Friends", later renamed to "True Friends", were introduced sometime after the game's release, which had to be enabled using a parental account if the player was under 13 years of age. SpeedChat Plus allowed the player to type their messages against a word filter developed by Disney; if a word was not allowed, it was replaced with an onomatopoeia of that player's Toon's species. True Friends allowed players to chat with a less restrictive filter with certain friends who have shared a "True Friend code" with each other.[15]

Parties

Parties were hostable, plannable, and customizable events by Toons. Toons would use their stored jellybeans in their bank to customize and add content to their parties, such as fireworks, minigames (Tug-O-War, etc.), trampolines, party cannons, etc. To plan a party, Toons would go to a Toon Party Planner. Toons could also customize their invitations to these parties.

Distribution

CD-ROM

Platform Publishing, a subsidiary company of Sony Online Entertainment that publishes games for third-party developers, acquired rights to publish a CD version of Toontown Online in August 2005 for the PC and their intention to bring the game to online game consoles.[16][17][18][19] Toontown Online became available on CD for the PC on October 3 of the same year.[20] This allowed players to play the game without downloading it onto their storage devices. This version came in a box set with two months of subscription, a poster, a game manual, and an in-game bonus.[21] Toontown Online chose to create a CD that could be purchased in stores, due to customer insecurity when downloading and buying things online that they could not physically hold.[22]

Closure

After ten years of operation, Toontown Online was shut down permanently on September 19, 2013.[23][24] Subsequently, every player was given membership for the remaining time of the game. Seasonal and holiday celebrations and special in-game events took place in the time remaining. Recurring paid memberships were automatically canceled. Memberships could no longer be purchased, and accounts could no longer be created after the fact.[24] The website was also updated with a closing FAQ.[25]

After the game's closure, Toontown's website was updated with a new FAQ to help with billing support and inform users about the game's closure.[5] Toontown's site, toontown.go.com, now redirects to Disney's main site, disney.com. In response to the closure, former players have created multiple private servers of Toontown Online that are free-to-play and not monetized. The most popular server, Toontown Rewritten, is described by its developers as a fan-made revival of Disney's Toontown Online, created using publicly available downloads and information made freely available to the general public in September 2014.

Jesse Schell, the former Creative Director of the Walt Disney Imagineering Virtual Reality Studio,[26] hinted that Toontown Online closed due to becoming unsustainable in its business model (subscription-based downloadable RPG).[27] Schell confirmed that Disney wanted to port the game to mobile devices but was waiting for a working business model for self-sustaining, constantly-updating mobile RPGs. Schell also stated that the company has hosted internal meetings discussing the future of the game, taking the popularity of mobile games, and the payment options available on that platform into consideration for planning the next step for the Toontown license.[27] A solution has yet to be agreed upon, but according to Schell, these internal meetings continued into 2016.[28]

In June 2021, seven years after the game's closure, an unofficial archive of Toontown Online titled the "Toontown Preservation Project" was released by Toontown Rewritten. The archive is hosted via Toontown Rewritten's Notion board and features original design documents and artwork donated by the game's developers, among promotional material such as digital downloads, merchandise, newsletters, trading cards, and websites.[29]

ToonFest

Disney organized two real-life gatherings for Toontown fans called ToonFest. These included themed activities and games, trivia and costume contests, previews of upcoming features for the game, and developer Q&A panels.[30][31] The first gathering, ToonFest 2006, was held at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California.[32][33] The second gathering, ToonFest 2007, was held at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida.[34][35]

Reception

Reception
Aggregate scores
AggregatorScore
GameRankings82%[36]
Metacritic81%[37]
Review scores
PublicationScore
GameZone9/10[38]
PC Gamer (UK)83%[39]
Game industry News4.5/5 stars[40]
GamerDad4.5/5 stars[41]
PC Magazine3/5 stars[42]

Awards and nominations

Year Association Award Category Result Ref
2003 Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences Massive Multiplayer/Persistent World Game of the Year Games Nominated [43]
Computer Gaming World MMORPG Game of the Year Online Games Won [44]
Game industry News Family Game of the Year Games Won [40]
Parents' Choice Foundation Silver Honor Online Video Games Won [45]
Web Marketing Association WebAward Outstanding Website Game Site Won [46]
The Webby Awards Webby Award Games Nominated [47]
Webby Award People's Voice Youth Won [48][49]
2004 Web Marketing Association WebAward Outstanding Website Game Site Won [50]
2005 Web Marketing Association WebAward Outstanding Website Game Site Won [51]
The Webby Awards Webby Award Games Nominated [52]
"Webby Worthy Selection" Games Won [1]
WiredKids Safe Gaming Award Computer Games Won [53][54]
2006 Web Marketing Association WebAward Game Site Standard of Excellence Game Site Won [55]
The Webby Awards Webby Award Games Nominated [56]
2007
Web Marketing Association WebAward Outstanding Website Game Site Won [57]
2009 Parent Tested Parent Approved Seal of Approval Website Won [58]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Games developed by Schell Games". http://www.schellgames.com/games/toontown/. 
  2. ↑ "Frogchildren Studios Games Artwork". http://www.frogchildren.com/w/distt.html. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 "Release Notes Archive". 21 August 2006. http://test.toontown.com/oldNews.php. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Disney's Toontown Online to Launch June 2003" (Press release). North Hollywood, CA: The Walt Disney Company. May 5, 2003. Archived from the original on November 27, 2004. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Kelly, Heather (August 23, 2013). "Coping with the loss of an online world". https://www.cnn.com/2013/08/23/tech/gaming-gadgets/closing-toontown/index.html. 
  6. ↑ "Search ESRB Game Ratings". http://www.esrb.org/ratings/search.aspx?titleOrPublisher=toontown%20online&searchType=title. 
  7. ↑ "Meet the Toons". Disney. http://toontown.go.com/help/players-guide/meet-the-toons. 
  8. ↑ "Meet the Cogs". Disney. http://toontown.go.com/help/players-guide/meet-the-cogs. 
  9. ↑ "Gags". Disney. http://toontown.go.com/help/players-guide/gags. 
  10. ↑ "Toon Tasks". Disney. http://toontown.go.com/help/players-guide/toon-tasks. 
  11. ↑ "Laff Points". Disney. http://toontown.go.com/help/players-guide/laff-points. 
  12. ↑ "Meet the Cogs". Disney. http://toontown.go.com/help/players-guide/meet-the-cogs. 
  13. ↑ "Neighbourhoods". Disney. http://toontown.go.com/help/players-guide/neighborhoods. 
  14. ↑ "Neighborhoods". Disney. http://toontown.go.com/help/players-guide/estates. 
  15. ↑ "The Untold History of Toontown's SpeedChat". http://habitatchronicles.com/2007/03/the-untold-history-of-toontowns-speedchat-or-blockchattm-from-disney-finally-arrives/. 
  16. ↑ "Disney's Toontown Goes To Retail This Fall" (Press release). San Diego, CA, and North Hollywood, CA: The Walt Disney Company. August 25, 2005. Archived from the original on December 2, 2005. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
  17. ↑ Sinclair, Brendan (August 25, 2005). "Toontown headed for consoles". http://www.gamespot.com/articles/toontown-headed-for-consoles/1100-6131990/. 
  18. ↑ Raiciu, Tudor (August 26, 2005). "Disney's Toontown Goes To Retail This Fall". http://news.softpedia.com/news/Disney-s-Toontown-Goes-To-Retail-This-Fall-7010.shtml. 
  19. ↑ "Sony Online Entertainment's Platform Publishing Label Bringing Disney's 'Toontown Online' to Retail This Fall". PR Newswire. August 25, 2005. http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sony-online-entertainments-platform-publishing-label-bringing-disneys-toontown-online-to-retail-this-fall-55009307.html. 
  20. ↑ "Platform Publishing Lets the Toons Out With Disney's Toontown Online". PR Newswire. October 3, 2005. http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/platform-publishing-lets-the-toons-out-with-disneys-toontown-online-54869302.html. 
  21. ↑ Marriott, Scott Alan. "Disney's Toontown Online [Retail Box"]. AllGame. http://www.allgame.com/game.php?id=48468. 
  22. ↑ Goslin, Mike (January 28, 2004). "Postmortem: Disney Online's Toontown". Gamastura. http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/130440/postmortem_disney_onlines_.php?print=1. 
  23. ↑ Palazzo, Anthony. "Disney to Shutter 10-Year-Old Toontown Multiplayer Game". Bloomberg. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-08-21/disney-to-shutter-10-year-old-toontown-multiplayer-game.html. 
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 "Disney's Toontown Online: About Closing". The Walt Disney Company. http://toontown.go.com/closing. 
  25. ↑ "Disney's Toontown Online: Closing FAQ". The Walt Disney Company. http://toontown.go.com/closing-faq. 
  26. ↑ "Jesse Schell | Entertainment Technology Center". http://www.etc.cmu.edu/blog/author/jschell/. 
  27. ↑ 27.0 27.1 Jesse Schell (June 13, 2015). OMG!Con 2015 – Jesse Schellivision. YouTube (Online video). Archived from the original on 2021-12-22. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  28. ↑ Toontown Rewritten (June 13, 2016). "OMG!Con 2016: Jesse Schellivision". https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGyy8wB5JZ0&t=11m12s. 
  29. ↑ "The Toontown Preservation Project aims to save the history of Disney's MMO" (in en-GB). June 2, 2021. https://www.pcgamesn.com/toontown/preservation-project. 
  30. ↑ "Disney 365 – Toon Town Online's ToonFest". The Walt Disney Company. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flTmzXzvHmQ. 
  31. ↑ "Toontown Online Video – Toontfest". GameTrailers. http://www.gametrailers.com/videos/fyrwuc/toontown-online-toonfest. 
  32. ↑ "Thousands of 'Toons' to Gather at Disney Studios in Burbank for FirstEver 'ToonFest'; Disney Channel Stars Among Attendees at August 26th Fan Event Dedicated to Disney's Toontown Online" (Press release). Disney Online, a division of the Walt Disney Internet Group. August 25, 2006. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved August 30, 2007.
  33. ↑ Dobson, Jason (August 11, 2006). "Disney Celebrates Toontown Online With ToonFest". Gamasutra. http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/101406/Disney_Celebrates_Toontown_Online_With_ToonFest.php. 
  34. ↑ "Disney's Toontown Online Hosts ToonFest 2007" (Press release). Disney Online, a division of the Walt Disney Internet Group. August 4, 2007. Archived from the original on November 2, 2007. Retrieved August 30, 2007.
  35. ↑ "ToonFest 2007 (Video)". https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_vWNTs7JOE. 
  36. ↑ "Disney's Toontown Online for PC". GameRankings. http://www.gamerankings.com/pc/583306-disneys-toontown-online/index.html. 
  37. ↑ "Disney's Toontown Online for PC Review". Metacritic. https://www.metacritic.com/game/disneys-toontown-online/critic-reviews/?platform=pc. 
  38. ↑ "Disney's Toontown Online PC Review". GameZone. June 15, 2003. http://www.gamezone.com/reviews/2003/06/15/disney-s-toontown-online-pc-review. 
  39. ↑ "Disney's Toontown Online Critic Reviews for PC". Gamefaqs. http://www.gamefaqs.com/pc/583306-disneys-toontown-online/critic. 
  40. ↑ 40.0 40.1 Crowe, Greg (December 29, 2003). "Review: Disney's Toontown Online". Game industry News. http://www.gameindustry.com/review/item.asp?id=23. 
  41. ↑ Anderson, Michael (November 23, 2005). "GamerDad ToonTown Online PC". Bub Writing. http://www.gamerdad.com/detail.cfm?itemID=2820. 
  42. ↑ Dan Costa (October 28, 2003). "PC Magazine". PC Magazine: The Independent Guide to IBM-Standard Personal Computing (Ziff Davis, Inc.): 158–. ISSN 0888-8507. https://books.google.com/books?id=obIjMkOrQ4QC&pg=PA158. 
  43. ↑ "D.I.C.E. Awards By Video Game Details". Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. http://www.interactive.org/games/video_game_details.asp?idAward=2003&idGame=476. 
  44. ↑ "Game of the Year Awards". Computer Gaming World (236): 63. March 2004. http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/issues/cgw_236.pdf#page=63. Retrieved March 14, 2014. 
  45. ↑ Oldenburg, Don. "Parents' Choice Silver Honor Disney Toontown Online Review". Parents' Choice. http://www.parents-choice.org/product.cfm?product_id=13147&StepNum=1&award=aw. 
  46. ↑ "Toontown Online Team wins 2003 WebAward for Toontown". Web Marketing Association. http://www.webaward.org/winner.asp?eid=671#.UyjqJP38_B0. 
  47. ↑ "Games The Webby Awards Gallery". The Webby Awards. http://winners.webbyawards.com/2003/web/general-website/games/disneys-toontown-online. 
  48. ↑ "Youth The Webby Awards Galley". The Webby Awards. http://winners.webbyawards.com/2003/web/general-website/youth/disneys-toontown-online. 
  49. ↑ "Disney's Toontown Online Receives People's Voice Webby Award in Kid's Category" (Press release). North Hollywood, CA: The Walt Disney Company. June 9, 2003. Archived from the original on May 9, 2006. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
  50. ↑ "Disney's Toontown Online wins 2004 WebAward for Disney's Toontown Online". Web Marketing Association. http://www.webaward.org/winner.asp?eid=2499#.UyoR8_38_B0. 
  51. ↑ "Disney's Toontown Online wins 2005 WebAward for Disney's Toontown Online". Web Marketing Association. http://www.webaward.org/winner.asp?eid=3801#.UyoSUP38_B0. 
  52. ↑ "Games The Webby Awards Gallery". The Webby Awards. http://winners.webbyawards.com/2005/web/general-website/games/honorees. 
  53. ↑ "Teenangels: the award-winning cybersafety expert group, Computer Games". WiredSafety. http://teenangels.org/parents/computer_games.html. 
  54. ↑ "Disney Online Awarded Best of the Web and Safe Gaming Honors at Fifth Annual WiredKids Summit" (Press release). North Hollywood, CA: The Walt Disney Company. May 25, 2005. Archived from the original on December 6, 2005. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
  55. ↑ "Disney Online, Premium Products wins 2006 WebAward for Disney's Toontown Online". Web Marketing Association. http://www.webaward.org/winner.asp?eid=5724#.Uyjo6P38_B1. 
  56. ↑ "Games The Webby Awards Gallery". The Webby Awards. http://winners.webbyawards.com/2006/web/general-website/games/toontown-online. 
  57. ↑ "Walt Disney Internet Group wins 2007 WebAward for Disney's Toontown Online". Web Marketing Association. http://www.webaward.org/winner.asp?eid=9248#.UyoSif38_B0. 
  58. ↑ "Parent Tested Parent Approved Disney Toontown Online". Parent Tested Parent Approved. http://ptpa.com/product/disneys-toontown-online/. 

External links



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