Name: Toontown

Company: Disney

Overview: The colorful, cartoony Toontown's under threat of getting serious-- monochromatic corporate sour-pusses called Cogs are trying to take over, and only the Toons can stop them, using good old-fashioned gags like squirting flowers and cream-pie tosses. Resembling a full-scale multiplayer RPG for kids, Toontown also has Cog-free playspaces with chat, minigames and quests.

How it Works: Toontown runs in its own fullscreen program launched directly off of the web site (though it's also available in a retail box), and basic navigation like character movement is accomplished using the keyboard arrows. Menu options, which pop up when needed, can be selected from with point-and-click. Toontown's actually got a list of system requirements that, while not particularly hefty, are at least worth considering. First, while Toontown can work with Mac or PC, Internet Explorer is the only compatible browser (sorry, Firefox fans), requires the installation of certain ActiveX controls, and DirectX version 7.0 or newer. It also needs 100 megs of free memory, and a decent video card with 3D acceleration and at least 8 megs.

Payment Model: Formerly subscription-only, Toontown recently made the shift to an ad-supported free play option. Membership, which allows access to Toontown's full slate of play areas, quests and gags, costs $9.95 monthly, with a 6 month plan for $49.95 and a year's membership for $79.95.

Key Features:
-Versions produced for UK, Spain, France, Southeast Asia and Japan
-In-world chat is entirely pre-defined, except for "Secret Chat" unlocked via codes between individual users who know each other in real life
-No Player-versus-Player (PvP) available; characters cannot attack one another
-Recipient of WiredKids' 2005 "Safe Gaming Award"

Useful Links:
Toontown Players' Guide
Toontown Shifts to Ad-Supported Model
Building a Massively Multiplayer Online Game for the Millions: Toontown Online
Postmortem: Toontown Online
Design Newsletter: Animating Toontown