Disney`s Toontown Online (commonly known as Toontown) is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game created by The Walt Disney Company and billed as the first such game intended for kids and families. Designed for children as young as seven, the depth of the game`s content has drawn in many older players as well. Toontown`s 3D virtual world takes its theme from the colorful style and humor of classic animated cartoons, packaged into an online game experience that its authors claim is social and kid-safe. The game has an ESRB rating of E, for Cartoon Violence and Comic Mischief.

First introduced in the United States in 2003, Disney has since produced versions of Toontown for the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Japan, and Southeast Asia. Disney does not release figures on the number of subscribers, but Disney`s VR Studio head Mike Goslin stated in mid-2005 that "we have nearly 10,000 people playing simultaneously during our busiest times." In May 2007, independent internet research firm Comscore estimated Toontown Online had almost 1.2 million users.

n the game, each player takes the role of a Toon a cartoon character based on an anthropomorphic animal: a dog, cat, duck, horse, mouse, rabbit, monkey, bear or pig. Players choose the species and customize the look of their toons when they first start the game. The game tutorial explains that Toons must work together to rid the streets from the ongoing menace of the "Cogs" — business robots who are trying to transform the bright and cheerful Toontown into a dark and dreadful corporate world. To battle the Cogs, Toons use "gags" silly pranks that are reflective of the slapstick humor found in classic cartoons: cream pies, seltzer bottles, banana peels, dropping anvils, squirting flowers, and so on. Perhaps just as appropriately, both the Cogs` names and their weapons are taken from business slang: Micromanager, Spin Doctor, Red Tape, Power Tie, and the like. Defeating Cogs also earns experience points for the player in various gag "tracks," eventually leading to new and more powerful gags.

Teamwork is encouraged in Toontown since low-level Toons frequently need the help of others to complete difficult challenges or perform certain tricks. For example, "Toon-ups" (healing gags) cannot be used by a player on their own character, so to be healed during battle one needs another player to use a Toon-up. Some gags also work better when used in combination with certain other gags; for example, a "trap door" gag is useless until another Toon "lures" the Cog towards it. A "drop" gag (such as a falling anvil) is much more likely to hit if the Cog is first "stunned" by another gag. Conversely, some gags are much less effective when combined with certain other gags; a drop gag (such as a piano or safe) will always miss a Cog that has been lured away from his original spot.

Advancement in the game requires completing "Toontasks", tasks or "missions" assigned by the non-player characters scattered about Toontown. Completing the tasks earns additional "laff points" for the player`s Toon (up to a maximum of 137), new gags, jellybeans (the in-game currency), and a variety of other benefits. Tasks range from simple delivery missions to defeating a Cog boss battle. The easiest tasks are in "Toontown Central" where all Toons start out, while some of the more challenging tasks are at "Donald`s Dreamland" and "The Brrrgh". Some tasks are required for a Toon to advance in the game, while other tasks are optional, giving the player extra jellybeans or tickets for new clothes. Completing a task also heals any damage the player has taken. Some tasks are designed to encourage teamwork between strong Toons and weaker Toons. For example, a strong Toon may receive a task to help low-level Toons defeat Cogs or Cog buildings. To further promote teamwork and helping others to complete tasks, the game allows each Toon to teleport (using a portable hole) to the exact location of a friend, even if that friend is in another district (server).