Stay Tooned!

Stay Tooned! is a 1996 point-and-click cartoon adventure for PC, developed by Funnybone Interactive and published by Sierra Entertainment. Players explore a wild apartment complex taken over by mischievous cartoon characters, solve puzzles, and play mini-games to recover a stolen TV remote and restore order.

What Is Stay Tooned!?

Released in 1996 for PC, Stay Tooned! is a quirky cartoon-themed adventure game created by Funnybone Interactive and brought to market by Sierra Entertainment.

Players are pulled into a surreal cartoon world after characters from their TV spring to life, steal the remote, and wreak havoc in an apartment building. You must explore, solve puzzles, and outsmart the unruly toons to return them to their television universe.

Behind the Scenes: Development History

Launched in 1996, Stay Tooned! was developed by Funnybone Interactive, later known for its work under the Fisher-Price brand. The game was published by Sierra Entertainment, a company well-known for its contributions to the adventure game genre. Designed with a blend of classic cartoon slapstick and interactive gameplay, the title combines puzzle-solving, exploration, and mini-games, offering a varied and animated experience.

Who Made Stay Tooned!?

Developed by Funnybone Interactive and published by Sierra, Stay Tooned! represented a joint effort between two influential studios from the 1990s PC gaming scene.

How It Plays: Core Gameplay Elements

Stay Tooned! mixes adventure gameplay with a series of unpredictable challenges. Players experience the game through a first-person lens as they explore an apartment complex overrun with mischievous animated characters. Here's what players can expect:

Explore the Building

Travel through 22 different locations, including 20 apartments, a cellar, and a rooftop. Many rooms are locked at first, requiring players to discover hidden keys and solve puzzles to gain access.

Solve Puzzles

Each room has interactive objects, some with humorous animations and others essential for puzzle progression. Since many puzzles change during each playthrough, players are encouraged to experiment and think creatively.

Play Mini-Games

Scattered throughout the apartments are nearly 30 unique mini-games. From arcade-style throwbacks like Toon Boy to quirky reaction-based challenges, these games test reflexes and logic.

Interact with Cartoon Characters

Escaped toons pop up across the building—some help, others hinder. Whether they’re cracking jokes or setting traps, these animated residents keep things unpredictable.

Objective

The ultimate goal is to locate the stolen TV remote. Once recovered, players can zap the characters—like the troublesome Überbugs and pesky penguins—back into the TV and restore normalcy.

Similar Games: Then and Now

While no modern game replicates Stay Tooned! exactly, a few come close in spirit:

• Released in 1994, Monty Python’s Complete Waste of Time offers a similar mashup of humor, short animated segments, and bite-sized interactive content, much like Stay Tooned!
   
• Indie Adventure Games: Titles with strong humor, creative gameplay, and non-linear exploration—such as Thimbleweed Park or Frog Fractions—share its tone.
   
• Narrative Mini-Game Collections: Though rare, some newer indie games use a variety of mini-games to tell a story, which echoes Stay Tooned!‘s design approach.
   

Walkthrough Overview: How to Beat the Madness

Because puzzles and item placements shift between playthroughs, this guide focuses on structure and strategy over specifics.

Your Starting Point (Apartment 4A)

• Start by interacting with the television.
   
• Explore your surroundings: the kitchen, bathroom, and living room all contain useful items.
   
• Collect clues, like a 4-letter code from the bathroom towel and a locksmith’s note on the fridge.
   
• Play optional mini-games like Toon Boy or Fridge Fight.
   
• Use the bathroom code to exit into the hallway.
   

Navigating the Corridors

• Use the elevator and hallway maps to track rooms.
   
• Watch for random events: bee swarms, TNT explosions, lost cursors, and other gags may appear.
   
• Be ready for quick responses—some events are animated, others are interactive challenges.
   
• Keep an eye out for key-related shell games and puzzle triggers.
   

Gaining Entry to Apartments

• Start with access to 2B, 3A, 3D, 4A, and 5A.
   
• For 2B (Shakespeare room), enter multiple times until he offers keys.
   
• Visit 3D (ToonVision Game Room) to play games that may yield more keys or items.
   
• The slot machine room can reward players with keys if luck is on their side.
   

Unlocking the Fifth Floor

• Access may be blocked by characters like a dinosaur or mechanic.
   
• Solve relevant puzzles or complete tasks in specific apartments to remove the obstacle.
   

Tracking Down the Remote

• Its location varies per playthrough.
   
• Search each room thoroughly, interact with all objects, and complete mini-games to reveal hidden items.
   
• After recovering the remote control, your final task is to send each cartoon troublemaker back into their television world to complete the adventure.

Stay Tooned! stands out as a unique blend of comedy, puzzles, and cartoon-inspired chaos. Its imaginative world, randomized elements, and absurd humor offer something rarely seen in modern adventure games. Whether you’re revisiting it for nostalgia or diving in for the first time, this 1996 gem delivers laughs, logic, and a whole lot of toon-fueled mayhem.

Stay Tooned! is a 1996 Action-Adventure PC game that was developed by Funnybone Interactive and published by Sierra Entertainment. The game begins in a large apartment building in the middle of an unnamed city. The player takes the place of an ordinary patron living in their apartment. The player starts off simply channel-surfing with a TV remote and watching short cartoons and commercials that parody real-life shows. One channel even has the game's chief programmer providing hints on how to play the upcoming game.

Several cartoon characters either forbid or encourage the player to push the red button on their remote as the player surfs the channels. When the player pushes the button, the cartoons break out of the television set, steal the remote, and cause the entire apartment complex to go into animated form. The player's mission is to recover the television remote, which is the only thing that can zap the escaped toons and send them back to TV Land, the fictional toon world found within the depths of the t.v. The player searches the other apartments for the remote while playing nearly thirty games contained within them and avoiding the destructive trickery committed by the escaped toons.

FAQs About Stay Tooned!

What is Stay Tooned! about?
Stay Tooned! is a 1996 cartoon-themed point-and-click adventure game where players explore a wacky apartment taken over by animated characters. The main goal is to recover a stolen remote control and return the toons to their TV world.

Who developed and published Stay Tooned!?
The game was developed by Funnybone Interactive and published by Sierra Entertainment, both of which were known for their work in 1990s PC gaming.

Can you still play Stay Tooned! today?
Yes, though the original game was designed for Windows 95/98, you can play Stay Tooned! using DOSBox or modern browser-based emulators hosted on abandonware or retro gaming sites.

What kind of gameplay does Stay Tooned! have?
It combines point-and-click exploration, puzzle-solving, and mini-games. The game is presented in a first-person perspective, with randomized puzzles that change each time you play.

Is there a remake or sequel to Stay Tooned!?
No official remake or sequel exists. However, fans of quirky adventure games might enjoy modern indie titles with a similar tone and structure.

How long does it take to complete Stay Tooned!?
Most players can finish the game in 2–4 hours, depending on how much time is spent exploring and playing mini-games. Replayability is high due to randomized puzzles and events.

Is Stay Tooned! suitable for kids?
Yes, the game is family-friendly and was originally designed to appeal to younger audiences, though its humor and gameplay also hold up for adults.

Where can I download Stay Tooned! safely?
While it’s no longer officially sold, you can find Stay Tooned! on trusted abandonware archives or retro game libraries. Always scan downloads for safety and use legal sources when possible.