Toonstruck Is Free on GOG and You’d Be Mad Not to Grab It!

Toonstruck

There are very few games that will make me gush as to how good they are, but Toonstruck is definitely one of them. Released in 1996, the game was received very well by both critics, fans and certainly me (yes, I bought it back then, big box and all!) It did, however, have one little problem – In terms of sales, the game absolutely tanked!

People always talk about how Grim Fandango was the ‘greatest adventure game that sold poorly’. For me though, Toonstruck did it first!

If this game did skip a blip on your radar (or you were not even born when it came out (thanks for making me feel old)) then I have some excellent news for you. As part of the latest promotion on GoG.com (Good Old Games) they are giving away Toonstruck for absolutely nothing!

What Is The Game About?

The game fell into that rather bizarre period in the mid to late 90s where FMV was all the rage. In fairness, however, this game really pushed the boat out getting Christopher Lloyd (Back to the Future) as it’s main character. That was, however, just the tip of the iceberg.

So, what about the game? Well, Toonstruck is essentially a point and click adventure. One that balances a solid level of puzzle solving with some excellent cartoon homages, parodies and even outright weird moments.

Featuring the voice talents of Tres McNeil, Tim Curry and even Dan Castana… Castinalet… (Homer Simpsons voice actor) the game was truly a production masterpiece. Even over 20 years on since it came out, is still WELL worth playing.

If It’s So Good – Why Have I Never Heard Of It?

Well, as above, the game sold really poorly on release. Perhaps, in no small part, due to the exceptionally bad choice of box art. The worst part, however, is that the game was much larger than the original release. With about 90% of the work done, Virgin Interactive decided to split the game into two parts. Sadly, however, given how badly the first did in sales, this essentially meant that we had a part 2, that was around 80% finished, that never released. As such, sadly Toonstruck ends on a somewhat cliffhanger that will never be resolved. Don’t let that spoil the fun though!

For a free game, this is an absolute must-have! Everyone needs to play Toonstruck if, for no other reason, than to prove that just because it didn’t do well when it came out, it’s still one of the greatest games ever made!

To grab your copy, you can either claim it on the official GoG app or directly from the official website via the link here!

What do you think? – Have you ever played Toonstruck? If so, what was your favourite moment? – Let us know in the comments!