The Addams Family is a side-scrolling action-adventure platform game.[1] The story involves Abigail Craven scheming to obtain The Addams Family's secret wealth. To do this, she brainwashes Uncle Fester, who has just lost his memory, into being an ally, and is also aided by The Judge and the Addams' family attorney, Tully Alford, who takes control of the mansion. Morticia Addams, Pugsley Addams, Wednesday Addams, and Granny go to the house to meet with Tully about the property, only to be kidnapped within it by Abigail. When Gomez Addams gets home, he finds the other family members gone.[2][3] To save his family, Gomez runs, jumps, and squats his way throughout the large mansion invested with ghosts, mutants, monsters, bats and rabbits, as well as stage hazards like stars, swinging clock pendulums, and fire lakes.[4][5]
Puzzle-solving is also involved in saving the Addams family members. For example, Wednesday is found in an ice-themed freezing area and it is up to the player to figure out how to thaw her out, and Granny is trapped in a stove that's turned off by a switch the player must find.[6][7] The Amstrad CPC game has many doors that can only be unlocked by keys hidden throughout the mansion.[8] In most versions, the underground chambers must be activated to save Morticia; Lurch plays a tune in the Music Room that activates it, but only when Wednesday, Pugsley, Granny and Uncle Fester are rescued and meet up in the room.[9] In the NES version, Gomez has to collect $1,000,000 to save Morticia.[6] The Judge is the game's final boss.[1]