The Hollywood film industry is in an uproar as the Edgar awards have been stolen by C.C. Deville. The culprit's demands are that he gets a ten-picture deal from Warner Bros. in exchange for returning the Edgars. However, Deville's airship crashes into the Water Tower, scattering the Edgars across the various movie lots and freeing Yakko, Wakko, and Dot at the same time.
Animaniacs: The Great Edgar Hunt is a 3D platformer where players control one of the three main characters - Yakko, Wakko, or Dot. Each character has their own unique skills that can be unlocked as players progress through the game. For example, Dot can limbo under low walls, Wakko can dig tunnels in soft earth, and Yakko can bomb weak walls. By collecting Edgar awards, players unlock new areas in the Warner Movie Lots.
The game also features 300 collectibles in each world, with players receiving an additional Edgar award for every 150 collectibles collected. Furthermore, there are bonus mini-games guest-starring Pinky and The Brain, which feature their failed attempts at world domination. The original cast of the cartoon reprises their roles, and the game includes plenty of movie parodies and references to video games.