It's a great day for fishing and Goofy just caught a boatload of trouble! Pete and PJ have been kidnapped by pirates and Goofy and Max must row to their rescue. It's hilarious hijinks on the high seas as they trail the pirates to Spoonerville Island and bumble through the jungle to free their pals from the notorious Keelhaul Pete! Playing as Goofy or Max, the player(s) works through five areas on Spoonerville Island: on the beach, in a village under siege, a haunted castle, an underground cavern, and finally the pirate's ship where Pete and PJ are held captive. Goofy moves slower than Max but can deal more damage to enemies. The goal of each level is to solve various puzzles in order to reach the end of the stage and defeat the boss. Although Goofy and Max cannot fight directly, they can use various methods to defeat enemies such as throwing objects such as barrels or bombs at them, kicking blocks into them, knocking them off the stage or luring them into the path of enemy attacks. Throughout the game, players can find various collectible items that can aid them. Collecting pieces of fruit can protect Max or Goofy from a single hit, with extra lives earned if the player can collect a certain amount of fruit without getting hit. Collecting red diamonds earns an extra life while blue diamonds earn a continue. In multiplayer, if one player loses all of their lives, they can respawn with three more lives if the player can move to another screen. However, if both players lose all their lives on the same screen, the game is over, although if they have any continues, they can continue from the same screen. Otherwise, they will have to resume from the beginning of the stage using a password.