Who’s who on Park Avenue and how to handle them, every mission’s goal and stars, the four modes, and help when something isn’t working. Twists stay hidden behind “Spoiler” until you open them.
🐾 Who’s who
Everyone around Charlie is self-absorbed, chaotic or both. Here’s what each of them actually does to him in play, and what works on them. Charlie’s four smarts: 💨 Zoomies (a dash; nothing can touch him mid-zoom), 🥺 Puppy Eyes (charms everyone close by), 📣 Herd Bark (shoves people away and cancels what they were about to do) and 🔴 danger sense (red zones on the floor go bad a moment later).
🐶 Charlie That’s you
A mini Australian Shepherd in a permanent tuxedo, and the only competent one in the building. He has a health bar of 100: every hit takes 25, so four hits without healing ends a mission. After a hit he blinks for a moment and nothing can hurt him again until it stops.
Everything he picks up tops him back up: his toys, 🦴 treats, 💧 Evian (only Evian) and 🍲 Grandpa’s half-eaten soup, which heal the most. Stand still next to someone friendly and they pet him: points, and a little health.
How Charlie handles them
- Zoomies come back after about 3 seconds, Bark after 5, Puppy Eyes after 8. Spend Zoomies freely; save Puppy Eyes for the person who matters.
- In the apartment, Fluffy’s bed (climb the brown bean bag) is the safest spot: the vacuum can’t reach him there, nothing on the floor can (pills, termites, a potato fire), and he heals while he naps. Fire breath, rings and meteors still reach the bed.
- Standing still on the bean bag or the bed for a moment starts a nap, which heals him a little at a time.
More about Charlie in the cast ›
😤 Fluffy Charlie’s human, in theory
Always on his phone, and his mood changes on its own every 12 to 20 seconds. The diamond over his head is his temper: green is happy, red is about to blow. Grandpa’s demands, arguments, the air conditioning, losing his pre-workout and a bark close by all push it up.
Well into the red he goes into Volcano Mode: fire breath and drips of lava. In some missions a full meter means Devil Mode for about 11 seconds: teleports, rings of fire, pitchfork charges, meteors and fireballs. His rage is always aimed at someone else (Grandpa, the Super, whoever is nearby). Charlie only gets hurt by standing too close.
When he’s calm he wants a cuddle, and chases Charlie down for one. Being held for a few seconds costs time, not health.
How Charlie handles them
- 🥺 Puppy Eyes cool him right down, and do the most in Volcano Mode. In Devil Mode they cut it short.
- Don’t bark next to him (unless he’s already a devil): it annoys him. In Devil Mode a bark cancels the attack he was winding up.
- During a cuddle, each 📣 Bark is a little bite that gets Charlie loose sooner. Fluffy’s bed stops the chase.
- He keeps losing his pre-workout tub (never in Grandpa’s room). Find it and his temper drops a lot.
More about Fluffy in the cast ›
👴 Grandpa The lease is in his name
The slowest man on Park Avenue, and he can’t see a black-and-white dog underfoot: walk into his path and he steps on Charlie. He drops 💊 pills (at most three on the floor), wanders to the stove to make potatoes and forgets them until they catch fire, flushes his teeth so the toilet floods, and does home repairs that bring termites. Smoking in bed can start a fire, and his oxygen tanks make it much worse.
His mood goes up when the AC is on and when Fluffy ignores him for the phone; the TV calms him. When it boils over he shouts, and the shout is a ring that hurts.
How Charlie handles them
- 🥺 Puppy Eyes calm him and make him pick up every pill near him.
- Never walk across his path, and keep out of his room: it’s smoky, and smoke slows Charlie down.
- His soup appears in his room now and then. Worth a quick, careful visit when health is low.
More about Grandpa in the cast ›
🧹 The Maid Fridays, 7:00 AM sharp
A whirlwind who only speaks Spanish. When she can see Charlie she aims the vacuum at him: the red cone pulls him in, and getting sucked all the way in hurts. Her mop leaves wet floors where Charlie slides, and any toy she walks over goes in the trash (it turns up somewhere else a few seconds later).
How Charlie handles them
- 💨 Zoomies break free of the vacuum, and Fluffy’s bed is out of its reach.
- 📣 Bark switches the vacuum off, even mid-pull.
- Grab toys before she gets to them. 🥺 Puppy Eyes stop her in her tracks for a moment.
More about The Maid in the cast ›
🍸 Aunty Fluffy’s friend, a real estate agent, and Charlie’s ride out
Glamorous, tipsy and completely unbothered. Every few seconds she stumbles, and a red circle shows where she’s about to land; when Charlie is close she often lands on him. She spills wine (wet, slippery floor) and, when a commission comes in, drops treats.
Behind the wheel of her Mini she swerves, brakes, floors it and hits potholes, and the check engine light is always on.
How Charlie handles them
- Read the red circles and don’t be under her.
- 🥺 Puppy Eyes and she hands Charlie a treat. She’s friendly, so standing still next to her gets him petted.
More about Aunty in the cast ›
👑 Nichole and Princess Nichole Fluffy’s best friend
Bubbly and loyal, and always five minutes away. The pink diamond over her head is her joy: it rises when Charlie is near her, when Fluffy is calm, at Paola’s and at the beach, and drops when Fluffy loses his temper. When it’s full she becomes Princess Nichole for a while, and her royal decrees drop treats and calm everyone down, Fluffy and Grandpa included.
How Charlie handles them
- Stay near her and 🥺 Puppy Eyes her (a big jump in joy). A princess on your side is the best way to calm a red Fluffy.
- She never hurts Charlie, and she’s happy to pet him.
More about Nichole in the cast ›
🔦 The Super No dogs in HIS building
Patrols with a flashlight. If Charlie stands in the beam for about half a second, the Super throws a violation notice at him, and it hurts. He hears every bark in the building and comes running. A noisy apartment brings him up, too, and now and then he’s waiting by the elevator to complain about the dog in the regular elevator.
How Charlie handles them
- Stay out of the beam, and keep the barking to a minimum when he’s around.
- 🥺 Puppy Eyes reset his beam (“…Fine. Cute dog.”).
More about The Super in the cast ›
🎩 The Doormen Some of Charlie’s favorite people
Never surprised by anything Grandpa does. Their desk in the lobby has a treat drawer just for Charlie.
How Charlie handles them
- Visit the desk to heal: a good chunk of health, again every 22 seconds or so.
More about The Doormen in the cast ›
🐈 Pepe Aunty’s cat. Does not like dogs.
An orange bobtail tabby and the most dangerous cat on the Upper East Side. He stalks Charlie, crouches (a red circle where he’s about to land), then pounces, and scratches up close. He also hides under couches, beds and the piano, and ambushes Charlie with much less warning.
How Charlie handles them
- 🥺 Puppy Eyes do nothing. Pepe is a cat.
- 📣 Bark cancels a pounce that hasn’t landed yet and buys a moment.
- Give the furniture a wide berth at the penthouse (and, in Mission 16, at Fluffy’s).
More about Pepe in the cast ›
🐩 Puppy Aunty’s dog, Charlie’s best friend
A little white Maltese who sticks to Charlie’s side, runs zoomies when he runs and naps when he naps. She comes along with Aunty for walkies and plays at the penthouse and the beach. Harmless, adorable, no handling required.
More about Puppy in the cast ›
📋 The Ex-Husband Aunty’s ex, and his 567-question test
He follows Charlie around and, up close, starts the MNPI quiz, which slows Charlie to a crawl.
How Charlie handles them
- Keep your distance. 🥺 Puppy Eyes and he lets Charlie pass (“You pass the MNPI. …Barely.”).
More about The Ex-Husband in the cast ›
🐀 The rats (and the raccoon) The garage, the Mini, and the listing
The rats live in the garage under Aunty’s building and eat the Mini’s engine cables. They chase Charlie and bite. The raccoon at the condemned house in Southampton does the same, and puts buyers off.
How Charlie handles them
- 📣 Bark sends them running. Puppy Eyes do nothing.
More about The Rats in the cast ›
🏚️ The Crazy Seller and the buyers The open house in Southampton
The seller thinks his condemned house is worth millions and follows the buyers around insulting them, so their interest drains away. The buyers came for the dog, not the house: their interest rises while Charlie is close to them and falls near eyesores, the raccoon, or a Fluffy who isn’t calm.
How Charlie handles them
- 🥺 Puppy Eyes give a buyer a big boost and quiet the seller for a few seconds.
- 📣 Bark herds the seller and the raccoon away (but a bark next to a buyer costs a little interest).
More about The Crazy Seller in the cast ›
🛻 The F-150 driver A stranger Aunty cut off (she swears she didn’t)
Rams the Mini from behind, side-swipes it and throws glass. Each one shows a red zone first.
How Charlie handles them
- 📣 Bark is Aunty’s horn: he backs off.
- 🥺 Puppy Eyes only work through the back window, when he’s right behind you.
🍝 Paola’s crowd The warmest restaurant on the Upper East Side
Paola adores Charlie. Her waiters fly around with hot plates, and one who runs into Charlie leaves broken glass and a puddle. The espresso machine hisses steam, a toddler in the back room throws meatballs, and diners who spot Charlie drop him bread.
How Charlie handles them
- Keep out of the waiters’ way. 🥺 Puppy Eyes stop the toddler for a while.
More about Paola in the cast ›
✂️ The grooming salon crowd Lexington Avenue
The toy shelves pull Charlie in, the dryers blow him around (no harm done, just slow going), owners in the waiting line knock him back, and jealous dogs yap.
How Charlie handles them
- 💨 Zoomies break free of the shelves and the dryers.
- 📣 Bark shuts the jealous dogs up for a few seconds.
🌊 Waves, seagulls and deer Southampton
In the beach mission, waves roll up the sand and hurt, and seagulls dive at Charlie when he’s far down the beach. Deer come out of the woods onto the lawn and bolt if Charlie runs at them or barks. In Free Roam the waves are just for playing in.
How Charlie handles them
- Stay above the foam line when a wave is coming, and watch the sky.
🚒 The firefighters Always the oxygen guy
When Grandpa starts a fire they arrive with hoses, and the spray hurts. They flood the place, too, so expect wet floors afterwards.
How Charlie handles them
- Keep clear of the hoses and let them work. Fluffy’s bed is a good place to wait it out.
📖 Mission tips
Story Mode has sixteen missions, and each one unlocks the next. In most of them you collect Charlie’s things, then head for the exit that opens. Stars count hits: win without a single hit for ★★★, with one or two hits for ★★, with more for ★. A hit still counts if you heal afterwards, and a lost mission earns no stars. Time and health left only add to your score. (The open house in Mission 12 has its own star rule.)
🧹 7:00 AM Sharp Mission 1 · The apartment · Friday 7:00 AM
Goal: rescue 4 of Charlie’s things before the Maid throws them out, then meet the groomer at the door.
Stars: ★★★ no hits · ★★ one or two · ★ more.
Tips
- The minimap (top right) and the arrows point to Charlie’s things.
- The Maid’s vacuum is the big danger: zoom out of its pull, or bark it off. Watch the wet floors.
🎀 Pet Grooming Salon Mission 2 · Lexington Avenue · Friday noon
Goal: ring the 🛎️ bell at the front desk, grab the 🎀 royal bow, then reach his favorite groomer.
Stars: ★★★ no hits · ★★ one or two · ★ more. The result card also shows Fluffy’s toy bill against his $200 budget (just for laughs).
Tips
- One owner in line will not budge without 🥺 Puppy Eyes.
- Zoomies break free of the toy shelves and the dryers; Bark quiets the yappy dogs.
🥔 Grandpa’s Potatoes Mission 3 · The apartment · Friday 1:00 PM
Goal: collect 5 of Charlie’s things, then meet Aunty and Puppy at the door for walkies.
Stars: ★★★ no hits · ★★ one or two · ★ more.
Tips
- 🥺 Puppy Eyes make Grandpa pick up his pills. Never touch a 💊.
- Stay out from under his feet, and away from the kitchen when he’s been to the stove.
🌋 Fluffy Forgot Dinner Mission 4 · The apartment · Friday 6:30 PM
Goal: collect 5 of Charlie’s things and get to the door.
Stars: ★★★ no hits · ★★ one or two · ★ more.
Tips
- This is Fluffy’s Volcano Mode lesson: when his face goes red, keep your distance and hit him with 🥺 Puppy Eyes.
- Grandpa’s demands keep winding Fluffy up. Keeping the two of them apart helps.
Spoiler: dinner
The kibble bowl starts empty, and Fluffy only refills it after Puppy Eyes. There’s no Devil Mode in this one: his temper tops out at Volcano.
🍷 Aunty’s Happy Hour Mission 5 · The apartment · Saturday 5:00 PM
Goal: collect 5 of Charlie’s things and get to the door.
Stars: ★★★ no hits · ★★ one or two · ★ more.
Tips
- Red circles show where Aunty is about to stumble. Never stand in one.
- She drops treats when her commission comes in: an easy top-up.
🍋 Lemon Chicken at Paola’s Mission 6 · Paola’s Osteria · Saturday 7:30 PM
Goal: get the 🍋 Lemon Chicken from Paola at the kitchen door, the 🥔 mashed potatoes from the back kitchen door, then take it all to Fluffy’s booth. Then out the front door.
Stars: ★★★ no hits · ★★ one or two · ★ more.
Tips
- Don’t trip the waiters: hot plates and broken glass.
- Stay well away from the toddler’s room unless Puppy Eyes are ready.
Spoiler: the feast
Reaching Fluffy’s booth with dinner brings Charlie back to full health, so the walk out is the easy part.
📋 The Ex Drops By Mission 7 · Aunty’s penthouse · Sunday 3:30 PM
Goal: collect 6 of Charlie’s things and get to the door.
Stars: ★★★ no hits · ★★ one or two · ★ more.
Tips
- Up close, the Ex-Husband’s quiz slows Charlie right down: 🥺 Puppy Eyes and he lets you pass.
- Don’t bump into Fluffy while he’s hiding from the Ex. It makes him furious.
Spoiler: what happens if Fluffy’s meter fills
This is the first Devil Mode: horns, teleports, rings of fire, pitchfork charges and meteors for about 11 seconds. Read the red zones, zoom through the fire, and a Bark cancels the attack he’s winding up.
🐈 Aunty’s Penthouse Mission 8 · Aunty’s penthouse · Sunday 5:00 PM
Goal: collect 6 of Charlie’s things and get to the door. Puppy comes along for the playdate.
Stars: ★★★ no hits · ★★ one or two · ★ more.
Tips
- Pepe crouches before he pounces: get out of the red. Puppy Eyes won’t help; a Bark buys time.
- Watch the couches, the beds and the piano: Pepe hides under them.
🚗 Road Trip to Southampton Mission 9 · Inside the Mini · Monday 3:30 PM
Goal: keep Charlie safe in the back seat until the trip meter reaches the end (about 75 seconds), before the check engine light wins.
Stars: ★★★ no hits · ★★ one or two · ★ more. Slamming into a door or a seat counts as a hit.
Tips
- When a sign flashes, Charlie is about to be thrown the way the arrow points: push the other way, or zoom at the right moment.
- 📣 Bark the rats away: every rat in the car drains the engine faster.
🛻 Tailgated by an F-150 Mission 10 · Montauk Highway · Monday 6:00 PM
Goal: steer the Mini all the way to the beach house without the engine giving out.
Stars: ★★★ no hits · ★★ one or two · ★ more.
Tips
- Drag (or the arrow keys) to steer. Red zones show where he’s about to ram or swipe.
- 📣 Bark is the horn: he backs off, and the engine eases up for a few seconds.
Spoiler: how it ends
Hold on until about four fifths of the way: the police pull the F-150 over, and the rest of the drive is just traffic.
🏖️ Southampton Beach House Mission 11 · The beach house · Tuesday 4:00 PM
Goal: collect 6 of Charlie’s things (many are buried) and get to the exit.
Stars: ★★★ no hits · ★★ one or two · ★ more.
Tips
- Stand on a ✨ mound for a moment to dig up a buried toy.
- Here the waves do hurt: stay above the foam line, and watch for seagulls far down the beach.
🏚️ Dumps 4 Sale Mission 12 · The listing · Wednesday 3:00 PM
Goal: get 3 offers on the condemned house before 3 buyers storm out, and before Fluffy gets too drunk.
Stars (different here): ★★★ nobody storms out and no hits · ★★ at most one buyer storms out · ★ more.
Tips
- Stay close to a buyer to raise their 💰 meter; 🥺 Puppy Eyes give a big boost.
- Stand on an eyesore for a moment to hide it for a while.
- 📣 Bark the raccoon and the seller away from buyers, and grab the 🍷 before Fluffy does.
Spoiler: Fluffy at the open house
Instead of a temper he has a drunk meter that rises on its own and jumps with every glass he reaches. Loud, then shirtless and picking fights (and hurting on contact), and if it fills, the open house is over.
🎉 The Commission Party Mission 13 · Aunty’s penthouse · Thursday 8:00 PM
Goal: grab three special things (the 🦮 leash, the 🎀 bow and 🐑 Lamb Lamb), then run for the elevator.
Stars: ★★★ no hits · ★★ one or two · ★ more.
Tips
- Pepe still crouches before he pounces: get out of the red.
- 📣 Bark when Pepe gets close.
Spoiler: Fluffy’s one good moment
Fluffy wasn’t invited, came anyway, and follows Charlie around. When Pepe threatens Charlie, or when you Bark, Fluffy throws himself at the cat and takes the scratches. The result card counts them. Nobody thanks him.
🔦 No Dogs in the Lobby Mission 14 · The lobby · Friday 4:00 PM
Goal: collect 5 of Charlie’s things and get out.
Stars: ★★★ no hits · ★★ one or two · ★ more.
Tips
- Stay out of the Super’s flashlight, and don’t bark: he hears it.
- The doormen’s desk heals, again every 22 seconds or so.
😈 Devil Night Mission 15 · The apartment · Friday 11:00 PM
Goal: collect 7 of Charlie’s things in the dark and get to the door.
Stars: ★★★ no hits · ★★ one or two · ★ more.
Tips
- Everybody is in and nobody is OK. Read the red zones, zoom through the fire, and keep Puppy Eyes for Fluffy.
- Zooming out (🔍) helps you see what’s coming.
Spoiler: the dark
The lights are out: you only see around Charlie and by the glow of fire, lava, warnings and the Super’s flashlight. Fluffy starts the night close to Volcano Mode, and Devil Mode comes far more often than usual.
🐈 Pepe’s Revenge Mission 16 · The apartment · Sunday 5:00 PM
Goal: rescue 6 of Charlie’s things from Pepe, then get to the door.
Stars: ★★★ no hits · ★★ one or two · ★ more.
Tips
- 👀 over a bed or the couch means Pepe is under it, waiting: go round, not past.
- 📣 Bark stops a pounce, but every bark near Fluffy fills his meter. 🥺 Puppy Eyes cools Fluffy and does nothing to Pepe.
Spoiler: halfway
After the third toy the Super barges in: he heard the hissing from the lobby. From then on his flashlight sweeps the apartment too, so stay out of the yellow beam. At the end Aunty comes to the door for Pepe, and he goes home with her.
🎮 Modes and controls
📖 Story Mode Sixteen missions, in order
Mission 1 is always open; win a mission (any number of stars) and the next one opens. Your best stars and best score for each mission are kept, so replaying can only improve them.
Good to know
- Every mission begins with an intro and a 💭 tip from Charlie. They’re worth reading.
🗽 Free Roam Charlie’s Day
A whole day on the Upper East Side, from 7:00 AM to bedtime: about 16 minutes of real time, one game minute a second. Walk between Fluffy’s apartment, the lobby, Park Avenue, Aunty’s penthouse and the garage, and take the Mini to the beach house.
Who’s where depends on the time: the Maid is in until 11, Fluffy is out from 3 to 6 PM, Nichole visits in the afternoon, Aunty is at her penthouse from 11 and comes over in the evening, and the Super is in the lobby in the morning.
Missions show up as ⭐ markers, some only at certain hours. Stand on one to start it, and you come back to the day afterwards (a bit later in the day). There’s no game over: when Charlie runs out of health he naps, wakes up in Fluffy’s room an hour and a half later, and carries on.
Good to know
- Paola’s and Petco on Park Avenue heal Charlie all the way (once every minute and a half or so); the doormen’s drawer heals too.
- There are 20 golden bones to find, and each one only counts once, ever. There are bones in every place you can walk to: the apartment, the lobby, Park Avenue (the most), the penthouse, the garage and the beach house. Check the corners and the rooms nobody uses.
- Watch out in the garage: the rats keep coming.
Spoiler: where the golden bones are
Apartment (3): the kitchen, the walk-in wardrobe, the foyer. Lobby (3): around the edges of the lobby. Park Avenue (5): three on the sidewalk (both far ends, and one near the middle) and two in the strip of park. Penthouse (3): the balcony, the terrace, and the bathroom at the end of the bedroom hallway. Garage (3): both bottom corners and one in the middle. Beach house (3): inside the house, the far edge of the backyard, and down by the dunes.
⏱️ Survival Park Avenue Panic
Survive as long as you can in the apartment while the hoomans keep arriving: the Maid almost at once, then Aunty, Nichole, the Super, and more as the minutes go by. It ends when Charlie’s health runs out.
Score: 5 points for every second survived, plus everything he collects (his toys keep coming back, 100 points each; treats and pets add a little).
Good to know
- Any score above zero can go on the Top Dogs board: type a nickname on the result card. The board shows each name’s best score.
- Healing is how you last: grab every treat, Evian and soup, and get petted whenever someone friendly is near.
📺 Watch Mode Charlie’s Week: it plays itself
Do nothing and watch Charlie live a week, Monday 7:00 AM to Sunday night: the apartment, walks, the groomer, the penthouse, Paola’s, the beach, and Grandpa’s hospital trips as “meanwhile…” cutaways. Nothing can hurt Charlie on autopilot.
Speed (1 to 5): Slow, Easy, Normal and Fast pass an hour every 80, 40, 20 or 10 seconds. 5 is Highlights: the quiet stretches fast-forward behind a card with the clock spinning and a line saying what’s going on, and the big moments (a fire, Grandpa’s mess, a cutaway, someone walking in) play in full at normal speed with a “★ Highlight” tag. The small moments are limited to a few a day; the big ones always play. A week at Highlights takes about 7 to 10 minutes.
Excitement (1 to 5): from “A quiet day” to “Total chaos”. Higher means more fires, more Volcano and Devil Fluffy, more visitors and more of Grandpa’s hospital trips.
Every night, a Today on Park Avenue card recaps the day: its highlights in order, who was in them, and a one-line summary. Sunday’s card adds the whole week.
Good to know
- Change Speed and Excitement while you watch with the − and + buttons on screen.
- On the website the day’s card waits for you (Continue, or Esc), and Share the day or Copy the day shares it as text.
- Pause and pick 📺 Today so far to see the card for the day up to now.
- Describe Watch Mode (on by default) fills the gaps between the voices for screen-reader users: the narrator, who’s talking, where Charlie is, and each highlight.
- Turn it off with the Describe Watch Mode box on the Watch Mode screen.
👆 Touch and mouse
Put a finger down anywhere and drag to run (on a Mac: click and drag). The three buttons are 💨 Zoomies, 🥺 Puppy Eyes and 📣 Herd Bark; ❚❚ pauses, and 🔍 zooms.
⌨️ Keyboard
Arrow keys or WASD to run. Space Zoomies, E Puppy Eyes, Q Herd Bark, Esc or P to pause, − and + to zoom, F Photo Mode. On menus the arrow keys move a gold ring, Return presses, and Esc goes back.
Those are the usual keys: you can put any action on another key, and switch moving to Tap to toggle (tap a direction and Charlie keeps walking; tap it again to stop) for anyone who can’t hold a key down.
Good to know
- Change them with Controls at the bottom of the title screen. They’re saved in this browser.
🎮 Game controllers
Left stick or d-pad to run. A / ✕ Zoomies, Y / △ Puppy Eyes, X / □ Herd Bark, Menu / Options to pause, B / ○ to go back, the shoulder buttons (L1 / R1, LB / RB) to zoom, and pressing the right stick (R3 / RS) for Photo Mode. On menus the stick moves the gold ring.
Those are the usual buttons: Controls lets you move any action to another button (Menu / Options always pauses), and Tap to toggle makes the d-pad a tap to keep walking.
🔍 Zoom
Three steps: Close (the usual framing), Room and Whole (the whole place). Tap the 🔍 button, pinch, scroll, press − and +, or use the shoulder buttons. Charlie remembers your choice on each device. In the car, the chase and the opening scene the framing is fixed.
In Watch Mode the camera also pulls back by itself when something starts across the room, then eases back in.