The Simpsons Game

"It hurts to give it a seven."

Oh that new Simpsons game.

I got it on Christmas day and I finished it this morning....rather than going to the gym like I was supposed to. I only put it away to finish Mass Effect....so it was the game I've been playing for 360 for sometime now(33 days). The wife purchased it for me as a huge Simpsons fan and even she has broken down and is playing through it ( and is almost done, which says something about it as she NEVER finishes games she starts).

I wanted to give this game a higher score so badly. It really has it all...shiny, authentic, Simpsons graphics, excellent voice direction, good level design, and an excellent plot with real simpsons humour (although a little heavy on the "fourth wall" stuff). It is successful at lampooning every game it takes on.

The Story is great!( did I mention that?) I actually laughed out loud in every level. It is a quality game and for the design team, I have no doubt, it was a labor of love. But oh the problems- its not an overly long game (which to me is a bonus- I like short and concentrated, as an adult I dont have the time I use to to devote to loooooooong games), but some of the levels-more specifically the balance in them need to be tweaked. You can take two runs at the same level and in one you'll walk right through it and in the other the enemies will clump together and you'll experience SERIOUS rage.

The first invasion level with Bart and Homer was the beginning of this phenomenon, and it appears in some of the later levels intermittently.

I imagine most people who play the game will have the same issue though- sluggish camera. The game allows you to control the camera but it rotates fairly slowly and is prone to jerking or moving slightly as you are playing. In a game where there is a good amount of jumping this plays havoc, not as much as it could though since it isnt an automatic loss of "a dude". Its more of a pain in the butt. It doesnt wreck the experience but it reduces it overall. anyone who suggests otherwise is a fool.

The other issue for myself was that the characters dont feel like they jump as far as they "should". Every jump has that "barely made it" feeling and this leads to its own share of frustration.

Each Simpson you play as (all 5) has his or her own special powers which are used over and over again to keep your game moving. The changing game play mechanics ( which range from Space Invaders to Missile Defense) keep the gameplay fresh and makes each level its own animal.

The graphics are fresh and clean, with good variety and well designed, colorful spaces. Right down to good representations of the "Orangegrove" cul de sac from Grand Theft Auto. The shows characters are all here and voiced appropriately, and look...well....they look like the show. The cinemas are all well done and are of a high quality. I didnt experience any weird "glitchiness" that I am use to in EA products (oh BURN....I still love you EA) and overall its a quality presentation.

For the "collector" (Which I am not) there are time trials and tokens to collect, along with the "cliches", which are actions completed by the player that he has done hundreds of times in other games, they are funny at first (such as pressing start) but by the end of the game I was just hitting the buttons to make comic book guy get off the screen. But for the completionist there is lots to do.

I love the Simpsons and I loved my time in Springfield but with another few weeks it could have been something special....instead of just being special to me.

7.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 02/06/08

Game Release: The Simpsons Game (US, 10/30/07)