Konami really hit the hoover on the head when deciding on making The Simpsons' first gaming adventure into a side-scrolling slugfest. Avoiding any notion of pitting the family into some kind of platform adventure (that would come next in Bart Vs The Space Mutants) this favourite at penny arcades across the globe is a vibrant exercise in button-bashing simplicity. The plot here is fairly irrelevant - the aim is to rescue Maggie from the clutches of Mr Burns - as the gameplay takes over and the fighting kicks in. Like other games in the genre, each level features a host of baddies to dispatch, which in this game come predominantly in the form of suited up goons and themed thugs based on whatever locale the family are romping through - just watch out for Bigfoot. Not content with being a damn fine brawler the game also boasted some neat innovations - attacking options were bolstered with any two family members being able to link up and unleash a unique combination on a villain - which most certainly altered the genre, in addition to the inclusion of competitive minigames that briefly detracted from the action. Despite show creator Matt Groening palling up with Konami and a host of other developers over the years, in turn creating a further twenty six titles based on the franchise, this simple fighting sim still stands as the best Simpsons game to date.
Shaun is a former contributor for a number of Future Publishing titles and more recently worked as a staffer at Imagine Publishing.
He can now be found banking in the daytime and writing a variety of articles for What Culture, namely around his favourite topics of film, retro gaming, music, TV and, when he's feeling clever, literature.
