The Simpsons game has caught quite a beating wherever you check, but we will give you the lowdown on your fine-feathered Yellow family. Okay they aren’t feathered, but read on anyway.

Presentation and Graphics: Each level starts and ends with a Simpsons cut-scene that looks amazing in HD. The game itself for the most part looks pretty good and sticks with the cartoonish style of Springfield. The odd part is that at times during the stages the cutscenes change to a horrid almost sketch like style, which makes the family look like their first season artistic style. The game is bright and the environments are good looking, but there isn’t much to put in here other than it looks like the Simpsons. 3 out of 5

Sounds and Music: Here is where The Simpsons Game shines like a mofo, the sounds of Springfield are what makes the game. The humor of the other character’s when they walk by you in the street and the sounds of the playable characters as they interact with their environment really translate well. Hearing Ralph or Lenny or any of the characters dole out memorable lines is great. The jokes and voice acting are very entertaining and the way the game makes fun of video game marketing and games in general make the game better than it really is. 4 out of 5

Gameplay: The Simpsons Game is a platformer that unfortunately is plagued with camera issues. The camera at times will not allow you to change views or puts you in an awkward view making jumps impossible. The game itself is simple, you take control of a pair of the Simpsons family and go through a stage as they learn to use their newfound super powers, via a user’s manual. You can collect character specific icons in both the levels and the city in order to reach 100% and get bonuses for the family, like extra damage or health. The game is full of video game clichés and actually rewards you for finding them all with an achievement, there is a lot of collecting to do in order to get 100% of the game completed, but this doesn’t add to the fun of the game, just makes it tedious.

The most redeeming quality of the game aside form the jokes is the offline co-op play that you can do with a buddy via split screen. This is a good addition as the AI of your Simpsons counterpart is typically horrible and not helpful. The offline co-op also lets you enjoy the jokes of Springfield with a buddy and perhaps a few beers.

There are many funny references to different video games and even EA throughout the entire game, which are quite funny. The stage has a theme such as land of Chocolate, Killer Dolphins etc. and then culminates in a final wacky boss fight which typically isn’t very complicated. After you beat the level you then get to play a time challenge in that level, this really is a mini game based on the previous stage, unfortunately these challenges are more annoying than fun. 2.5 out of 5

Lasting Appeal: The lasting appeal of this game is limited unfortunately since there is no reason to replay the stages other than to look for the icons scattered throughout the stages for the achievement. You can go back and play through the challenge modes of each stage, which provide some fun, but ultimately are more annoying than anything. Aside from Xbox leaderboards there isn’t much to the online portion of this game. Online co-op would have been pretty huge or at least putting the time challenge mini games as some type of online portion. 3 out of 5

Final Word: Unless you are a big Simpsons fan, this game will drive you nuts. The choppy camera and lack luster controls will make any hardcore platform junkie go crazy. On the flip side the humor of the jokes and different Simpsons characters really shines and equates to you playing through a Simpsons episode.

Overall: 3 out of 5

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