The Simpsons Arcade Game (XBLA): "A Retro Arcade Beat 'em Up"

This game brought back so many memories from my childhood. As a teenager I enjoyed watching "The Simpsons" every chance that I got. My mother wasn't really approving of the shows semi-adult humor, but she allowed me to view it anyways. The television series isn't the only nostalgic memories this game brings to mind. Back in the day when I used to play the arcades at a skating venue called "Skate Country" I would spend many quarters playing this exact same arcade game. When I first got this game for review I wasn't really sure it was a direct translation of the arcade cabinet game, but after doing a thorough playthrough I realized that it was. It was definitely a pleasant surprise. I think Konami, and Backbone Entertainment did an excellent job of porting this arcade style brawler to the consoles. They included a lot of extra features that the arcade cabinet version of the game didn't have including online co-op.

The Simpsons Arcade Game has a basic story plot that takes place throughout various locations in the Springfield area. The game begins with a cutscene featuring a jewelry heist gone wrong with Mr. Smithers as the leader of the theft. In his haste to escape he runs into Maggie Simpson who accidentally swaps her pacifier for the stolen gem that Mr. Smithers had abducted. Without a moments hesitation Mr. Smithers grabs Maggie, and makes a dramatic escape. The remaining Simpsons family members (Marge, Homer & Bart) won't stand for this heinous act, and immediately pursue Mr. Smithers, and his goons. What ensues is an all out brawl that takes the Simpsons family through the various locales of Springfield, and pits them against some of the wackiest characters you have ever laid eyes on.

This port of "The Simpsons Arcade Game" features all of the levels (8 Levels), boss fights, graphics, and sounds of it's old arcade cabinet counterpart. While the game is dated in appearance, and sound it still brings some new features to the table making the game just as enjoyable as it was years ago. The Simpsons Arcade Game is a 1-4 player 3D brawler that can be played online or offline. The game takes place in Springfield which happens to be the home of the Simpsons family. It also pays tribute to the television series with cameos of the Simpsons cartoon characters that many of us grew to like in the past. Among those characters you'll see Moe, Barney, Krusty the Clown, Nelson, and their two pets Santa's Little Helper and Snowball II. There are other characters that you'll also recognize as you play the game.

There are a variety of different online, and offline modes in "The Simpsons Arcade Game", and all of them can be played alone or with up to 3 other players. Among those modes you'll find "Free Play" which is basically a game with unlimited continues. It offers little challenge since you'll be able to do a complete playthrough of the game regardless of how many times you die. Aside from that mode there's also two modes (Quarters, Team Quarters) that have limited continues for all players that participate. The "quarters" mode gives each player a 10 credits limit. This means that each player can only continue up to 10 times. The "Team Quarters" mode is different in that all of the players share a collection of 40 credits/continuations. This puts pressure on the players to stay alive as long as they can during the game, and not waste the continuations. The game also features one last mode called "Survival" in which the player/s have only 1 life, and no continues. You have to be a really good player to be able to last to the end of the game in this mode. Each mode in the game has four different difficulty settings (Easy, Normal, Hard, Expert).

There are a total of four available Simpsons characters to play as in "The Simpsons Arcade Game". The characters available include "Marge" who uses a vacuum cleaner as a weapon, "Homer" who uses his fists & feet, "Bart" who uses his signature skateboard, and "Lisa" who uses a jump rope as a weapon. Aside from the pre-equipped weapons each Simpson character can also pick up throwable items that are placed throughout each level/location. The game's controls are very basic, and use only two buttons and one thumbstick on the Xbox 360 controller. For character movement you will use the (Left Thumbstick). I didn't try to see if the D. Pad worked, but it would be awkward if it did since this is a 3D brawler. To attack in the game you will simply use the (X) button. To jump in the game you will need to press the (A) button. You can actually use the attack button (X) with the jump button (A) to perform a variety of attacks that depend on how quickly you press them. Both the attack, and jump controls can be changed in the options menu to suit the players preferred control setup.

In conclusion I found "The Simpsons Arcade Game" to be a brief, but fun experience. It definitely brought back some good memories. I think the overall game setup was executed quite nicely. It offered some screen customizations that catered to the gamers who wanted the arcade cabinet view, or even those who wanted a more fullscreen type of viewing. I actually enjoyed the larger more full screen better, but that's a personal preference. I did find the game to look, and sound as dated as it was years ago, but it's pretty much a direct port so I wouldn't expect anything else. I ended up choosing the "smooth" screen filter setting which definitely made the game seem less dated in appearance. I know a lot of you are curious as to how the online played, and I'd say it was good for the most part. I did experience some lag when playing with a random online player, but when it was with my own connection (4-5 bars) the game played very smoothly. As far as replay value goes this game is pretty much a one shot deal. Once you do a playthrough there's not much (other than the 12 achievements & the unlockable Japanese ROM) that will have you going back for more. If you're looking for a trip of nostalgia though this game will likely fill that void for a reasonable price.