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The 10 Best Simpsons Games

Published

1 year ago

June 28, 2023

Shawna Schofield

What are the best Simpsons games?

Currently boasting 35 seasons and 750 episodes, The Simpsons is a show that has been entertaining audiences since 1989.

Having been such a breakout success on television, it wasn’t long before the series made its way into the video game industry.

While Simpsons games have been around since 1991, we’re looking at the ones that have truly stood out as the best of the best.

The 10 Best Simpsons Games

To create this list, we looked at all of the games in the Simpsons franchise and compared them based on reviews, gameplay, and sales.

This has allowed us to find the ones that have been the most successful and the ones that remain worth playing today!

Okily Dokily, with that being said, here’s our list of the 10 best Simpsons games:

10. The Simpsons: Night Of The Living Treehouse Of Horror (2001)

Kicking off our list, we have the side-scrolling platformer Night of the Living Treehouse of Horror!

Released in 2001, this game features seven levels that re-create a tale from the Halloween Treehouse of Horror episodes.

Each member of the Simpsons family has their own levels, though Homer gets three to himself.

Despite being a relatively simple game, it is easily one of the best Game Boy Color games, especially for fans of the TV series.

What really makes this game stand out is its colorful design, which is extremely vivid with smooth animations.

Similarly, each level is like another game in its own right, with unique stories, challenges, and goals.

While often overlooked in favor of more recent games, Night of the Living Treehouse of Horror is a ton of fun.

9. The Simpsons Wrestling (2001)

This sports video game was released the same year as Night of the Living Treehouse of Horror but for the PlayStation and not the Game Boy Color.

In The Simpsons Wrestling, players can choose from 20 playable characters, each with their own special moves and voiced by their original voice actors.

While closely resembling one of the best WWE games, Simpsons Wrestling is a bit more beat ’em up than the traditional sport.

For example, pinning opponents relies on a stun meter that gets higher as health is lost, making pinning easier.

Upon release, this game was absolutely dragged by critics, with some saying it’s not worth the Simpsons’ name, which is harsh.

We’ll admit that this game is rough, but that’s kind of a part of its overall charm, with janky graphics that look like Bart drew them himself!

It may be bad, but it has plenty of laughs straight from the TV show, which still makes it worth checking out for fans!

8. The Simpsons: Bart’s Nightmare (1992)

Bart’s Nightmare was released for the SNES and Sega Genesis in 1992, and gameplay is split into two parts.

The first part of the game revolves around helping Bart track down his homework pages that are strewn around the street.

The twist is players also have to avoid enemies, such as mailboxes that have come to life and various characters from the show.

Players can collect power-ups in the form of bubblegum along the way and watermelon seeds that can be spit at enemies to take them out.

When a page is found, Bart will be pulled into the page and have to choose from two randomly selected minigames.

There are five different minigames to choose from, and these are what make up the second half of the game.

The Simpsons: Bart’s Nightmare was well-received, though its level of difficulty was criticized by some.

If you didn’t get the chance to play this game back in the day, you can still experience it using one of the best Sega Genesis emulators, which will play it perfectly!

7. The Simpsons: Bart Vs. The Space Mutants (1991)

This side-scrolling platformer game was released for several home consoles, including the NES, Atari ST, Commodore 64, and Sega Genesis.

In Bart Vs. The Space Mutants players have to control Bart as he skateboards through five different levels to stop an alien invasion.

Throughout each level, Bart needs to destroy or grab a number of times to stop the Aliens from building their ultimate weapon.

Another objective is to convince the other Simpsons family members of the alien threat so that they’ll help Bart during levels.

This can be achieved by collecting letters from defeated aliens which will spell out the name of a family member.

Difficulty increases with each successive level, and in some spots, this game can be deceptively tricky.

Well-received by fans and critics, Bart Vs. The Space Mutants perfectly captures the humor of the Simpsons while combining it with incredibly addictive gameplay.

6. The Simpsons: Virtual Springfield (1997)

Virtual Springfield is an adventure game that debuted for PC and Macintosh in 1997, and it certainly is interesting.

This game involves exploring the town of Springfield, visiting famous locations from the show, and interacting with a variety of characters.

While doing this, players have to be on the lookout for character cards, with the goal of collecting the entire set.

There are also a few mini-games dotted around, such as the boxing game, Slugfest, that Homer and Bart play in the Moaning Lisa episode from season one.

What really makes this game fun is being able to interact with the characters, many of whom are voiced by their original voice actors.

The level of detail given to the town is also incredibly impressive, so much so that it really feels like you’re inside the TV show.

Of course, the Simpsons brand of humor is also intact everywhere you go, which really makes playing this game absolutely delightful.

5. Krusty’s Fun House (1992)

Krusty’s Fun House was originally released as Rat-Trap on the Amiga PC, then later licensed to Acclaim Entertainment, which turned it into one of the best Simpsons games.

The goal of this game is to direct rats through a number of maze-like levels toward a designated extermination area.

Each level requires a certain number of rats to be exterminated before players can progress, and some levels can be pretty hard.

Players have to use a number of obstacles to herd the rats into the designated area while snakes, birds, and flying pigs try to stop Krusty.

To stop these creatures, players will need to throw pies at them to knock them out so the game can continue.

One of the best retro games of all time, Krusty’s Fun House, was praised by critics and fans for being a solid strategy game loaded with hours of fun.

4. The Simpsons: Road Rage (2001)

Similar to the 1999 game Crazy Taxi, The Simpsons: Road Rage tasks players with picking up passengers and driving them to their destinations as fast as possible.

Featuring Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and several other iconic characters, this game was criticized for its graphics but praised for its humor.

While the main goal is to transport passengers as quickly as possible, this has to be done while avoiding other vehicles and Mr. Burn’s nuclear buses.

Players can also unlock 16 unique vehicles, six different starting locations, and ten different missions.

In order to unlock these, players have to earn more money for each new vehicle or starting location.

For missions, players must accomplish specific tasks, such as protecting Krusty from a fan mob while getting him from point A to B.

Road Rage even comes with a multiplayer mode where two players can pick up the same passengers and race to see who can deliver them first.

Thanks to the popularity of this game, it was added to the backwards compatibility program for the Xbox 360, allowing players to access it on the newer console.

Although many reviews for this game were mixed, it sold roughly 1.6 million copies on the PS2 alone.

Fans of the series thoroughly enjoyed Road Rage, and it definitely deserves a playthrough if you get the chance!

3. The Simpsons Game (2007)

One of the best PS3 games ever created, The Simpsons Game is a platformer that features an original story written by show writers Matt Warburton and Tim Long.

This game follows the Simpsons family as they learn they are inside a video game and have been given various abilities to get through different levels.

Two characters are playable in each level, and there are 16 levels in total, called episodes, which will require different members to progress through.

In the latter part of the game, players have to save their 8-bit counterparts from the game designer Will Wright and their own creator, Matt Groening.

One thing that makes this game extra fun is that it often parodies other video game series, such as Grand Theft Auto in the level Grand Theft Scratchy.

The humor in The Simpsons Game was particularly praised, as was its design, which is clean and cel-shaded.

Along with earning many accolades, The Simpsons Game was nominated for the first-ever Video Game Writing Award at the Writers Guild of America Awards in 2007.

As of 2008, four million copies had been sold, and there was even a planned sequel, though it was canceled by the studio in favor of other projects.

The Simpsons Game is definitely a must-play for fans of the TV show, and we really wish it had gotten the sequel it deserved!

2. The Simpsons Arcade (1991)

The Simpsons Arcade game is a side-scrolling beat ’em up that was published in 1991 for arcades and later ported to the Commodore 64.

In this game, players control various members of the Simpsons family as they fight through enemies in an attempt to rescue Maggie, who has been kidnapped.

Each of the Simpsons characters has their own unique fighting styles; for example, Homer can punch and kick, while Marge swings a vacuum cleaner.

Two different cabinet models were produced for this game, one that allowed two players and another that allowed up to four players.

Upon release, this game became one of the top three best-selling arcade machines in the United States, leading it to be ported to home consoles.

It even became one of the best Xbox 360 games when it was ported to the console in 2012, though it was removed a year later from the Xbox Live Arcade.

However, in 2021, Arcade1Up released a 30th-anniversary edition of the home console, allowing fans to get their hands on this classic once more.

1. The Simpsons: Hit & Run (2003)

Taking our number one spot is The Simpsons: Hit & Run, a spiritual successor to The Simpsons: Road Rage.

This game follows the Simpsons family and Apu Nahasapeemapetilon as they notice numerous strange things occurring around the town of Springfield.

After a bit of investigating, the Simpsons’ characters discover an alien plot to take over the world caused by the duo Kang and Kodos.

Hit & Run features seven levels across three maps, each containing its own missions and sub-plot to explore.

Heavily inspired by the Grand Theft Auto series, Hit & Run has a sandbox-style format in terms of gameplay.

Players can attack pedestrians with melee attacks or drive around with reckless abandon, mowing down anything in the way.

There is even a hit-and-run meter that fills up when people are run over, or objects are destroyed.

When this meter is full, the police will pursue the player until the bar has decreased due to safer driving.

However, along with all of these antics, there is a hilarious story to uncover as well, which has helped give this game a cult following.

Easily the best Simpsons game, Hit & Run is highly recommended for fans of the series, and we hope to see it eventually get its own remaster!

Summary

We hope you’ve enjoyed our list of the 10 best Simpsons games and found some new games to play!

Having been around for over three decades, it’s safe to say that many of us have grown up with this incredible series, and its popularity has yet to wane.

If you’re a fan of the show, we highly recommend checking out these games if you get the chance, because they’re definitely the best ever made!

Here’s a quick recap of the 10 best Simpsons games: