The Simpsons: Bart vs the Space Mutants
| Developer: Arc Developments | Graphics: |
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| Publisher: Ocean | Sound: |
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| Year: 1991 | Difficulty: |
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| Genre: Child abuse | Lastability: |
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| Number of players: 1 | Rating: |
6/10 | |
An urban platform/arcade game with a childish appearance but atrociously difficult, featuring an implausible plot (homage to the film They Live). If we set aside the underutilised The Simpsons license, the clumsy controls and the unbearable music, we have a game that’s not so silly after all, packed with small details, items to acquire and use in the right places; indiscernible platforms in the background, quirky mini-games … things that require curiosity, observation and perseverance, not being afraid to restart the same level dozens of times until knowing it by heart … the Battletoads syndrome. The only truly annoying problem: the jump mechanics, since the same button is used for both running and jumping.
I remember that most games branded The Simpsons were akin to unfinishable labours of Hercules, sometimes even incomprehensible (Bart vs the Juggernauts on Game Boy), and inevitably devoid of passwords…
On emulator, I’d recommend the Sega Genesis version. And in a different genre, The Simpsons (arcade, 1991, re-released on PlayStation 3 in 2012), a prime example of a well-exploited licence.
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