The Simpsons Game: First Impressions

Now I know why doves cry - America's favorite fat, bald, idiot (no, not Dr. Phil) may rule TV but his video game lineage is a big disappointment. The Simpsons gaming history has been so bad it makes the Resident Evil movie trilogy look like a Ken Burns award winning documentary. But when I got a peek at the newest Simpsons offering at E3 I was stoked. The graphics looked great, it had some hilarious one-liners and a bunch of inside jokes that both gamers and Simpsons fans would appreciate. In fact the game more or less looked like one long episode that cracked on gaming while liberally throwing out Simpsons quotes. That's the good news.
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The bad news? The game play...(sad sigh)...stinks. That's right, the fatal weakness of every Simpsons title ever made strikes this game as well. D'oh! Keep in mind this is a first impression after only completing the first 2 levels since getting the game yesterday, but damn if those usual flaws weren't glaring. All the great things I mentioned above are certainly there and will probably hold off Simpsons die-hards, but even those of us with encyclopedic knowledge of the show will get tired of the repetitive gameplay, unimaginative levels and storyline that lacks any resemblance of brilliance of a typical episode. Even the Bart and Homer Butterfinger commercials have more depth.
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Don't get me wrong, this game will sell like hotcakes because there are so many fans who love the show and the game does have a few redeemable qualities. There is a lot of original, funny dialogue all done by the cast. The game is easily the best looking Simpsons game ever and despite its flaws, its still the best Simpsons game ever. But does any of that really matter? No, not when the gameplay is so weak. Channeling my inner Comic Book Guy I have to say The Simpsons game is...Rental. Title. Only.
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Iron helps us play - Anybody interested in Mutant Storm Empire on Xbox Live Arcade? Tell me who Lisa's favorite substitute teacher was and I'll email you the code for this game.
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