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In 1991, well before The Simpsons earned its placed as the longest running cartoon in history, Konami released an arcade tie-in just as the animated family was becoming a pop culture phenomenon. The Simpsons arcade game is a classic beat ’em up game with a large alluring cabinet that accomodates up to four players.
One year-old Maggie Simpson has mistaken a large stolen diamond for a pacifier. Smithers – who works for Mr. Burns and has just stolen the diamond – quickly takes Maggie and runs off. Players can choose from Homer, Marge, Bart, or Lisa as they make their way through Springfield toward the power plant to save her. Each playable character has a unique attack: Homer punches, Marge swings at enemeis with a vacuum cleaner, Bart hits them with his skateboard, while Lisa uses her jump rope as a whip. The combat is nicely animated and has all the satisfaction you’d expect from a Konami beat ’em up.
Despite its undeniably fun gameplay, it’s obvious the title was in the works before the show’s characters had developed. Smithers playing an outright villain seems odd, and the fact that he and Mr. Burns are robbing a jewelry store is definitely out of character. And why isn’t Lisa’s weapon a saxophone, for crying out loud!? Still, it’s a game worth a playthrough if you get the chance. It inspired a 2009 mobile game called The Simpsons Arcade, and in 2021 it received a full re-release in the form of an Arcade1Up cabinet – a four-foot replica of the original cabinet to celebrate its 30th anniversary.
