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The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 16, 2007

System: Microsoft Xbox 360

Also available for: Sony PlayStations 2 and 3, Sony PSP, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS

Publisher: Electronic Arts

Reviewer's rating: **

ESRB rating: Teen

Game type: Adventure/platform

Kind of like: "Lego Star Wars"

Best feature: The voice acting is good and varied.

Worst feature: Camera angles are terribly awkward in tight areas.

The bottom line: After countless unfunny Simpsons video games, EA swoops in to put a proper stamp on the franchise.

They start out with a good plan: Make it funny. The best thing about "The Simpsons Game" is the humor, aided by original voice tracks from all the familiar characters.

EA made another smart decision by parodying video games themselves, poking fun at something they specialize in: video game cliches. Find an exploding crate or the always-reviled invisible wall and Comic Book Guy comes on the screen to reward you. It's a good touch.

The game hints at open, sandbox-style play, but it's a false promise. Springfield is apparently closed for business. Most of the buildings are inaccessible and most streets are empty. It turns out this is a linear platform adventure game.

The gameplay fluctuates from fluid to manically frustrating. Most levels demand precise jump/run/duck sequences which are made extremely difficult by the ever-moving camera.

Two-player co-op is available, though only in a split-screen mode where the camera problems are magnified. For a game as bright and busy as this, it's easy to lose one's bearings. Co-op also leaves one player with nothing to do for long stretches.

Stephen Hammill

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