- Media Molecule’s PlayStation 4 hit, Dreams, has already been used to create endless fan-made games, including the likes of P.T but this one might take the cake. A fan of The Simpsons has recreated their own version of the nostalgia-trip classic game, The Simpsons.
- The Simpsons: Hit & Run has gone down in history as a cult classic.Fans of the show have loved this game and replayed it time and time again. Sadly, developer Radical Entertainment has been part of Activision’s studio consolidation efforts ruining the chance of a sequel in the minds of fans.
Whether we’ll get a The Simpsons: Hit & Run remake/remaster is up in the air, but that doesn’t mean you can’t relive the game’s wacky adventures in Media Molecule’s Dreams. The impressive creation suite recently launched on the PS4, giving users the chance to play and create nearly anything imaginable. Thanks to Dreams user ReivaJKH, you can jump back into the world of the beloved Hit and Run in a faithful recreation of the original. Much like many of the excellent Dreams recreations (like this rendition of Ghost of Tsushima), this one is nearly indistinguishable from the source material and features visuals, sounds, and gameplay to match.
The video below shows the recreation in action:
Jan 16, 2019 Performance and audio is pretty sloppy, at least on my fat PS4 - not tested with any other models. Video quality is low, although the game audio is normally distorted. This is because you can't.
Each of its characters is identical to those in the original, with Homer, Marge, Bart, Maggie, and Lisa in playable form. Hit & Run features an open world similar to that of 2001’s Grand Theft Auto III, but done so in more of a satirical way, in typical Simpsons fashion. Though the recreation still needs some work with its open-world aspects (like more variety in buildings and other features to make the world feel more alive), the foundation of an impressive game is there. It’s unclear if its creator plans to keep fleshing things out, but nonetheless, this looks and is presented just like the game you remember.
With remakes and remasters running rampant in the video game world, the idea of seeing The Simpsons: Hit & Run again isn’t outside the realm of possibility. Towards the end of 2019, the game’s producer Vlad Ceraldi talked about wanting to bring it back in some capacity but noted that there were no solid plans to do so at the time. But if the success of Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy, Spyro: Reignited Trilogy, and Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled are any indication, bringing back Hit & Run could be lucrative for those involved. (Editor’s Note: Licensing agreements notwithstanding, particularly now that Disney owns Fox and its properties.) After all, the original game sold somewhere in the neighborhood of 3 million copies.
While we may never see the return of Hit & Run, at least you can enjoy a version of it in Dreams, complete with Bart skateboarding sections, a saxophone-playing Lisa, and a gun-slinging Maggie—all of which can explore the town of Springfield.
(Editor’s Note: This is not the complete Hit & Run game remade, but rather a technical demonstration of what’s possible in Dreams limited to the area immediately around the Simspons’ residence.)
[Source: Dreams, YouTube via USgamer]
One of the most beloved licensed games of the PS2 era was The Simpsons: Hit & Run. Often referenced as a more PG version of Grand Theft Auto, Hit & Run took all the wacky antics of the popular show and allowed players to explore the open world of Springfield. The Simpsons: Hit & Run’s producer Vlad Ceraldi recently spoke about the classic PS2 game, talking about why it was fun and how the team knew it was going to be a success. Ceraldi is also very interested in seeing the game come back in some way, either as a remake or remaster.
In an interview with LADBible, Ceraldi said:
I could see it on multiple different types of platforms as a remake or remaster. It would have to take the parties who are in charge of the property to want that to happen and someone out there to decide that they were going to go out and do it. But absolutely, it would be fun to explore those characters and that universe again, that work again.
As far as why it stood the test of time, I think it’s a game that kids could play, adults could play, anyone who was fans of the show could try and laugh and have fun with.
Ceraldi then commented on knowing that the game would be a big hit before it released all those years ago:
It’s come up before in discussions but not seriously, usually at the pub, just talking about the idea of some of the magic that was captured and the potential ability to recapture it in a new way with a different audience, with a different generation of devices.
When you make something, sometimes you know you’ve made something special. This was one of the ones that we knew we hit the mark. We didn’t know it was going to sell as well as it did – we had high hopes, but it definitely hit its expectations.
At this point Ceraldi is not aware of any plans to remake or remaster the game, relegating such fantasies to “pub talk.” He goes on to say that there were a lot of technical limitations in the PS2-era that could be dispelled with modern consoles, including revised controls and packing Springfield full of even more references.
If we can get a remaster of Ghostbusters: The Video Game and Disney Classic Games: Aladdin and The Lion King, surely it’s not impossible to see The Simpsons: Hit & Run again in some capacity, right?
[Source: LADBible]