It seems like it was just yesterday when it was released, but The Simpsons: Hit and Run officially turns 18 today. That makes it just old enough to legally buy a pint in the UK, and it makes me feel very old.
The absolute classic game released in 2003 for the GameCube, PlayStation 2, Xbox, and Windows PC’s. Developed by Radical Entertainment, the game lets players loose around several areas of Springfield in a more family friendly GTA style format.
Playing as different members of the Simpson household, much of the premise revolved around driving cars to complete missions and races. Some light 3D platforming and collectible finding also made up much of the gameplay.
According to VGChartz, the game sold an impressive 4.7 million copies during its lifetime. For a game released in 2003, that’s mightily impressive. Despite its resounding popularity, we’ve never seen the concept revisited. That’s mostly down to the legal minefield that The Simpsons licence finds itself in.
Disney now technically holds the rights to The Simpsons after it acquired Fox a few years ago. Meanwhile, the original game was published by Vivendi Games and Sierra Entertainment. Both of those publishers, and developer Radical Entertainment too, eventually ended up merging into Activision around 2008. As for who holds the legal rights to The Simpsons: Hit and Run, the waters are messy and unclear.
Please sir, can I have a remaster?
That hasn’t stopped fans from taking matters into their own hands, though. Recently, a budding modder decided to recreate the first level of The Simpsons: Hit and Run in Unreal Engine 5. The impressive part is that he managed the task within a single week! However, it’s clear that an official remake of Hit and Run is unlikely to ever see the light of day. A playable demo of the Unreal Engine 5 remake was ordered to be taken down over copyright infringements.
Despite this, the original developers have expressed that they would love to see their work remade. Joe McGinn, the Lead Designer on the original Hit and Run, left a comment on the unofficial remake saying, ‘Amazing what you accomplished! Really gives a taste of what a full modern remaster could be. Impressive work!’
What’s your favourite memory of playing The Simpsons: Hit and Run? Let us know across our social channels!
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[Featured Image Credit: Radical Entertainment/Vivendi Universal Games]