It's been a little over a decade since The Simpsons arcade game was released. It was wildly popular, one of the few games that each of the four playing slots were usually full at whatever arcade you went to. The only problem is ever since then, despite the success of the TV show each and every Simpsons game to follow has been a complete flop. There have been dozens of Simpsons game titles since the arcade sidescroller but none are really worth mentioning. However hope has returned in one of the least likely forms, a Simpsons based racing game. The Simpsons Hit and Run has the feel of many recent arcade style driving games such as Crazy Taxi and Midtown Madness, combined with a fully interactive 3d Springfield.

The first thing you're going to notice when you start playing this game is you're not even in a vehicle, this is because Hit and Run has more of a GTA like system. You're given the ability to enter and exit any vehicle at anytime you choose, use your own car or hitch a ride with any car that might be passing by on the street. The game begins with Homer as your character, and you have one vehicle, all around town there are coins you can gather, by picking up a single coin, a bundle, defeating an enemy, or winning a race. These coins are extremely important because they give you purchasing power towards new character outfits and new vehicles. Not only is it fun to outfit yourself with your favorite Simpsons characters clothes and cars, but some of these items are also necessary to complete missions.

Missions, there are seven story missions per level, in each story mission you'll need to complete some small task that will add a little bit of progress to the overall story of the game. There are several different types of missions, you might have to drive somewhere in a certain amount of time, escape from someone, collect items, chase another character, or complete a variety of other tasks. You'll also find characters around town that offer bonus missions, if you complete whatever task they ask of you, you'll get access to a vehicle you can't get anywhere else in the game. Another type of sub mission is the race circuit, each level contains 3 races, on completion of all 3 you'll find yourself with a fancy new car.

The best part of this game is that there's nothing near a shortage of vehicles, just about every car you've ever seen in The Simpsons has been put into this game. From Homer's personally designed car for the “Average man” to Apu's vintage Trans Am. It's definitely going to take quite some time to collect all of the cars, because the coin system and cost of each car are balanced to perfection, making sure you won't be able to buy every car in sight as you rush through the game, but if you play long enough you'll enjoy the ability to cruise in style with the comic book store guy's “Fat mobile”.

If missions are boring and you're losing attention fast, then take the car out and look for some trouble, by hitting pedestrians, fire hydrants, street lights, and other cars, your “Hit and Run” meter increases. Once the meter has maxed out the police will instantly be on your case, if you escape everything goes back to normal, but if you're caught you end losing fifty coins to pay off the ticket. You can also trigger a Hit and Run while in the process of carrying out a mission, so be careful what you smash and run into while speeding around town or things can get quite difficult very fast.

As you drive all around town you'll notice you can enter several of the more popular buildings from the show. It's kind of neat to be able to walk into Moe's bar and use the love tester or go to the quik-e-mart and check out the squishie machine or mess with the ATM. The only problem is while there are a few funny jokes inside these buildings, they're almost without purpose. Usually you only enter a building to purchase clothing or start a new mission, and there is really very little to do once you've gotten inside. I know it's a racing game and all, but sometimes it seems like the wonderful detail of the city and inner workings of the buildings could have been better put to use in another type of Simpsons game.

I was however impressed that just about when this game started getting too repetitive and predictable to play, the creators switched it up and flipped the game upside down. I don't really want to give anything away but if you play through the game towards the end you will be pleasantly surprised.

Wrap it up? Fine, the graphics engine is great, there is a small glitch when the camera swings too fast and the textures can't be processed fast enough, oh well, it's going to happen. The sound is great, yet sometimes annoying, as you hit people while driving along they yell “random” comments at you, however the comments aren't quite so random, get used to them because you'll hear each about a thousand times. While driving the character you're controlling also spits out comments and phrases, take it as you will but it helps the overall structure of the game. With all of the clothes, cars, and collectors cards to acquire in this game, the replay value is going to be very high. If you like the Simpsons don't be put off by the recent and past failures of Simpsons video games, this one is definitely worth the buy.