It’s been a really exciting year for Simpsons fans, as well as the movie finally making it to the cinema, we now have The Simpsons Game from EA. I must admit when I first heard of this title I was expecting a lame tie in with the movie to make everyone involved more cash, however to my surprise EA and The Simpsons creators have done the unexpected and created a whole new storyline.

The story is really good, if a little out there at times. Bart discovers that the Simpson family and the rest of Springfield are in fact in a computer game which is slowly being destroyed by forces unknown. It is up to the whole family to team together to get to the bottom of it and save Springfield. You take control of each family member in different levels. To start with you play just as Homer in a sort of dream like tutorial. Once this has been completed you will then play as two family members, changing between them with the touch of the d-pad. The family members playable for each level is dictated by the game, Homer and Bart, Lisa and Marge tend to team up but once in a while this will mix up a bit.

Each character has their own unique abilities, Homer is able to burp stun and turn into a large ball, Bart can glide with his Bartman cape, use a grappling hook and fire with his slingshot, Lisa has the saxophone stun and spin and Marge has the Megaphone blowback and the ability to control people.

Each level makes the most of the playable characters and sets you up with numerous puzzles to deal with, Marge is able to hypnotize mobs and command them to attack enemies and build houses. Lisa’s Hand of Buddha power brings up a huge hand to move certain objects and also attack enemies and Homers helium move allows him to float to out of reach platforms. Each of the special moves require the use of a power meter, each character has their own power up item, like hamburgers, baseballs, lotus flowers and batteries. Overuse of the special powers will drain the power meter, but the game always makes sure there are enough power ups so you don’t get stuck.

There are 18 levels in total, ranging from a museum, Springfield Docks to Heaven, all with their own story and animated intro and ending. On certain levels, to break up the platforming the game goes all retro and digs up some classic games, frogger with Lisa, space invaders with Homer and Bart and a few others that I wont mention.

As well as the main story line, there are also collectables for each character to locate along the way and cliché’s to find. Whilst the cliché’s are funny, like pointing out the double jump, the game does not do anything about it and plays through like its the norm.

Looks wise this game is like the cartoon but in 3D, some of the characters look a bit weird in 3D and the camera does play up from time to time, but that will not spoil this game.

You can’t really mention Springfield without any mention of the supporting characters, and there are loads in here, even Poochie makes a return. As you walk around the main hub looking for a new level there are loads of other characters walking around talking to you, making it feel like a big living town.

This game has had a bit of stick but I can’t fault it. What more could you ask for in this game, humour, great and crazy story, loads of varying levels and the addition of time attacks and collectables. In my mind this game worth picking up, be you a Simpsons fan or not.