The Simpsons: Night of the Living Treehouse of Horror
A Game Boy Color platformer based on The Simpsons' Halloween episodes.
The Game Boy Color title *The Simpsons: Night of the Living Treehouse of Horror* hit shelves on March 19, 2001, courtesy of publisher THQ. Developer Software Creations built the platformer around the annual *Treehouse of Horror* Halloween specials from the TV show. Players guide the Simpson family through seven side-scrolling stages. Each family member stars in their own level, except for Homer, who gets three: one as a vampire slayer, one as a robot, and one as the giant ape King Homer. Other levels feature Marge in a zombie scenario, Maggie transformed into a fly, Lisa fighting cannibalistic teachers, and Bart rescuing Santa's Little Helper from a haunted house.
Software Creations had started work on the game before the May 2000 Electronic Entertainment Expo, but it was too early in development to show at the event. Critics gave it generally positive marks, earning a 74% average on GameRankings. IGN's Craig Harris called it a "better-than-average platformer" with decent design, though he found it grew boring by the later stages. Cam Shea of *Hyper* was less impressed, predicting players would tire of its recycled ideas. Frank Provo at GameSpot, however, praised each level as "a game unto itself," highlighting the colorful, detailed animation and video game references, while criticizing the clunky password save system.
Quick Facts
- Title
- The Simpsons: Night of the Living Treehouse of Horror
- Developer
- Software Creations
- Publisher
- THQ
- Series
- The Simpsons
- Platforms
- Game Boy Color
- Released
- NA · March 19, 2001 · PAL · April 20, 2001
- Genre
- Platform
- Modes
- Single player
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The Simpsons: Night of the Living Treehouse of Horror was developed by Software Creations and published by THQ. Software Creations began developing the game before the May 2000 Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), but since it was only in its early stages when the expo took place, it was not displayed there. The game features seven levels, each one re-creating a tale from the annual Treehouse of Horror episodes. All five members of the Simpson family have their own level, with the exception of Homer, who has three. The levels include Marge in a zombie tale, Maggie as a fly, Lisa fighting cannibalistic teachers, Bart rescuing Santa's Little Helper in a haunted house, and Homer as a vampire killer, a robot, and the large ape King Homer.
Reader's Guide
The Simpsons: Night of the Living Treehouse of Horror received generally positive reviews according to the review aggregation website GameRankings with an average score of 74%. IGN's Craig Harris said that it 'is a better-than-average platformer for the Game Boy Color' and has 'some decent design elements.' He added, however, that he thought the game got boring towards the end. Cam Shea of Hyper, more unfavorably, also felt players would quickly grow disinterested by its overuse of recycled elements of other games. Frank Provo of GameSpot, on the other hand, wrote that 'each level [...] is a game unto itself, which makes for a rather pleasing and varied experience.' He praised the game for being 'colorfully drawn, highly detailed, and smoothly animated,' and for the video game references featured in it. He disliked, however, that it 'uses an unwieldy password system, making it unnecessarily tedious to continue a game.'
Did You Know?
- It was not displayed at the May 2000 Electronic Entertainment Expo because it was only in early development stages.
- Homer has three levels, while each other Simpson family member has one.
- The game uses a password system that critics described as unwieldy and tedious.
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