They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. If this is the case, then The Simpsons Road Rage has a great deal of respect for Sega’s arcade and Dreamcast hit, Crazy Taxi. It’s not the first game to borrow elements from other games and it won’t be the last. Crazy Taxi with characters from the Simpsons? Why not? This is a driving game with a heavy emphasis on fun and comedy.

The story involves Mr. Burns purchasing the Springfield Transit Corporation and jacking up the fares. Sprin ... more >>

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. If this is the case, then The Simpsons Road Rage has a great deal of respect for Sega’s arcade and Dreamcast hit, Crazy Taxi. It’s not the first game to borrow elements from other games and it won’t be the last. Crazy Taxi with characters from the Simpsons? Why not? This is a driving game with a heavy emphasis on fun and comedy.

The story involves Mr. Burns purchasing the Springfield Transit Corporation and jacking up the fares. Springfield citizens are naturally upset and take to the roads full of rage. The Simpson family decide to provide a taxi service with all the craziness that entails. The aim of the game is to earn $1,000,000 to buy back the transport system and make it safe again.

Simpson’s Road Rage features over 25 characters from the hit TV series, either driving or wandering the streets looking for a ride. The way the game works is by taking your passengers to their destinations within the specified time limit. This is easier than it sounds when you have to negotiate rush hour traffic This game is frantic at the best of times, and manic at the worst.

Luckily, a gigantic floating yellow arrow points you in the general direction your customers wish to travel. Learning how to be good at this game involves mastering the powerslides, jumps, and turbo starts. Knowing a shortcut or two will help knock a few precious seconds off the clock. When you think you’ve mastered the locations, of which there are 100 recognisable Simpsons locales, you can turn off the helper arrow. Only experts will be able to navigate the city without it.

Overall, the cell-shading adds a fantastic cartoon appearance to the game, the Simpsons-style comedy and character relationships are genuinely amusing, and the gameplay is enjoyable.
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