Matt Groening may be joking, but he may not be – something could be in the works for this classic game.
The creator of The Simpsons seems to have let slip that The Simpsons: Hit & Run is making a comeback. Originally released in October 2003 for PlayStation 2, Xbox and GameCube, the game was a Grand Theft Auto clone. Prior to that, in 2001, The Simpsons: Road Rage, similar to Crazy Taxi, was released. Fans have been asking for re-releases of both games for some time, though Hit & Run has generated more interest. During a The Simpsons panel at the Disney D23 conference in Anaheim, California, an attendee asked if a second The Simpsons film means there’s a chance of a second Hit & Run game.
That would certainly be great, said Matt Selman, producer of The Simpsons. He co-wrote both Hit & Run and Road Rage. Groening then said he wasn’t sure if he was overstepping his bounds, but he believed the original game would return in some form, which surprised the audience. Selman interjected humorously, “Or… not”, apparently intending to downplay Groening’s apparent confirmation. Groening then quickly changed the subject, sharing an anecdote about the making of the games instead. Regarding The Simpsons: Road Rage, they were told that they couldn’t call the game Road Rage because it would encourage aggressive driving. However, they did so anyway, and when the next game, Hit & Run, was released, no one had a problem with it. Selman jokingly noted that the Crazy Taxi lawyers said they couldn’t “steal” Crazy Taxi, and money changed hands.
In a 2023 interview, John Melchior, producer of The Simpsons: Hit & Run, revealed that two additional The Simpsons games were in development, including The Simpsons: Hit & Run 2. However, publisher Vivendi Universal Games rejected the offer despite having the opportunity to sign a contract for five The Simpsons games. “Hit & Run 2 would have been developed by Radical, and there was a medieval Simpsons game pitched by Matt Groening that was being developed at Stormfront after The Lord of the Rings. The biggest crime was that Vivendi did not obtain the Simpsons license, even though they had made an offer. The Simpsons came back with a deal: five games for a certain amount of dollars. It was a really good deal, but Vivendi said no. After the success of Hit & Run…” Melchior told MinnMax.
Instead, Electronic Arts acquired the The Simpsons license and released The Simpsons Game for consoles in 2007. No new The Simpsons games have been released for consoles since then, although there have been crossovers in games such as Lego Dimensions and Fortnite.
Source: VGC
