Night of the Living Treehouse of Horror
Encyclopedia
The Simpsons: Night of the Living Treehouse of Horror is a platform game
published by THQ
on March 26, 2001, for the Game Boy Color
. Developed by Software Creations
, it is based on the Treehouse of Horror episodes of the animated television series The Simpsons
. The game features seven side-scrolling levels in which the player controls the members of the Simpson family
. Night of the Living Treehouse of Horror has received average reviews from critics, with praise directed at the design.
. The game features seven levels, each one of which re-creates a tale from the annual Treehouse of Horror episodes of the American animated television series The Simpsons. 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
.
and published by THQ
. It was released in the United States on March 30, 2001, for the hand-held Game Boy Color
console. 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.
's Craig Harris gave it a 6/10 "Passable" rating, commenting 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: "The difficulty is certainly there — it's not an easy game to play, and you won't be whisking through this title in an afternoon. It starts out clever and decent enough, as the first few levels are a good and fun challenge. Most of the levels, though, are based on the first level's side-scroller, and by the time I got to the first Homer level, I was getting quite bored." 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 gave Night of the Living Treehouse of Horror a 7.8/10 "Good" rating, praising it 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."
Platform game
A platform game is a video game characterized by requiring the player to jump to and from suspended platforms or over obstacles . It must be possible to control these jumps and to fall from platforms or miss jumps...
published by THQ
THQ
THQ Inc. is an American developer and publisher of video games. Founded in 1989 in the United States, the company develops products for video game consoles, handheld game systems, as well as for personal computers and wireless devices...
on March 26, 2001, for the Game Boy Color
Game Boy Color
The is Nintendo's successor to the 8-bit Game Boy handheld game console, and was released on October 21, 1998 in Japan, November 19, 1998 in North America, November 23, 1998 in Europe and November 27, 1998 in the United Kingdom. It features a color screen and is slightly thicker and taller than...
. Developed by Software Creations
Software Creations (UK)
Software Creations was a video game developer based in Manchester, England, first established in 1987. They are primarily known for their video games based on movie and comic licenses like Marvel Comics, Cutthroat Island, Disney's Beauty and the Beast and original titles Solstice and the sequel...
, it is based on the Treehouse of Horror episodes of the animated television series The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
. The game features seven side-scrolling levels in which the player controls the members of the Simpson family
Simpson family
The Simpson family is a family of fictional characters featured in the animated television series The Simpsons. The Simpsons are a nuclear family consisting of the married couple Homer and Marge and their three children Bart, Lisa and Maggie. They live at 742 Evergreen Terrace in the fictional town...
. Night of the Living Treehouse of Horror has received average reviews from critics, with praise directed at the design.
Gameplay
The Simpsons: Night of the Living Treehouse of Horror is a side-scrolling platformerPlatform game
A platform game is a video game characterized by requiring the player to jump to and from suspended platforms or over obstacles . It must be possible to control these jumps and to fall from platforms or miss jumps...
. The game features seven levels, each one of which re-creates a tale from the annual Treehouse of Horror episodes of the American animated television series The Simpsons. All five members of the Simpson family
Simpson family
The Simpson family is a family of fictional characters featured in the animated television series The Simpsons. The Simpsons are a nuclear family consisting of the married couple Homer and Marge and their three children Bart, Lisa and Maggie. They live at 742 Evergreen Terrace in the fictional town...
have their own level, with the exception of Homer
Homer Simpson
Homer Jay Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons and the patriarch of the eponymous family. He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta and first appeared on television, along with the rest of his family, in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
, who has three. The levels include Marge
Marge Simpson
Marjorie "Marge" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the eponymous family. She is voiced by actress Julie Kavner and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
in a zombie tale, Maggie
Maggie Simpson
Margaret "Maggie" Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons. She first appeared on television in the Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Maggie was created and designed by cartoonist Matt Groening while he was waiting in the lobby of James...
as a fly, Lisa
Lisa Simpson
Lisa Marie Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons. She is the middle child of the Simpson family. Voiced by Yeardley Smith, Lisa first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Cartoonist Matt Groening...
fighting cannibalistic teachers, Bart
Bart Simpson
Bartholomew JoJo "Bart" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the Simpson family. He is voiced by actress Nancy Cartwright and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
rescuing Santa's Little Helper
Santa's Little Helper
Santa's Little Helper is a recurring character in the American animated television series The Simpsons. He is the pet greyhound of the Simpson family. The dog was introduced in the first episode of the show, the 1989 Christmas special "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire", in which his owner abandons...
in a haunted house, and Homer as a vampire killer, a robot, and the large ape King Homer
King Kong
King Kong is a fictional character, a giant movie monster resembling a gorilla, that has appeared in several movies since 1933. These include the groundbreaking 1933 movie, the film remakes of 1976 and 2005, as well as various sequels of the first two films...
.
Levels
- Bad Dream House (based on the segment of the same name from "Treehouse of HorrorTreehouse of Horror"Treehouse of Horror" is the third episode of The Simpsons second season. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 25, 1990. The episode was inspired by 1950s horror comics, and begins with a disclaimer that it may be too scary for children. It is the first of a...
") - Flying Tonight (based on Fly vs Fly from "Treehouse of Horror VIIITreehouse of Horror VIII"Treehouse of Horror VIII" is the fourth episode of The Simpsons ninth season and first aired on the Fox network on October 26, 1997. In the eighth annual "Treehouse of Horror" episode, Homer Simpson is the last man left alive when a neutron bomb destroys Springfield until a gang of mutants come...
" although with Maggie as the fly and not Bart.) - Plan 9 From Outer Springfield (based on 'Dial 'Z' For Zombies from "Treehouse of Horror IIITreehouse of Horror III"Treehouse of Horror III" is the fifth episode of The Simpsons fourth season. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 29, 1992. In the third annual Treehouse of Horror episode, Homer buys Bart an evil talking Krusty doll, King Homer is captured by Mr. Burns, and Bart...
") - Vlad All Over (based on Bart Simpson's 'Dracula' from "Treehouse of Horror IVTreehouse of Horror IV"Treehouse of Horror IV" is the fifth episode of The Simpsons fifth season and the fourth episode in the Treehouse of Horror series of Halloween specials. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 28, 1993, and features three short stories called "The Devil and Homer...
") - If I Only Had a Body (based on If I Only Had a Brain from "Treehouse of Horror IITreehouse of Horror II"Treehouse of Horror II" is the seventh episode of The Simpsons third season. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 31, 1991. It is the second annual Treehouse of Horror episode, consisting of three self-contained segments, told as dreams of Lisa, Bart and Homer. In the...
") - Nightmare Cafeteria (based on segment of the same name from "Treehouse of Horror VTreehouse of Horror V"Treehouse of Horror V" is the sixth episode of The Simpsons sixth season and the fifth episode in the Treehouse of Horror series. It premiered on October 30, 1994, and features three short stories called The Shinning, Time and Punishment, and Nightmare Cafeteria...
") - King Homer (based on segment of the same name from "Treehouse of Horror IIITreehouse of Horror III"Treehouse of Horror III" is the fifth episode of The Simpsons fourth season. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 29, 1992. In the third annual Treehouse of Horror episode, Homer buys Bart an evil talking Krusty doll, King Homer is captured by Mr. Burns, and Bart...
")
Development
The Simpsons: Night of the Living Treehouse of Horror was developed by Software CreationsSoftware Creations (UK)
Software Creations was a video game developer based in Manchester, England, first established in 1987. They are primarily known for their video games based on movie and comic licenses like Marvel Comics, Cutthroat Island, Disney's Beauty and the Beast and original titles Solstice and the sequel...
and published by THQ
THQ
THQ Inc. is an American developer and publisher of video games. Founded in 1989 in the United States, the company develops products for video game consoles, handheld game systems, as well as for personal computers and wireless devices...
. It was released in the United States on March 30, 2001, for the hand-held Game Boy Color
Game Boy Color
The is Nintendo's successor to the 8-bit Game Boy handheld game console, and was released on October 21, 1998 in Japan, November 19, 1998 in North America, November 23, 1998 in Europe and November 27, 1998 in the United Kingdom. It features a color screen and is slightly thicker and taller than...
console. 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.
Reception
The game has received generally average reviews from critics. IGNIGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
's Craig Harris gave it a 6/10 "Passable" rating, commenting 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: "The difficulty is certainly there — it's not an easy game to play, and you won't be whisking through this title in an afternoon. It starts out clever and decent enough, as the first few levels are a good and fun challenge. Most of the levels, though, are based on the first level's side-scroller, and by the time I got to the first Homer level, I was getting quite bored." Frank Provo of GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
, on the other hand, wrote that "each level [...] is a game unto itself, which makes for a rather pleasing and varied experience." He gave Night of the Living Treehouse of Horror a 7.8/10 "Good" rating, praising it 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."