The Simpsons has a​ long, weird ​love ​affair with ​video ​games

The latest collaboration between Fortnite and The Simpsons, allowing players to inhabit Springfield and its characters within the game, highlights a long-standing and mutually beneficial relationship between the sitcom and video games. This partnership is not new; the show debuted in 1989 and by 1991, Bart vs The Space Mutants, a Bart-centric platformer, was released. Bart's youthful, mischievous persona and interest in comical violence made him an ideal protagonist for the games of that era, targeting the demographic of the burgeoning video game industry. The show itself has consistently engaged with video games, most famously in the 1995 episode "Marge Be Not Proud," which parodied the marketing frenzy surrounding Mortal Kombat with a fictional game called Bonestorm. This episode also humorously contrasted violent games with the sedate Lee Carvallo's Putting Challenge, symbolizing the console wars of the time. Beyond in-show references, The Simpsons has featured dedicated games like the 1992 arcade brawler, The Simpsons, and the 1996 PC release, The Simpsons Cartoon Studio, which allowed players to create their own animated shorts. The 2003 release of The Simpsons Hit & Run, a Grand Theft Auto-inspired title, is conside... download the app to read more