[TAS] Arcade The Simpsons "4 players" by adelikat & DarkKobold in

This is a tool-assisted speedrun. For more information, see tasvideos.org/...
TAS originally published on 2010-09-01
¡Ay, caramba! The Simpsons Arcade Game is Konami's 4-player beat 'em up based on the ultra-hit TV show, The Simpsons. The Simpsons cartoon has now (at the time of writing) spanned 21 seasons, a world-wide movie, and licensing from here to kingdom come. In this TAS, adelikat (tasvideos.org/...) and DarkKobold (tasvideos.org/...) use four of the five Simpson family to track down the missing 5th member, Maggie.
All right now, play friendly!

[@shadowangelking]

"alright now play friendly"- Marge Simpson

[@borandiUK]

Well, she does score the lowest

[@shawnruby7011]

@@borandiUK why does she come in 5th place at the end?

[@Jetanium]

“Who the hell are you?”- Drew Barrymore

[@ItsMeYourRealDad]

When does she say that?

[@wildcatlh]

As she picks up her son and throws him across the screen.

[@DaNoob1485]

Marge got 5th place... in a 4 player game. Guess she played a little too friendly.

[@Contravixity]

This could be a good insult. "You're so bad at videogames, you'd get 5th place in a 4 player videogame."

[@robindionn1747]

The 4th place was Maggie

[@GayKermit-._-.]

@@robindionn1747 lol

[@RaceBandit]

PFFT! I think what happened was Marge didn't beat the 1st stock score _(The default high score when you boot up the machine)_ while everyone else did, but the insult potential is too good to pass up.

[@susamongus459]

Damn

[@UrshifuYaoi69]

I don't think they're gonna play friendly no matter how many times you say it, Marge.

[@johnathanpatrick6118]

IKR?! All that is out the window when Maggie is kidnapped.

[@chrisfalcon_vt]

They ARE playing friendly. At least they're not using flamethrowers, slicing people in half or using alien knives that melt flesh.

[@fnln3011]

Alright. Now play friendly.

[@dylanzlol7293]

in fact they just killed like 3000 persons

[@theskullemoji]

how's my hair

[@jambon2730]

There is something so hilarious about a family beating the shit of the whole town while asking them to play friendly

[@gotenhuggins270]

Yep

[@crushme2233]

I can't believe they actually got Mr. Burns to say his iconic line from the show "Welcome to your grave, suckers."

[@DasNordlicht91]

Not as iconic as Marge Simpson’s famous catchphrase: “alright, now play friendly.”

[@ciberkid22]

Right after that great one-liner from Mr. Smithers "Welcome to my world!"

[@keystrix3704]

I thought the episode where the Simpsons teamed up to kill Mr. Burns was a little much, but still I'm glad they kept it in this game.

[@spiderplant]

In his iconic voice!

[@GanzoHasashi1911]

And how could you ever forget Homer having to visit the discount cemetery every time to enter Moe’s Tavern (co-owned by his comically larger brother Joe)

[@sarcasticguy4311]

Fun fact: If you let Marge stand still long enough she may remove her hair for a moment and show bunny ears. Inside joke from very early that Marge wasn't actually human.

[@XeviousvSBlackmanta]

A plot point that was supposed to connect to Matt Groenings comic series, but was scrapped. You also see the bunny ears when she gets shocked.

[@sarcasticguy4311]

@@XeviousvSBlackmanta I had forgotten that her vacuum tries to pull off her wig. Eh, that's what you get when Japan does your programming.

[@ExtraMayoSauce]

This was supposed to be like an thing in the Simpsons show but they didn't add it. Edit: Marge and Maggie have bunny ears

[@FFKonoko]

​@ExtraMayoSauce no, just marge, it's in the show when she gets shocked early on.

[@sarcasticguy4311]

@@FFKonoko Correct. The joke was that if the show didn't last very long on regular TV after a few seasons Marge was going to pull off her "tall blue wig" to reveal bunny ears and that she was never human and was nothing more than a Matt Groening cartoon creation or an alien or something. Clearly the show kept going and they ditched the idea but somehow the Japanese got wind of it and stuck it in the game as a joke. Maybe they'll do it at 30 seasons.

[@SpooNFoy]

"All right now, play friendly!" **proceeds to hurl her offspring directly into danger repeatedly**

[@Fredcat11]

And her offsprings scored moar than she did.

[@esmooth919]

...while they proceed to kick ass

[@saiyanfang1047]

she never threw them into danger

[@bigstupidgrin]

And the vacuum is definitely assult with a deadly weapon

[@user-xd7yc9eb8o]

Yes. You just discovered what 'irony' is. Congrats.

[@TheGloriousLobsterEmperor]

What I love most about a TAS like this is that each of the four Simpsons plays their part. It's not a competition to see who can get the most points, it's a single unified group. Marge by far lags behind the others in terms of points, and yet her throwing of the children is an absolutely crucial part. It's what separates us mere mortals from the immortal work of a TAS.

[@kabookialt]

"throwing of the children"

[@mattie2695]

The Simpsons family exist on a plane of existence and knowledge far beyond our comprehension. In other words, they really are "up and at 'em"

[@Megakell0]

If I understood your message correctly I need to start throwing children to advance humanity. Good to know I was doing something right in life!

[@Harlequin619]

This post just proves to me that these arcade characters are clearly not the real Simpsons. Where are all the back stabbing, melodrama, and toxic cartoon family caricatures!?

[@not-pyroman]

​@@Megakell0no no no, you're missing the key ingredient! You gotta say "All right now, play friendly!" Every time you throw them

[@gamerkingmayathe064th5]

Idk if anyone else did this but Marge says "All right now, play friendly!" a total of 64 times in the run, I counted

[@Zance21]

Guess that's going to be 64 shots

[@gettrolledloser]

a stack of playing friendly

[@subtledemisefox]

Wow, is that all? Seems like way more than that lol. Thanks for counting though. I was curious

[@jahziahuighuig1266]

Super Marge 64

[@sammytheballoon3556]

Its confirmed!!!

[@The_Mister_E]

Jesus christ everything about this game is straight cracked out At least Konami gave a damn about the license and didn't phone it in

[@Midee]

I love how they just went all out. It's like they based the game on the opening credits of the show.

[@venom74799]

Konami used to put out excellent coin op games but sold their soul for casino games.

[@Rutawind]

It's great how well crafted this game is given the show was still in its first season or so when it came out

[@sovrinn16]

@@Midee they had reference art from the first season only, hence slightly off-model "Tracy Ulman Show" Homer. This was like a decade before the CC Lemon licensing deal had made the Simpsons even remotely recognizable in Japan, so I'd imagine it was a lot like TMNT where Konami's team was like "uhhh ok." Ergo, Moe's bar, the underground speakeasy, and Smithers the caped supervillain.

[@IAmElectrospecter]

@@sovrinn16 that actually answers a lot of questions I always had about this game. Smithers is the most off-character of all of them. I also always wondered if the character design for some of the bosses was original (like the first boss or the bar boss) or if they're based on early season characters I've forgotten about

[@xshobux]

As soon as you see the words "hit buttons" in a TAS, you know some hilarious shit is about to happen

[@yaboichipsahoy9179]

*Vigorous TAS'ing ensues.*

[@axelprino]

This game feels like the Simpsons from an alternate timeline, so many small details being slightly off because they were based on a non finalized version of the first season.

[@Davethe3rd]

Kind of like how the X-Men arcade game was based on Pryde of the X-Men, a pilot that never made it to series, instead of the much more popular X-Men cartoon on Fox Kids.

[@pinkmell0w]

Like Bart's blue shirt?

[@grapewhistle1591]

@@pinkmell0w I figured Bart's shirt was blue so you could more easily distinguish him and Lisa

[@pinkmell0w]

@@grapewhistle1591 They both have very distinctive silhouettes though

[@grapewhistle1591]

@@pinkmell0w not when the games a low resolution and you have poor eyesight. Not to mention in regular play, the game would probably be a lot more chaotic, this making the characters harder to see anyway, especially when Bart and Lisa have like the same color palette and they're flying across the whole screen

[@zimtak6418]

Looking at the score at the end you see how Lisa unfairly absorbs a lot of Marge's score when they do their team attack, because Marge is the one who initiates the attack by picking up Lisa and then throwing her, but it's only Lisa who scores points for hitting the enemies.

[@Zeoinx69]

@@Stevie-J Get your politics out of here, its not welcome

[@sammie756]

there's a loving "always puts her kids ahead" mother analogy in there

[@RaceBandit]

It's a bit weird how team attacks don't give the kill to both players.

[@blackchibisan8116]

@@Zeoinx69 Alright now, play friendly

[@dizzyheads]

Sounds like a Lisa thing to so

[@John-jl4dl]

Remember that episode of The Simpsons where Moe relocated to an elevator shaft under both a cemetery and a Sasquatch sanctuary? I wish they explored that plot thread more.

[@alanbareiro6806]

Moe really upgraded his place, despite Homer and the rest not paying their tabs

[@murrfeeling]

That's where he kept the orca whale in the X-files crossover episode.

[@SpooNFoy]

"They're not saying 'all right now, play friendly!', they're saying 'Boo-urns!'" - Smithers, probably

[@xshobux]

"Are you saying 'all right, now play friendly', or 'boo-urns'?"

[@chowzan9477]

@@xshobux "I was saying boo-urns"

[@RealGateGuardian]

@@xshobux All right, now. Play friendly!!!!

[@brainycatclown2697]

I was saying "Boooo-urns."

[@RealGateGuardian]

@@brainycatclown2697 all right now, play friendly

[@thetraveler4493]

wiping the floor with the entire population of springfield: alright now play friendly

[@KaguyaH]

Damn, this TAS guy is so good he can control four characters at once!

[@lesexypiglet___8599]

I KNOW RIGHT

[@myang12003]

That’s because this TAS guy is an octopus!

[@MoneyManHolmes]

TAS is an absolute legend. Gaming will never be the same when he finally decides to retire.

[@workscape6397]

Truly a gaming legend

[@myang12003]

@@philcanning5467 Just like dream!

[@chandl34]

My parents gave me the most money ever to spend on this game, back in the 90's: a whole $5. Got to the cloud stage and ran out of money.

[@Evertide05]

Back in the day, whether you were the one playing the game or not, you only ever saw this game's ending if more money than you'd seen in your young life was spent on it. I think I only saw it get beaten a total of twice, so it was a rare treat when I did, and I never forgot it.

[@CopShowGuy]

@@Evertide05 My brothers' orthodontist office had this arcade cabinet on free play in the waiting room. It was awesome. I've beaten the game several times...with a lot of deaths.

[@Evertide05]

@@CopShowGuy The orthodontist office had a Simpsons arcade game on free-to-play in their waiting room? That's "pics or it didn't happen" levels of cool.

[@CopShowGuy]

@@Evertide05 I can't really take pics. That was decades ago back when we were kids. But they really did have that arcade in the office for guests to play!

[@Evertide05]

@@CopShowGuy I was kidding, I didn't really expect pics, it's just one of those things that sounds almost too cool to be true but I choose to believe it.

[@BrockLee3]

SMITHERS: [steals a diamond] THE ENTIRE TOWN OF SPRINGFIELD: "It's the Simpsons! Let's get 'em!"

[@TheTolnoc]

I appreciate that there are different mechanics for picking up the kids as both Homer and Marge, game is deeper than I thought.

[@Gr3nadgr3gory]

The kids and the adults have their own combos too.

[@affegpus4195]

Only a few inches deeper thou

[@iCANT_BELIEVE_YOU_SAID_THAT]

For a 1991 game this was a masterpiece. Very impressive for it's time. Still is.

[@AE-jo2fy]

That one time when she said "How's my hair?" caught me totaly off guard.

[@TheMissingLink2]

Alright now, play friendly. Alright now, play friendly. Alright now, play friendly. Alright now, play friendly. How's my hair?

[@GhostShiroyama]

Take a shot every time Marge says "Alright now, play friendly!"

[@KW36912]

You will definitely be dead from alcohol poisoning

[@ViciousOS]

I don't wanna die

[@ragingjaguarknight86]

x_x

[@LeeTCGA]

drunk in a minute

[@NathanHiggersson]

You trying to kill us?

[@kirbycooper9496]

This is how a family should operate. With robotic precision

[@The_Boctor]

Saw a new upload of this and immediately expected to hear Marge's famous line for the whole duration. Was not disappointed in the least.

[@MashupProductions22]

Alright now play friendly *proceeds to murder half the town*

[@SupLuiKir]

It's justified self-defense

[@rampagephoenix1735]

I remember playing this at a Chuck E Cheese restaurant back in the day for my Birthday, my dad would get mad at me for blowing all my tokens at this game instead if trying to win tickets for prizes. I also remember the 2nd stage boss, the Krusty Baloon, giving me the creeps.

[@istrasci]

That wasn't Krusty, that was Handsome Pete. He dances for nickels.

[@_G.C]

Yeah I remember my family telling me to go for the prize games as well. They were nowhere near as bs as they are now, but I still felt like my time was better spent at the air hockey or racing game

[@BaronTMan]

@@istrasci A quarter? Arrgh, he’ll be dancing for hours!

[@Scorpionspear77]

That balloon made me terrified of Krusty in general for years.

[@holden6104]

Game still looks fantastic today.

[@lindsaywheatcroft8247]

Number of people who bought Bart Vs The Space Mutants and expected it to be like this ._.

[@Genyosai03]

I did the same thing. To be a kid again and not know any better lol.

[@rhaeven]

I had it on Atari ST T_T

[@liveyourdreammedia]

I think Marge wants to say something

[@murrfeeling]

"Yes I certainly do..." [I have to go now. My planet needs me.]

[@ShockUzer]

Man, Marge did so bad that she ended up in 5th place, when there's only 4 players.

[@mayhernednjd4557]

15:47 how marge got 5th place?

[@KW36912]

I rate this speedrun an Alright Now, Play Friendly/10

[@FreddyOneKenobi]

if you focus very hard at some point you can hear Marge say "all right now, play friendly"

[@johnferradino]

I can practically smell the pizza, hear the bowling balls in the background. Takes me back...

[@coachmcguirk6297]

I hear pizza and smell balls

[@GamerGee]

0:13 homart

[@Random-ig2qb]

“Alright now play friendly” just became an awesome catch phrase.

[@userdetails1]

"Play friendly" Homer goes around punching people, and the rest of the family use a vaccum, skipping rope and skateboard as weapons.

[@DasNordlicht91]

Don’t forget Marge (who says the line) literally throwing her own children as she says this.

[@DavidGonzales-rt7qd]

I just realized at the end, the final score shows Marge in 5th place, out of 4 players! lol

[@Taric25]

It's because Marge's score was the only one not to beat the top pre-programmed default score.

[@Cookieofdoom]

All right now, play friendly

[@CNote-lx3ws]

i'm honestly a touch disappointed in the lack of vulgar 3 letter words in the 'enter your name' screen at the very end, for that authentic 90s arcade feeling

[@istrasci]

Were "Poo" and "Ass" there?

[@matias_8823]

"Unsatisfactory, at a later time, work in a hostile way." - Evil Marge Simpson

[@nexxusty]

This is the best side stroller ever made. Nobody can convince me of anything different.

[@MashupProductions22]

It deserves a remake/sequel with more bosses,levels,characters and it should be on ps4/5 xbox series x nintendo switch and pc

[@johnboats9075]

Avengers would like a word...

[@XanthinZarda]

I wonder how much of this is now considered "lost lore" to the main series?

[@ragingjaguarknight86]

I think you could see marge's bunny ears in this game whenever she gets electrocuted. o_O

[@XanthinZarda]

@@ragingjaguarknight86 Yep, just checked the spritesheet.

[@Davethe3rd]

Black Smithers. Also, I highly doubt that Smithers would outright kidnap Maggie with no complaint.

[@Davethe3rd]

I think Princess Kashmir cameos in this. She hasn't been seen since her one episode.

[@jambon2730]

Mr Burns saying "Welcome to your grave suckers"

[@SuperPonySaiyan9000]

"All right, now play friendly" - The game

[@esmooth919]

1:01 I honestly cannot believe that this boss used to take all my quarters when I was a kid!

[@siddhartashakara5240]

Me reading the comments before the video: WTF? What's going on? Me 1 min into the video: oh, alright, I'll play friendly

[@subtledemisefox]

Up and at 'em

[@johnlewisbrooks]

I remember seeing this at an arcade and was blown away at how good it was! It's no Turtles In Time, but still pretty awesome!

[@Kemuja]

Smithers would've gotten away with the diamond, if he could've just taken it from Maggie's mouth.

[@jaybyhop]

This game still holds up. You'd think it was popular because of Simpson Mania, but it was and still is legitimately one of the best arcade games in existence.

[@rogerstephenroth8073]

Always was a huge fan of the Simpsons Arcade game. It is hard to believe this gem is from way back in 1991. This is probably the best Simpsons video game I ever played.

[@hoborg98]

Considering how long the show has been going on, it's weird to think that this game was designed just from season 1 content, and everything else they just kinda made up. "And then at the end of this level they fight a giant Kabuki actor." "Sure, why not?"

[@sauvagess]

I like how despite Marge having the only object with weight to fight with, her moveset is so suboptimal that her best move is to throw objects instead of attacking.

[@anthonyoliver418]

Imagine if this was the only Simpsons related content made, or is the most known Simpsons content, so most people don’t know Simpson, except for this game and the people who played, to where people actually want them to come back explaining why it is a classic!

[@scottfremin7850]

Homer clips right through the multiple Princess Kashmirs at 6:05. Guess he didn’t learn his lesson.

[@Illgaia]

All right, now play friendly.

[@AV57]

The American dream: the whole family going out and beating up Dad’s boss.

[@ico1]

This was someone's fever dream 5 years before the simpsons even came out.

[@EdgarTheFan]

why is anybody talking about marge saying "alright now play friendly" but nobody talks about the thumbnail

[@justindorado7380]

"How's my hair?"

[@SuperTed19021]

This, "Asterix" and some "Jurassic Park" arcade game at the local Brighton Odeon cinema (my home town) during the 90s waiting to go into our screen to watch a movie!! Not to mention "WWF WrestleFest" and "Street Fighter II" at my local swimming pool (King Alfred Hove).

[@g-burtfred1106]

In all seriousness, who the hell got to the very end of the game? It was fun to play, but very difficult.

[@halibabica]

Me and my sister did, but I was too young to remember how much money it cost us. Watching this was a big ol' nostalgia trip and I recalled most of it.

[@g-burtfred1106]

@@halibabica Nice. Probably cost SO many quarters. Played this at the movie theaters before and after the movie.

[@Stratelier]

My family did (me + two sisters + one parent = all four players). I could not say how many attempts were required, but I _do_ remember Mr. Burn's battle suit, and being the last one standing when he finally went down.

[@survivorofthecurse717]

I managed to it with some friends twice. Once when I was 5, but couldn't beat the final boss, and the other when I was 10 and beat the game and then some. Fond memories

[@kabookialt]

I love how they have a sort of hivemind, especially during the zombie section

[@the_bane_of_all_anti_furry]

still a better plot than the average modern simpson episode

[@ToxicDerg]

There's something so charming about hearing low quality sfx like this

[@seanmarsh8411]

The sounds are just some of the most memorable!

[@KareemHillJr]

Undoubtedly one of the greatest arcade games of all time.

[@dotfoxtom5942]

I can't get over the fact that the Simpsons are just having a normal day and then suddenly maggie is kidnapped and damn near everyone in Springfield wants them dead.

[@theskullemoji]

imagine going to an arcade and seeing a family of 4 proceed to pull off a frame perfect tas right infront of you

[@TeamBabylon-dp2xf]

Looks so much cooler with the whole Family playing together. Nice job.

[@keystrix3704]

It's kinda cathartic seeing this game get absolutely stomped. I remember it being one of the hardest games in the arcade.

[@Radnick0024]

At least the henchmen aren't spamming "Hi, I'm Troy McClure! You may remember me from such movies as..."

[@Reynsoon]

"Alright, now play friendly."

[@spiderplant]

This game REALLY needs a PC re-release

[@NaturalTvventy]

Did any of the common enemies from this game ever appear in a Simpsons episode?

[@scottfremin7850]

A very white-skinned version of that guy you fight at the end of Moes was in the background in a lot of early season crowd shots. I don’t think he ever spoke or had a name

[@gadget8637]

Everybody except Homer has a weapon of some sort. Homer throws hands with the best of them

[@ShopiStar]

I like how the bonus stages tie in with the game's progression

[@lasko1828]

I absolutely love this beat-em-up. If I had a decent PC I would download it in a heartbeat

[@bluedistortions]

I don't think mame requires much in the way of computing power?

[@GoblinCrew]

The farthest i ever made it in this game was Dreamland, where i got completely decimated by that bowling ball. Nice to see some secondhand revenge :D

[@thevirginmarty9738]

They should have given players a pass on that since it was just a dream.

[@OmegaVideoGameGod]

"Who the hell are you?!" LOL

[@arcengal]

Sure is lucky that Maggie dropped down at 13:47 when she did, otherwise we'd have to experience Burns at 100% power.

[@ADudeWithAChannel]

Nah. Mr burns struggles taking candy from a baby.

[@hanbyeollee2528]

The 4th place is Maggie, for sure.

[@Sandlot1992]

lots of good memories playing this at my local Cici's Pizza back then!

[@Stratelier]

Our local pizza parlor had this cabinet, too! (Also, original TMNT.)

[@JohnFuklaw]

Ah, bart's iconic blue shirt.

[@TBrizzle01]

13:01 I'm glad they kept Smithers kamikaze attack from the famous episode where he dies on the battlefield.

[@DCFatCat]

"Welcome to My World." Blue Haired Smithers

[@joshuasharrock466]

Do you remember black Smithers?

[@Ometecuhtli]

Toy figure Bart instead of cartoon Bart.

[@ezgames6925]

2:48 This is Jim. He lives in the skip.

[@JavaMR]

I thought I recognized this song from somewhere

[@rubykaylaandogie3334]

I thought this was the spon theme and after realizing it wasn't this popped up

[@user-q0czvby6f]

I never understood why and how Konami (Japan) made the best Simpsons game for years to come, and after watching this optimal TAS 4-player co-op, the enigma became ever stronger.

[@Aflay1]

They're making a mockery of boss fights that took so many of my tokens.

[@concrete_river]

Homer gets quite a lot of knockouts despite not being thrown across the screen constantly

[@sauvagess]

because Homer has the best moveset of the entire cast. He's leagues better than the other three characters. Marge's moveset is so lacking in comparison that her best move is to throw objects.

[@starlingbaez6681]

This game is so chaotic.... *I love it*

[@NFITC1]

This game was so unhinged and addictive. I didn't even watch the show as a kid, but I played this nearly every chance I got.

[@FadkinsDiet]

A number of video glitches and a few sound glitches still in the emulation. Not surprising with the custom chips that Konami put in their beat-em-ups.

[@Alexs23743]

I remember this game. Way back when I was a kid, I'd play it like crazy at a Chuck E. Cheese's. Obviously, I wasn't THIS good at it... 6:19: A Simpsons arcade game...in the Simpsons arcade game? D: *A L L R I G H T N O W , P L A Y F R I E N D L Y*

[@johnygoldbear8648]

"Okei nyt, pelaa ystävällisesti." - Marja Simpanssinpoika

[@jamesonsgantas5678]

If I hear "Alright now, play friendly" one more time, I am going throw Marge out a window.

[@bitwize]

When WayForward developed _Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game_ the concept they went with was what if the property were handed to a Japanese game developer who had no understanding of the lore and just built a belt scrolling brawler out of whatever popped into their heads. I'm pretty sure they were alluding to this classic. No real understanding of the characters beyond the basics of the main family, Smithers and Burns are just over-the-top, cookie-cutter villains... but it's fun to play!

[@JohnDoe-mi7wl]

From what I understand part of the oddity of the Arcade Simpsons game came from how it utilized pre-production stuff that got discarded later (i.e. Marge originally was meant to have rabbit ears under her hair, which can be seen here when she gets electrocuted) or things that changed as the show evolved (Smithers having blue hair). There's still some out-there parts though, so I'd say your point still stands.

[@XeviousvSBlackmanta]

@@JohnDoe-mi7wl Yep. Theres a great Retronauts episode that chronicles the history of this game.

[@hyperarmour1608]

Truly one of the Alright Now, Play Friendly of all time.

[@Bennijin]

A four-player game and Marge comes fifth.

[@EvilMariobot]

Maybe if she didn't play so friendly...