The Simpsons: Bart & the Beanstalk (Game Boy) Playthrough - NintendoComplete

A playthrough of Acclaim's 1994 license-based platformer for the Nintendo Game Boy, The Simpsons: Bart & the Beanstalk.

Bart & the Beanstalk was the fourth Game Boy game based on the Simpsons to come out in as many years, but it was another surprisingly solid addition to the Game Boy's Simpsons line-up, even if the concept was (and still is) excruciatingly lame and something of a weird fit for the license.

The whole game "retells" the story of Jack & the Beanstalk, if the title didn't already make that obvious, wherein Bart plays the boy that goes and trades a cow for magic beans. The levels challenge you get Bart up the beanstalk, into the giant's house, and finally, collect his treasure and save the family from their lives of abject poverty.

But really, none of it matters. The story is merely a theme for the platforming action that spans seven stages. The action itself is fairly good - nothing stellar, mind you, but the controls and mechanics are all fairly solid. The game play is a fair departure from that found in Bart's Escape from Camp Deadly (   • Bart Simpson's Escape from Camp Deadly (Ga...   ), probably because of a change in the developer line-up: this one was handled by Software Creations, whereas Camp Deadly and Bart vs. the Juggernauts were both handled by Imagineering, the same company that did the NES games.

Most of the game has you looking around for items, coins, and weapons as you avoid/dispatch any number of "larger than life" obstacles looking for the exit. It's simple and short, but it does require some memorization and skill - it's not particularly hard, but it is much more difficult than the earlier GB Simpsons' titles.

And even though the theme is really weird, I liked the graphics and sound a lot on this one. The sprites are generally huge by Game Boy standards, and Bart's especially has a lot of detail. It feels a bit odd, though, to play a Simpson's game that doesn't make heavy use of its license - there are the occasional cameos, but it feels a lot less like a Simpsons title than the other games in the series.

If you like platformers with (some) challenge, sharp graphics, and a superfluous TV show license, this is a good one. Not the best, but good nonetheless.

*This is a new playthrough to replace my original recording in my Game Boy playlist. It was recorded in Retroarch using the DMG shader to mimic the look of the Game Boy's LCD screen.
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No cheats were used during the recording of this video.

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