The Simpsons: Virtual Springfield

Virtual Springfield is a first-person adventure game that allows players to explore a 3D simulation of Springfield, the fictional town featured in the animated television series The Simpsons and the home of the Simpson family. Many of the familiar locations from the show are present, including Moe's Tavern, Springfield Elementary School, the Kwik-E-Mart, Krustylu Studios, and the Simpsons' house. Players can interact with Simpsons characters such as Mr. Burns, Principal Skinner and Ned Flanders in the game.

Virtual Springfield has the overall goal of collecting an entire set of character cards throughout Springfield. To fully do so, the player must unlock hidden areas by obtaining secret items. A map of the town is featured that gives instructions to players on where to go so that they can progress through the game. Various minigames can be played at certain locations in the game. These include some video games that have previously been seen on The Simpsons, such as the boxing game Slugfest that Homer and Bart played in the season one episode "Moaning Lisa".

Virtual Springfield was published by Fox Interactive for Windows and Macintosh computers in 1997. It was developed by Digital Evolution.

Cast members of The Simpsons, including Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Hank Azaria, Harry Shearer, Pamela Hayden, Russi Taylor, Tress MacNeille, Maggie Roswell, and Phil Hartman, provided their voices for the dialog in the game. Bonita Pietila, who has worked on the show, directed the voice actors.

Critics have given the game mixed reviews. Billboard's Doug Reece called the game ambitious, though feeling its high level of detail can cause it to become "somewhat tedious." com gave the game a three out of five rating, criticizing the lack of a plot but praising the humor. She wrote that Virtual Springfield "isn't so much a game as an interactive tour of Springfield and The Simpsons characters.

Though your task is to collect trading cards around town, it doesn't offer any difficulty in finding them. The game controls make it difficult, however, to pick up the cards and collect them. The real fun of Virtual Springfield is browsing the Kwik-E-Mart, visiting Krustylu Studios or hangin' on Evergreen Terrace with the Simpson family. The entire cast lent their voice to this game, so meeting the characters and hearing their quotes is a lot of laughs."