Unrealized Potential: The Simpsons: Hit & Run Could Have Had Three Sequels if Not for a Mysterious Decision

Even today, players can’t get enough of The Simpsons: Hit & Run. If only the game hadn’t hit a roadblock from someone on the publishing side, who knows what could have been?

It’s hard to think of a PlayStation 2 title that enjoys such universal love as The Simpsons: Hit & Run. You won’t easily find anyone bad-mouthing it, and fans have been eagerly calling for a port or remaster version ever since. Despite impressive sales and a solid fan base when it launched, a sequel never saw the light of day. This month, we might have received a clue why. YouTuber Summoning Salt, renowned for creating documentary-style videos about the history of various games’ speedrunning scenes, released an insightful piece on The Simpsons: Hit & Run. Spotted by GamesRadar, the video prompted a telling comment from the game’s lead designer, Joe McGinn.

In his first comment, McGinn expressed his delight and nostalgia, describing the video as "incredibly fun and heartwarming". But he didn’t stop there. In a subsequent comment, McGinn revealed that the game could have spawned up to three sequels without incurring extra licensing fees. According to him, Gracie Films, the production company behind The Simpsons, proposed a deal to the publisher for three sequels, complete with all rights and original voice actors, without any licensing cost.

Now, with such a sweet deal on the table and given the game’s success, a natural question arises: Why did no one jump at the chance? McGinn’s explanation sheds some light: "Some crazy person at the publisher – we never found out who – said no." Clearly an unexpected decision, and you can sense the frustration from the developers even after two decades. It leaves fans wondering if a port might finally happen someday.