I 've got two words to say to you, and they are... Bart Simpson. That yellow haired freak has got a lot to answer for. OK, so the Simpsons is still the funniest cartoon I've ever sen in my life. That's fine, but we the general public were constantly bombarded with hype and merchandise.
Merchandise like Bart alarm clocks, Bart bubble bath, Home hair spray, stickers, badges, T-shirts, etc etc. I could go on for about six pages. The mischievous one even brought out a single and an album, both of which were absolutely abysmal. The computer industry latched on to the fact that anything to do with the Simpsons was selling like hot cakes, thus ensuring plenty of software for your home computers and consoles.
The first effort to raise it's ugly head was Bart vs the Space Mutants and apart from the amazing cartoon introduction there wasn't a lot to be said about it, apart from that it was a fairly standard platform romp and quite a sorry affair.
Then with a crack of thunder, the Simpsons phenomena died down. No publicity, no news, no nothing. The kids had turned their beady little eyes to something else as they so often do.
The gaming news had also gone to an early grave, but slowly and surely there was a revival starting to happen. Bart's Nightmare had made a few waves and caused a big splash with its outstanding graphics and sound on the Super Nintendo. Meanwhile on the Sega Megadrive, a cartridge had stated to sell very well. It's name? Krusty's Super Fun house.
The game wasn't as much to do with Bart Simpson as the others, Krusty's is more a spin-off, rather like A Different World when compared to the Cosby Show. As die-hard Simpson fans will know, Krusty is a clown who looks similar and is just as psychotic as the clown out of Stephen King's It.
He's also Bart's hero. Krusty has his own TV show and appears alongside Itchy, Scratchy and Sideshow Bob. The plot behind the game is simple. Krusty is in trouble because rats have invaded his fun house and are beginning to run riot. He has to guide the rats to the deadly traps controlled by Bart, Homer and other such Springfield favourites. Easy? Nah, not very!
Krusty's Super Fun House is a mixture between a platform and a puzzle game. The puzzles vary, but the object ultimately is to kill the rats. The killing changes with each level. The rats can be zapped with electricity, burst like balloons or squashed like tomatoes. It's all in good cartoon fun though, so the RSPCA and Mary Whitehouse can stop complaining and relax.
Not only does Krusty have to splat, squash, blow up and burst the rats, he also has to beware. Dotted around the place are slimy snakes, pink flying pigs, and laser firing aliens all of which are in league with the rats and will do Krusty some damage if he goes to bear them.
What possible weaponry could Krusty have? Machine gun? Knives? Flame-
Will Krusty's Super Fun House Fall down or has it good foundations? Overall, it's an excellent puzzle/
Krusty's is very simple, but some of the levels are downright fiendish. Control method is no problem - even my dog could play it. It's quite addictive for the first few days, but a month after purchase if you have a choice between Krusty's and something else you might just pick something else instead. The price is a bit steep at just under 30 - perhaps Acclaim still thinks it's the Sega version.
If you're looking for something to tax your brain a bit and you're feeling pretty flysh then look no further than Krusty's, well at least until Lemmings 2 comes out. Aye Carumba dudes.