Unmade Sequels: How One Anonymous Decision Halted Three Potential Follow-Ups to The Simpsons: Hit & Run

Even now, “The Simpsons: Hit & Run” continues to capture the hearts of gamers, and surprisingly, more adventures could have been on the horizon if not for a decision made by their publisher.

It’s hard to think of a PlayStation 2 game that’s cherished more than “The Simpsons: Hit & Run.” Universally praised, it’s rare to hear anything negative about it. Despite fans’ ongoing calls for a re-release or remaster, nothing has come to fruition. The game drew inspiration from “Grand Theft Auto” and was a hit sales-wise, yet a sequel never saw the light of day. However, we might finally have some insight into why that is. Earlier this month, Summoning Salt, a YouTuber known for crafting detailed documentaries on the speedrunning history of various games, shared a video about “The Simpsons: Hit & Run.” GamesRadar spotted a noteworthy comment from the game’s lead designer, Joe McGinn, that could shed some light on the matter.

Initially, McGinn expressed how “incredibly fun and heartwarming” it was to watch the video from his perspective as the lead designer. But he later added a tantalizing tidbit: the game could have spawned up to three sequels without having to pay for the Simpsons licensing rights. Gracie Films, the production company behind “The Simpsons,” proposed a deal to their publisher—offering full rights to use the characters and voice actors for three more games at no cost for the license.

Faced with this proposal, you would assume the question was “why wouldn’t they go for it?” Yet McGinn reveals, “some crazy person at the publisher – we never found out who – said no.” It’s undoubtedly a puzzling decision and one that was surely frustrating for the developers involved. Alas, two decades later, not much can be done to change that. There’s always a glimmer of hope that one day we might at least get a port.