The Simpsons: Tapped Out

Plot

While working one day, Homer decides to play with his Mypad. This of course wreaks havoc causing a nuclear disaster destroying the city. It's up to you to rebuild the town and find all of the citizens of Springfield. The game features the entire cast of the show and features all new animated cut scenes.

Release/Reception

On the release of the game 1st March 2012, it went straight to number one on the iOS App Store chart. While the overall reception was positive, there was criticism about the connection issues to the server and cause the game to become "buggy." This caused EA to pull the game for the time being and even release a statement "To ensure current players have the best possible experience, we've temporarily removed The Simpsons: Tapped Out from the App Store to limit the game’s server capacity to its current players and address connectivity and lag time issues."

At Gamescom EA announced that the game will be re-released on the App Store in August and it will be stable for everyone to play. On 16th August the game was officially re-released onto the App Store to the public.

On February 6, 2013, the game was released for Android devices through the Google Play Store.

Gameplay

The object of the game is to rebuild Springfield after it was destroyed by an explosion caused by a negligent Homer Simpson. This is done by adding homes, businesses, and decorations. The game start out with the rebuilding the Simpson's house. When enough XP is earned, a higher level is gained which allows for additional buildings and items. Each building placed earns XP and money at a certain time increment, which is gathered by tapping it. Some businesses such as the Kwik-E-Mart have special abilities, such as being able to buy scratch off tickets with a guaranteed prize.

For houses and businesses to be built, they have to be unlocked at a certain level. Building takes up anywhere from a few minutes to multiple hours, and can be skipped by using a donut. A certain amount of donuts come free with the game, and they can be earned by leveling up, but besides that donuts have to be purchased with real money.

As the player progresses, new characters are automatically unlocked. Each of these characters will have certain quests, signified by an exclamation mark over their head. Multiple quests are available, but only ones with yellow text will advance the story. Quests are completed by waiting a certain length of time, but can be also finished early by using a donut. Each quest gives XP and money, and most can be repeated.

Certain items can only be obtained with donuts, and are simply impossible to unlock without spending real money.

Currency

The main types of currency in Tapped Out are Cash and Donuts. Cash is earned from characters completing quests, receiving income from buildings and money from jobs. Donuts however are a premium currency in game and are extremely hard to find. There are also season currencies and items available.