The Simpsons: Hit & Run gets a free fan-made remaster after 20 years of waiting

The Simpsons: Hit & Run has received a free fan-made remaster, giving players a fresh reason to return to the beloved GTA 3 alternative, but it also serves as a timely reminder that we needed an official remaster yesterday.

Released in 2003, The Simpsons: Hit & Run quickly became a cult classic. Often regarded as a family-friendly version of GTA III, it offered open-world exploration, driving, fighting and plenty of chaos, all wrapped up in the beloved characters and signature humour of The Simpsons TV show, minus GTA's more adult content.

Over two decades later, fans are still waiting for an official remaster, which doesn't appear to be arriving anytime soon. So, one fan has taken matters into their own hands.

What is The Simpsons: Hit & Run remaster and how to play it for free

The Simpsons: Hit & Run remaster is a fan-made mod that quite drastically improves the game's visuals to make it more modernised. It was released on October 15, 2026, created by The128ReBits and is available to download for free via ModDB.

The Simpsons: Hit & Run – Definitive Edition mod makes a ton of visual improvements, while retaining the original missions, controls, progression and so forth. This is a remaster in every sense of the word, and it’s worth mentioning that you will need to own an original PC copy of the game to use this mod.

The Simpsons: Hit & Run, Vivendi Universal Games/The128ReBits (via ModDB)

The Simpsons: Hit & Run – Definitive Edition mod features:

• Around 3,700 upgraded textures for a sharper, more detailed look at Springfield and its surroundings.
• Improved graphics filtering to make roads and distant surfaces look clearer.
• Optional ReShade effects to enhance colours and reduce sky banding.
• Optional DLSS 5 Feeder effects for further visual changes to lighting, colours and details, although these require compatible NVIDIA RTX hardware and can be demanding on your GPU.
• Two visual setups to choose from, depending on whether you prefer ReShade or DLSS 5 effects.

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Why hasn't The Simpsons: Hit & Run received an official remaster?

That’s the million-dollar question. But it's a common belief that the main reason why we’ve not had an official remaster is due to the complicated owner rights split between multiple entities.

In 2021, The Simpsons executive producer and co-writer Matt Selman told IGN that he’d love for the game to get a remaster but described its chances as a “complicated corporate octopus”.

The Simpsons franchise is owned by Disney. The game was originally developed by Radical Entertainment (shut down in 2012). It was originally published by Vivendi, which is now owned by Activision. And now, Activision is now owned by Microsoft.

On top of all that, if an official remaster of The Simpsons: Hit & Run were ever to be released, you’d most likely have to pay the original voice actors royalties or hire impersonators. When Matt Selman said it was a “complicated corporate octopus”, he wasn't exaggerating. So, for now at least, we’ll have to rely on the fantastic PC modding community.