Fortnite’s latest season is all about The Simpsons, the long-running animated sitcom that premiered in 1989 and is still running on Fox to this day. And one location in the new Springfield-inspired island is The Simpsons’ home, a strange, mysterious place that has no set layout and changes from episode to episode. And somehow, Epic had to recreate this cartoon logic in a static location for a video game, and the end result is, as you might expect, weird in its own way.
I want to warn you now that the rest of this post is filled with some Simpsons nerd nonsense. Be prepared for that. If the idea of someone seriously thinking about the layout of a cartoon home might upset you, I’d suggest you move on to something else. For everyone else, let’s go.
742 Evergreen Terrace, aka the Simpsons’ home, is a place that many of you are likely familiar with and can imagine in your mind. Even if you haven’t watched the long-running animated series in many, many years, I bet the iconic Simpsons house is still rattling around up there in your grey matter. But let me ask you some questions. How many bathrooms does it contain? Where’s the door to the basement? Is there a closet in the foyer? How does the garage connect to the rest of the living space? You might think you know the answer to some or even all of these queries, but you’d be wrong because the show’s writers and artists are always changing the house.
The weird place next to the kitchen
For example, let’s dive into the hallway to the right of the kitchen. This is one of the least documented spots in the Simpsons’ house in the entire series. Scenes rarely happen here; the show often uses camera angles that hide most of this spot, and the layout of this area changes constantly. Sometimes there’s a door over here to the basement, but sometimes that door leads to the garage. This area is also where the legendary rumpus room exists, though there are episodes where this room is missing entirely. So how does Fortnite handle this bizarre area? In it’s own really weird way!
Epic has decided to expand this usually empty utility space and has added a foosball table, dart board, and chair. The rumpus room is still here, but lacks a door. And oddly, there’s now a laundry room or mud room connecting the garage to this part of the house. This laundry room area is a totally new invention for Fortnite, and I think it’s only here because Epic stuck a bathroom down here and had some space to fill.
Oh, and yeah, there’s a bathroom down here. Some fans have theorized there might be one here; otherwise, the Simpsons would have to go upstairs every time they need to use the toilet. But evidence of a downstairs bathroom is scarce, and when it has appeared, like under the stairs in the foyer, it rarely sticks around. So I guess shoving a bathroom down in this hallway is probably the best option. As for a basement door, nope. There’s not even a basement at all. Epic just didn’t include it.
Things are weird upstairs, too
Moving upstairs, things get even weirder, but that’s not entirely Epic’s fault. This section of the Simpsons’ house, where you can find the characters’ bedrooms and at least one bathroom, is a very strange place. The layout here can shift from episode to episode or even scene to scene, with Bart’s room moving around at least twice in the episode “My Sister, My Sitter.” So trying to model this area was always going to be tricky. And for the most part, I think Epic did a good job. But uh, what the heck is this area?
When I first spotted this odd hallway/sitting area connected to the master bedroom, I was extremely confused. There’s a couch up here? What is going on? Even weirder, this is where Epic has decided to shove the upstairs bathroom. I guess Epic didn’t want to have this space be a bathroom, as that would mean the master bedroom would be connected to both the upstairs bathroom and the master bath. Which would be odd, but I find this whole new room and space even weirder.
However, in a way, Epic adding two new spaces to the Simpsons’ house is perfectly on brand for this place. The Simpsons’ house is and always has been a wild mess that changes constantly to suit the needs of whatever joke or story is being told. Like the show’s timeline and reality, the house is extremely flexible, and that’s fine. This is an animated comedy. The house and everything else can move around as much as needed as long as I’m laughing. It just means that when you start to think about it or have to rebuild it in a video game as a static object, things get funky. If you want to learn more about the house, check out RealJim’s video about it and all its quirks.
