Matt Groening's Simpsons secret

Eurogamer tackled Simpsons creator Matt Groening last night on the forthcoming EA game, following an exclusive 10-minute preview of the long-awaited movie of animation's first family.

Groening was joined by long-time partner Al Jean, exec producer on the show, at the Odeon West End in London's Leicester Square, which we blagged our way into alongside hordes of apparently professional journalists.

And when we hijacked proceedings to ask about the new game, being developed in conjunction with EA, Groening revealed he has a very big role to play in it himself.

"Well the video game is mainly written by great writers, Matt Selman and Matt Warburton - I mean, you can just tell. Great, right? They did a send-up of videogames. It's a videogame about videogames; and I'm in the videogame.

"I'm a boss that you have to fight at the end of the game. It was really fun recording a million ways of dying, going 'UGGH, ARGGH, EUURGH!'"

Which are possibly more levels of irony than our feeble brains can cope with. The game, which sets out to parody every notable game series and cliché it can get its stubby yellow hands on, is due out later this year.

As for the film, spoiler fans: from the teaser we saw, set aside your cynicism - it's set to be a corker. Our 10-minute amuse bouche was an uncontrollable belly laugh of masterful observations and goofy slapstick, featuring Green Day getting bottled off stage and drowning in a sea of toxic waste, Abe Simpson struck by a confusing vision from God as Homer frantically leafs through The Bible ("This book doesn't have any answers!"); and Bart getting his willy out on a skateboard ("I like men now," bleats a bemused Ralph Wiggum).

The Simpsons movie hits the UK on 26th July. EA has yet to date the game.