Developer: Sunsoft Publisher: Sunsoft Release: 1992 Genre: Action
Batman has had a long and illustrious career in video games. Although many different publishers have been at the helm of his adventures for the most part the game industry has done right by the caped crusader. There have been a few missteps along the way of course (Batman Forever) but only Spider-Man compares. Superman has not been as fortunate. At this point it is easier to name the bad games rather than the good ones. Sunsoft’s Superman is a forgettable title that does little to make you feel like the Man of Steel. Disappointing sums it up perfectly.
As far as containing an overarching story there is none. Each stage is essentially a self-contained adventure that sees Superman investigating a news headline. These inevitably involve an end level confrontation with a member of his rogue’s gallery like Metallo and Toyman. About halfway through however Brainiac kidnaps Lois Lane and that becomes the main thrust of the conclusion. This Brainiac has his look that debuted in the Panic in the Sky story arc that year which is pretty cool. Curiously Lex Luthor is nowhere to be seen which makes sense; his story in the comics of the time was a bit complicated.
When you think of Superman you think of one of the most powerful superheroes of all time. Some might even say he is too powerful. Abandon any ideas of having access to the full range of Superman’s abilities. For the purposes of this game you only have three: super punch, super spin, and heat vision during select segments of the game. On top of that you can only use ability at a time and must find power-up icons to switch. Even worse, these powers must recharge after every use although to the game’s credit it is relatively quick. As such this is a side scrolling beat em up, and not a good one at that.
Superman’s greatest failing is that you never feel super. By limiting the character so much he is no different than any other action game hero. He has so many unique powers that it is absolutely criminal that you spend the majority of your time punching robots like a schlub. What is the point of using the Superman license if you are not going to take advantage of the characteristics that make him unique? You could swap out the Man of Steel with almost any other action hero and the game would barely be any different. Sunsoft put more work into Aero the Acrobat than the premier superhero on the planet and it shows.
Even in spite of the fact that the gameplay is so limited they still could have made it work. The first level is straightforward to get you acclimated to the mechanics, such as they are. But from there it becomes a bit varied. There are numerous points in each subsequent stage where a specific power is needed to progress or find hidden items. Granted these are almost always in the immediate vicinity but still. With a more varied power set you could have the makings of a good game with alternate paths and more interesting gameplay in general. The final level almost hints at this as it takes place entirely in Brainiac’s ship. You have semi free reign to tackle its objectives in any order. While repetitive it is at least different. Unfortunately you cannot appreciate due to the game’s difficulty.
One of the core complaints regarding Superman is that he is too strong. He’s called the Man of Steel for a reason. That is not an issue here as he might as well be the man of tissue paper. Even the simplest robots inflict large damage as you struggle with Superman’s gimpy reach. Health power-ups are rare and the levels are grueling in their length. By the time you reach each boss you will be lucky to have half health. The biggest slap in the face however is that you have one life and a mere two credits to see this to its conclusion. It is a tall order and one that is not worth in my opinion.
In Closing
Superman is a middling game with few redeeming qualities. The music is good but you can listen to the soundtrack on youtube. It should not be so hard to make a good game starring this character yet time and time again developers and publishers fail spectacularly. I would have preferred a port of the little seen arcade game than this. Play something else, there is nothing to see here.
