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Superman: The Man of Steel (video game)
Encyclopedia
Superman: The Man of Steel is a console video game exclusively for the Xbox
, based on DC Comics
' flagship character Superman
. It was developed by Circus Freak Studios and published by Atari
in conjunction with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and DC Comics. It is based on the long-running comic book mythos, as opposed to most other Superman games which are adaptations of the character in other mediums besides the source material.
with a technological virus. Superman was able to prevent it from spreading, but as a result of it, the city was upgraded into a true "City of Tomorrow". Huge high-tech buildings soar into the sky while hover cars and the Rail Whale bullet train travel throughout the city.
As the game begins, Brainiac 13 has decided to return to Metropolis and harvest the technology that is residing in the city. This results in massive chaos and danger that Superman must stop. The game moves from areas such as the city of Metropolis, orbit above Earth
, a deep space asteroid field, the villain Mongul
's Warworld
, and the infamous Phantom Zone
. The story was written by veteran DC Comics writer Scott Peterson, who also co-wrote the story for the later DC Comics video game Batman: Dark Tomorrow
.
Villains in the game include Brainiac 13, Lex Luthor
, Mongul
, Metallo
, Silver Banshee
, Encantradora, Bizarro #1
, and Hank Henshaw
.
Bizarro
is the game's first boss, and the first portion of the level against him requires you to chase him through the city and extinguish fires he causes. The boss battle itself follows a formula of attacking while Bizarro flexes, and he is easily defeated by dividing attacks between offensive powers and melee attacks. From here the game then moves to Brainiac himself, requiring Superman to use his X-ray vision and cut off power to the villain's shield. The X-ray vision is rendered into the map, allowing you to see beneath the surface of Metropolis and trace the power sources for Superman to disrupt. Many levels take place outside of Metropolis, but the scenarios tend to repeat themselves. On Mongul
's Warworld
for instance, you may be required to save detainees from Mongul's prison, which follows the same gameplay method of saving civilians in Metropolis. Fighting the guards from the prion in the air follows the same method as fighting Brainiac's robots in Metropolis, although on Warworld you are tasked with seeking and destroying several of Mongul's ships with heat vision. The Warworld level finishes with Superman moving giant rune stones in order to locate a powerful device of Mongul's, before heading into space.
In space above Warworld, you're required to save a fleeing prisoner ship by destroying the giant laser turrets on the side of Mongul's mother ship. After this, you are tasked with transferring the mother ship's power supply to the prisoner ship while fending off Mongul's guards. This is all entirely achieved through flight and through a fast pace. After stopping Mongul's ship from escaping to destroy Earth, Superman returns to Metropolis to battle Metallo
, first needing to rescue several civilians and put out several fires before moving to face him.
are inherent, super hearing assists with the game's radar system, X-ray vision
is important for searching for bombs or other weapons, and freeze breath is widely used for putting out fires.
Heat vision is mostly used for enemies that have a vulnerability to heat. Super speed has a presence while flying, creating a red and blue streak behind Superman as he flies at the game's allowable top speed.
," stating "I'm convinced Superman has a bottle of Wild Turkey tucked in his back pocket. What else could explain why he's so incredibly difficult to control?" They rated the game a 4.7 out of 10.
GameSpot
was a bit kinder to the game, praising the story, the large and detailed environments, and the use of the character's special abilities like X-ray vision. Conversely, they called the enemy lock-on system "problematic" and the game's repetitive timed missions as difficult to complete because of the player's relatively low top speed and low amount of time to complete certain objectives. They rated the game a 6.4 out of 10.
The voice acting was cited as decent for the time, but Superman was said to sound too much like a stereotypical deep voiced, radio announcing superhero.
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
, based on DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
' flagship character Superman
Superman
Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
. It was developed by Circus Freak Studios and published by Atari
Atari
Atari is a corporate and brand name owned by several entities since its inception in 1972. It is currently owned by Atari Interactive, a wholly owned subsidiary of the French publisher Atari, SA . The original Atari, Inc. was founded in 1972 by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney. It was a pioneer in...
in conjunction with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and DC Comics. It is based on the long-running comic book mythos, as opposed to most other Superman games which are adaptations of the character in other mediums besides the source material.
Plot
The story flows out of events outlined in Superman: Y2K, in which futuristic villain Brainiac 13 injected MetropolisMetropolis (comics)
Metropolis is a fictional city that appears in comic books published by DC Comics, and is the home of Superman. Metropolis first appeared by name in Action Comics #16 ....
with a technological virus. Superman was able to prevent it from spreading, but as a result of it, the city was upgraded into a true "City of Tomorrow". Huge high-tech buildings soar into the sky while hover cars and the Rail Whale bullet train travel throughout the city.
As the game begins, Brainiac 13 has decided to return to Metropolis and harvest the technology that is residing in the city. This results in massive chaos and danger that Superman must stop. The game moves from areas such as the city of Metropolis, orbit above Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
, a deep space asteroid field, the villain Mongul
Mongul
Mongul is the name of two fictional characters that appear in comic books published by DC Comics. The first version of the character debuted in DC Comics Presents #27 and was created by writer Len Wein and artist Jim Starlin. The second version first appears in Showcase '95 #85 and was created by...
's Warworld
Warworld
Warworld is a fictional artificial planet published in several stories by DC Comics, most of which feature Superman. It first appeared in DC Comics Presents #27 , and was created by Len Wein and Jim Starlin.-History:...
, and the infamous Phantom Zone
Phantom Zone
The Phantom Zone is a fictional prison dimension featured in the Superman comic books and related media published by DC Comics. It first appeared in Adventure Comics #283 , and was created by Robert Bernstein and George Papp...
. The story was written by veteran DC Comics writer Scott Peterson, who also co-wrote the story for the later DC Comics video game Batman: Dark Tomorrow
Batman: Dark Tomorrow
Batman: Dark Tomorrow is a console video game exclusively for the Nintendo GameCube and Xbox systems, based on DC Comics' Batman. It was developed by HotGen and published by Kemco in conjunction with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and DC Comics...
.
Villains in the game include Brainiac 13, Lex Luthor
Lex Luthor
Lex Luthor is a fictional character, a supervillain who appears in comic books published by DC Comics, and the archenemy of Superman, although given his high status as a supervillain, he has also come into conflict with Batman and other superheroes in the DC Universe. Created by Jerry Siegel and...
, Mongul
Mongul
Mongul is the name of two fictional characters that appear in comic books published by DC Comics. The first version of the character debuted in DC Comics Presents #27 and was created by writer Len Wein and artist Jim Starlin. The second version first appears in Showcase '95 #85 and was created by...
, Metallo
Metallo
Metallo is a comic book supervillain and cyborg who appears in Superman stories published by DC Comics. Metallo's trademark is his kryptonite power source, which he often uses as a weapon against Superman. His traditional identity is John Corben...
, Silver Banshee
Silver Banshee
Silver Banshee is a fictional character appearing in DC Comics, primarily as an opponent of Superman.-Fictional character biography:Siobhan McDougal was the first-born child of Garrett McDougal, the patriarch of an old Gaelic clan that has occupied an island midway between Scotland and Ireland for...
, Encantradora, Bizarro #1
Bizarro
Bizarro is a fictional character that appears in publications published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Otto Binder and artist George Papp as a "mirror image" of Superman and first appeared in Superboy #68...
, and Hank Henshaw
Hank Henshaw
Hank Henshaw is a fictional supervillain featured in the DC Comics universe. While originally featured primarily as an enemy of Superman, recent years have repositioned him as one of the main enemies of the Green Lantern Corps...
.
Gameplay
Many portions of the game are given a time limit within which you must complete several objectives. One common theme through the game across several levels requires Superman to travel through large distances across Metropolis in order to put out a series of fires with his arctic breath. Other scenarios within the city call for Superman to rescue civilians by transporting from an endangered area to a safer location, pursue and grab an enemy's getaway vehicle and take it to the authorities, and fight hordes of robots invading the city from Brainiac 13. Several enemies, particularly the robots, have a color coded reticle through the targeting system, indicating that enemy's particular vulnerability. A yellow reticle on an enemy means that he is vulnerable to physical/melee attack, a blue reticle means that they are vulnerable to Superman's arctic breath, and a purple reticle means that the enemy is susceptible to Superman's heat vision.Bizarro
Bizarro
Bizarro is a fictional character that appears in publications published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Otto Binder and artist George Papp as a "mirror image" of Superman and first appeared in Superboy #68...
is the game's first boss, and the first portion of the level against him requires you to chase him through the city and extinguish fires he causes. The boss battle itself follows a formula of attacking while Bizarro flexes, and he is easily defeated by dividing attacks between offensive powers and melee attacks. From here the game then moves to Brainiac himself, requiring Superman to use his X-ray vision and cut off power to the villain's shield. The X-ray vision is rendered into the map, allowing you to see beneath the surface of Metropolis and trace the power sources for Superman to disrupt. Many levels take place outside of Metropolis, but the scenarios tend to repeat themselves. On Mongul
Mongul
Mongul is the name of two fictional characters that appear in comic books published by DC Comics. The first version of the character debuted in DC Comics Presents #27 and was created by writer Len Wein and artist Jim Starlin. The second version first appears in Showcase '95 #85 and was created by...
's Warworld
Warworld
Warworld is a fictional artificial planet published in several stories by DC Comics, most of which feature Superman. It first appeared in DC Comics Presents #27 , and was created by Len Wein and Jim Starlin.-History:...
for instance, you may be required to save detainees from Mongul's prison, which follows the same gameplay method of saving civilians in Metropolis. Fighting the guards from the prion in the air follows the same method as fighting Brainiac's robots in Metropolis, although on Warworld you are tasked with seeking and destroying several of Mongul's ships with heat vision. The Warworld level finishes with Superman moving giant rune stones in order to locate a powerful device of Mongul's, before heading into space.
In space above Warworld, you're required to save a fleeing prisoner ship by destroying the giant laser turrets on the side of Mongul's mother ship. After this, you are tasked with transferring the mother ship's power supply to the prisoner ship while fending off Mongul's guards. This is all entirely achieved through flight and through a fast pace. After stopping Mongul's ship from escaping to destroy Earth, Superman returns to Metropolis to battle Metallo
Metallo
Metallo is a comic book supervillain and cyborg who appears in Superman stories published by DC Comics. Metallo's trademark is his kryptonite power source, which he often uses as a weapon against Superman. His traditional identity is John Corben...
, first needing to rescue several civilians and put out several fires before moving to face him.
Abilities
Many of Superman's abilities are at the player's immediate disposal. Flight and super strengthSuperhuman strength
Superhuman strength, also called superstrength, super-strength, or super strength, is an ability commonly employed in fiction. It is the ability for a character to be stronger than humanly possible...
are inherent, super hearing assists with the game's radar system, X-ray vision
X-Ray Vision
In science fiction stories or superhero comics, X-ray vision is the ability to see through physical objects at the discretion of the holder of this superpower. The most famous possessor of this ability is DC Comics' iconic superhero character, Superman....
is important for searching for bombs or other weapons, and freeze breath is widely used for putting out fires.
Heat vision is mostly used for enemies that have a vulnerability to heat. Super speed has a presence while flying, creating a red and blue streak behind Superman as he flies at the game's allowable top speed.
Reception
The game received mixed-to-negative reviews, with many citing a confusing control scheme and repetitive mission modes. IGN called the game "pure kryptoniteKryptonite
Kryptonite is a fictional material from the Superman mythos —the ore form of a radioactive element from Superman's home planet of Krypton. It is famous for being the ultimate physical weakness of Superman, and the word kryptonite has since become synonymous with an Achilles' heel —the one weakness...
," stating "I'm convinced Superman has a bottle of Wild Turkey tucked in his back pocket. What else could explain why he's so incredibly difficult to control?" They rated the game a 4.7 out of 10.
GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
was a bit kinder to the game, praising the story, the large and detailed environments, and the use of the character's special abilities like X-ray vision. Conversely, they called the enemy lock-on system "problematic" and the game's repetitive timed missions as difficult to complete because of the player's relatively low top speed and low amount of time to complete certain objectives. They rated the game a 6.4 out of 10.
The voice acting was cited as decent for the time, but Superman was said to sound too much like a stereotypical deep voiced, radio announcing superhero.