Gaming Target - PlayStation 2: Superman: Shadow of Apokolips

Written by Chris Reiter on March 07, 2002

First Impressions: Look up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! No, it's...suckers! ::escapes::

Last fall, Ubi Soft released its Batman: Vengeance video game for the PlayStation 2, which was based on the Kids WB cartoon TV show, featuring the Dark Knight. Now, Infogrames intends to do the same thing that Ubi Soft has done, by creating a cartoon world with a super hero and his nemesis'. It's a game about the man of steel; one who can fly high above buildings, move faster than a speeding bullet, and even crush a locomotive with his bare hands. That's right, you know who he is. The game I'm talking about is the Kids WB's other long running TV series: Superman!

Even though the cartoon isn't in production anymore, the series was probably the best adaptation of the classic comic hero you would have ever gotten. The plot of the game is taken straight from the show, and is based on the age of Apokolips. Darkseid, the ruler of the Apokoliptic dimension, is dispensing weapons to Lex Luthor's company on Earth, in a plot to stage yet again another ultimate evil against the ultimate hero fight. Amongst other familiar villainous faces, Superman will do battle with them all to restore justice to Metropolis once again in a series of typical comic book heroism events.

As most people already know it, Superman is of course an indestructible man of many talents. And because the game features Superman, you will have the chance to wield all of his tremendous powers. You name the power, and you can do it. Whether it is shooting laser beams from your eyes, lifting cars with your bare hands and tossing them at enemies, or revealing the whereabouts of a bad guy with your X-ray vision, it's all going to be possible. Superman's mighty lungs will even be of use some of the time, for situations like putting out fires to save civilians.

Much of the game, which in finished form is scheduled to be 15 levels in length, will consist of a mission basis. Freely, you'll guide Superman through level after level of fighting and puzzle solving locations, and each consisting of a variety of different gameplay types. Most of the time you'll be given the opportunity to save a large scale of bunch of civilians set in a perilous situation. The puzzle of it is how you're going to play the game so that they survive. In one example, you'll have choices for rescuing people who are caught in a whirlwind of fire and collapsing pieces of concrete on one of Metropolis' dams. To proceed, you can either rescue a single person at a time by carrying them from one location to another, or by using a large platform such as a chunk of bridge to support their safety. How you determine the best means possible to solve each dangerous riddle will be up to you.

In other parts of the game, of course there's fight sequences between well-known bad guys and the lower level goons that pertain to each. At your disposal, Superman can obtain just about any object within the game's environment and use it to pummel the resistance. He can also soar at high speeds through the air, dash fast on the ground, and even use those muscle bound limbs of his to show the enemy what punishment looks like. As for those famous faces that are known best from the Superman series, you'll face such twisted characters as Metallo; an invincible robotic, complete with kryptonite bearings within, Livewire; an electricity absorbing female villain who can harness enormous amounts of energy and hurl them at our hero, and even Parasite; a transformed man that now has the power to steal the ability of any one he chooses by grabbing them, and then using it for a limited amount of time. Just the thought of tangling with those guys makes my Spider-Sense...I mean Batman...I mean, never mind.

At the moment, the game appears precisely how the cartoon would if you were viewing it on screen...or near enough to it. If you thought cel-shading titles were a treat, the animated Superman is nothing but that, and the video game in the end will prove it. Everything, from Superman's "S" insignia, to his flowing cape, and blue tights will all be animated perfectly. But, in the testing stage, a few glitches are present, in how certain times the character animation performances may be a bit a loopy, and slightly choppy. However, since the game is on its way this fall, Infogrames has assurances that in its final form will be just as intact as the TV show always had been.

Further more, Superman's fantasy Metropolis world will populate with hundreds of individual characters that roam the street and will also react to your fight scenes that will often take place. You'll be able to see and hear people's screams and shouts, as the civilians all around you yelp or even cheer you on in the heat of battle. Some will even run away screaming if the streets get a little too crowded. Personal reactions to Superman's character, like how he can crash into walls and smash objects also will be present in great looking cartoon fashion. The design of this Superman game, like no other, is surely shaping up to be the best one ever made.

Being a huge fan of the cartoon series, I can say for a fact that the voices used for the comic book's characters were perfect. Making a return for the game, the same voice actors who had done the show will also fill in for the game to make the most out of it. Tim Daly as Superman, Malcolm Mcdowell as Metallo, and even the obnoxious voice of Lori Petty as Livewire are all going to be featured, rerecording and reliving their roles as the cast of the show, in the game. It seems as though Infogrames is reaching out on a limb to create the first Superman title that will pave the way as one we can all look forward to and enjoy with its every aspect.