Superman: The Game

I've mentioned on several occasions when I've had issues with a game's difficulty level. Most of the time, it's been because a game was just too hard to enjoy like the case with Chakan: The Forever Man and Power Golf. However, in the case of Superman: The Game on the ZX Spectrum, I experienced a very rare case of the opposite problem, a game that is just way too easy.

As can be expected of a game from the tail-end of the second console generation, there is a set-up but no real plot. The premise is a showdown between Superman and Darkseid. They're thrown into a few blocks worth of Metropolis to shoot it out. Conceptually, it's about as simple as Combat on the Atari 2600, but there are a few wrinkles added to provide a little depth. The power and length of the heat vision blasts depend on spacing out presses of the fire button. There are reflectors scattered all over the map that can ricochet heat vision shots, adding a little strategy to attacks. After collecting orbs that are randomly scattered, the players can take the fight to another sector of the city. There's even a side-scrolling mini-game involving Superman flying and grabbing bombs dropped from a plane before they hit the ground. The side-scrolling stage even looks pretty good for the time if you can ignore the limited color palette. These extras provide more than one would've expected from a game in 1985.

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Unfortunately, the game is nearly ruined by being WAY too easy. The only complications come from controls being a bit on the stiff side. I'd gotten stuck trying to go around corners more than once. Even with the control issues AND turning the difficulty to its maximum setting, I STILL beat Darkseid with barely a scratch. When Darkseid goes into a corner of the map, all you have to do is just start shooting from mid-range, far enough to produce a full shot. Each shot would keep pushing him into the corner and holding him there, preventing his escape. Doing that, I was able to topple him without even bothering to move to another part of the city. That lack of difficulty ends up nullifying a lot of the game. Fortunately, the two player mode is more satisfactory. Having another person taking the role of Darkseid makes the various functions work the way they should.

There were some solid ideas for a Superman game here. A one-on-one showdown with Darkseid could've worked with the technical constraints of the time. However, the complete lack of difficulty in the single player kills the tension faster than a speeding bullet. If you're in the mood for a simple competitive shooter, here's the bottom line... go two player, or go without.