Superman [ARC/1988]

System Played: Arcade

Year Released: 1988

Year Reviewed: 2019

Taito’s Superman arcade game is a scrolling beat ‘em up/shooter, demonstrating a perfunctory understanding of the licence, typical of the time. 2 player simultaneous, for no obvious reason other than to get twice as many coins through the slot at once, the second playing as a red Superman (not the soviet one), because why not...


There are five stages in total, each (apart from the last) split into three distinct sections, where the format changes.

You start on the streets of Metropolis, the two buttons providing incredibly awkward looking punch and kick attacks which literally disintegrate the steady stream of brightly coloured enemies that come floating on to the screen.

You can walk along the ground, or press up to float around as all the enemies do. The punch and kick don’t look any less odd in mid air.

At the start, enemies are slow to do much of anything other than die. Holding the punch button for a few seconds lets you launch a projectile which just cuts straight through a line of them. They can come in groups of four or five, allowing them to get the occasional hit in.

Your health bar consists of five segments, so you can take some hits, plus continue as often as you’ve got credits. Blue crystals also refill a bit of health, yellow ones give you one free projectile without needing to charge and Red’s just seem to be points, with 10,000 scoring you an extra life. Pretty generous really.


The second part of the stage is an upward scrolling sequence, kind of. The building in the background is scrolling up, giving the impression that you’re ascending, while more enemies bob onto the screen from all around.

The third section is a faster paced horizontal scrolling section, more like a shmup. You’re flying now, still able to punch but the kick is replaced by eye lasers. The enemies now are meteors, attack helicopters and girders…


Each stage section ends with a mini-boss fight.

I couldn’t tell you who any of them are supposed to be, either sourced from some best forgotten issue of the comics, or Taito just making it up with minimal effort. They all go down after a couple of hits, but they can also wipe out your entire health bar just as easily, which feels like the cheapest aspect of the game.

As you go on, the enemy types get more annoying, especially the ones that try to grab you.

The only recognisable enemy is the big headed bloke who you fight over and over at the end of each stage, each time showing up in some fancy new machine, like Dr. Robotnik. Except no, apparently he’s not Brainiac but some nobody called Emperor Zaas?!


Each level is some different American city (basically just a different background, for what is essentially the same stage over and over). The fifth and final plays in a slightly different order, being set in space.

The final fight with Brainiac (or whoever he is) looks comical, but not in the usual sense you’d associate with the licence… Having confronted him in his space base, he just goes up and down on a platform repeatedly, while his two big hulking monster men mince back and forth on the ground. He’s just wearing some underpants, like he wasn’t even expecting you.


Like many an arcade game, the graphics are the best part, with big and colourful sprites, even if the do enemies all looks ridiculous.

A midi rendition of the movie theme plays on a constant loop for most of the game.


The whole thing reminded me a bit of Altered Beast, which is obviously not a glowing endorsement.

What can you say? Obviously it isn’t the worst Superman game. It’s typical arcade fodder, designed to grab your attention (and your coins) for a few brief minutes of colourful explosions.

3/10