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Circus Freak
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Infogrames
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Action
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1
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11.06.02
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Superman: The Man of Steel
The Man of Steel returns in his very first Xbox outing. Unfortunately for fans of Superman, his return is definitely not a welcomed one. The game's intro treats you to some pretty graphics, but the gameplay graphics themselves do not pull through as well. As far as I'm concerned, Superman was a great superhero. But he should know, and game developers too, that his time is up and he should step aside for new heroes like Spiderman.
Graphics
Superman's graphics aren't the best around, but suffice to say that they are the game's strong point. The game is set in a futuristic city, filled with plenty of flying cars. My only question is...If we have flying cars, then why do we need streets? But either way, back to the graphics. There is some minor draw-in in the city's background. Normally a little bit of draw-in is okay, but it's inexcusable on the Xbox. The x-ray vision in the game does not allow you to see through the buildings, it allows you to see the wire frame models of all the buildings. The graphics, while good could be a lot better.
Sound
If you were to close your eyes and listen to the game, you would think that you were watching the movie Twister. All you hear is a constant whirlwind of wind with some heroic Superman music in the background. And it's an atrocity that they left out the classic superman music. And Superman's voice acting is absolutely horrendous. Superman will actually talk to you during the game to give you useless tips and clues. This idea, while possibly helpful, prevents you from being drawn into the game. How can you pretend to be Superman if he is talking to you? The music sucks, the voice acting sucks, and so does the annoying whirlwind-like flying sound. And there's nothing much else to say about the sound, except for Superman's slightly disturbing grunts he utters when an enemy attacks him.
Gameplay
You may think that Superman's weakness is kryptonite, but no, it's gameplay. Since when did Superman float? He flies. While battling enemies, it is almost impossible to lock on to them. Locking on to a target is harder than finishing a game of Monopoly. And once you do, fighting them is nothing more than pressing buttons. Sometimes you have to use your heat vision, your freeze breath, or your miniscule array of hand-to-hand combat moves. The mission objectives are not too varied; in fact they are all almost identical. Your objectives range from fly over there and destroy them, to fly over there and help them while destroying them...and that's about it.
Replay Value
Well quite frankly, I'd have a much better time watching the grass grow than playing this game. When I first played the game, it couldn't hold my attention for more than an hour. If it wasn't for this review, I would have probably never have even looked at this game ever again. And if you don't believe me, just go ahead and rent the game for yourself. And be sure to pick up some Aspirin, cause it sure is painful to play this game. You are much better off sticking to the Superman movies.
Bottom Line:
STAY AWAY! Stay as far away from the game as possible. The cover of the game flaunts that it is an Xbox exclusive title, but why would Microsoft want a game like this exclusively on their system? Share the crappy games with Sony and Nintendo; keep all the good games exclusive to the Xbox. Why they would ever think that Superman is a quality game is beyond me. Even if you are the biggest Superman fan in the entire world, I wouldn't even suggest renting this one.
-Rob Matos
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