The history of Superman the arcade game – arcade documentary
PatmanQC – History of arcade game documentaries
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The history of the man of steel’s arcade game
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12.01.2024
191 Comments
I loved this game in the arcade. I had never seen such large characters before. The fact that you could fly whenever you wanted was great, but as the video says, punching the same dudes in the dick over and over did get boring.
The 1988 arcade Superman was absolutely awesome! Who gives a shit if it was a new supervillain? That's refreshing! My only criticisms are that Mt. Rushmore is not in Washington, D.C. and freeze breath would've been nice. My friend and I played this and we pretended the red superman was a Kryptonian distant relative trapped in the Phantom Zone. Lol.
Can't believe I'm adding a 3rd reply, but I remember taking my girlfriend to the bowling alley, where we'd bowl, shoot pool, share a pitcher of beer and onion rings, do air hockey, and then Superman the arcade game! Beautiful memories!
I played this game Galloping Ghost arcade in Illinois. When me and my brother found that the second player was a palette swap, we joked that it was his lesser known cousin “Duperman” lol
I totally remember playing this game (the Arcade) at the local store back in the day,. I thought it was AWESOME! BTW, I think that the organization that controls the DC multiverse proclaimed last year that the Christopher Reeve Superman timeline IS the cannon timeline. Therefore, for all intents and purposes, Christopher Reeve will always be the True Man of Steel.
I still love this game, the music, graphics, the different ways to play it & that shin kick. I remember playing this at a grocery store of all places as well as playing mk for the 1st time
Patman, I'm loving the videos keep up the good work. How about one on The Cliffhanger: Edward Randy? It was the Indiana Jones we always wanted but never got.
Definitely an underrated gem…I remember playing it all the time at my local Rickel as a kid, back in the day, but didn't get to play it again until I installed MAME on my computer in the late 00s!
one of my favorites arcade machine (big superman fan at that time) never got past level 2 lol, until many years later on emulator of course. Every time I install an arcade emulator on phone, console, etc, i had to try this.
Considering the date of the release along with the use of a Brainiac villain and John Williams music it sounds like Sunsoft were trying to make a template for a fifth Superman movie.
Probably didn't want to pay extra fees for using Brainiac. It was indeed a great game. I initially thought that player 2 was Captain Marvel, since the costume was red. Would have been great. Needs to be remade in modern graphics and make player 2 Capt. Marvel (the REAL one, not the brie lartard one)
Superman is so hard to do as a video game character because he's basically invulnerable, and you need the player character to seem weak so the player can overcome limitations and feel a sense of achievement. Most Superman stories don't end with him just punching the super villain, but rather using his powers to discover the bad guy's evil plot and then using his and Lois Lane's skills as journalists to expose it. That was really hard to achieve in an arcade style game back then, but I think a modern action/adventure/rpg could work really well.
As a huge Superman fan, it always annoyed me that this game was hard to find near where I lived. I only got to play it a few times, and I never had enough quarters to get very far. I don't remember how it plays, but it certainly looks and sounds fantastic! Too bad it never had a straight port to the SNES or Genesis.
It is very possible that Taito ojnly managed to buy the rights to use Superman in the game, and only Superman. So any villain or hero would be off limits for them to use, which is why they created an original character.
I loved this game in the arcade. I had never seen such large characters before. The fact that you could fly whenever you wanted was great, but as the video says, punching the same dudes in the dick over and over did get boring.
Superman 2 (movie) donnor cut is awesome. See that if you can. The way it should of been
The 1988 arcade Superman was absolutely awesome! Who gives a shit if it was a new supervillain? That's refreshing! My only criticisms are that Mt. Rushmore is not in Washington, D.C. and freeze breath would've been nice. My friend and I played this and we pretended the red superman was a Kryptonian distant relative trapped in the Phantom Zone. Lol.
Can't believe I'm adding a 3rd reply, but I remember taking my girlfriend to the bowling alley, where we'd bowl, shoot pool, share a pitcher of beer and onion rings, do air hockey, and then Superman the arcade game! Beautiful memories!
Awesome videos!! All my favorite games!! Love your videos!! So much information! Keep it up!
There's a much better C64 Superman game: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsQPVt4_Ft8
The only downside is the load times are nuts, but on a modern emulator (or with a bit of extra hardware) you can get around that.
Superman is one of the heroes who has been in all media that's current.
I enjoyed the arcade version
I played this game Galloping Ghost arcade in Illinois. When me and my brother found that the second player was a palette swap, we joked that it was his lesser known cousin “Duperman” lol
I always thought the 2P character was Captain Marvel (Shazam).
You should have brought up the infamous Superman game for N64. 🙂
I totally remember playing this game (the Arcade) at the local store back in the day,. I thought it was AWESOME! BTW, I think that the organization that controls the DC multiverse proclaimed last year that the Christopher Reeve Superman timeline IS the cannon timeline. Therefore, for all intents and purposes, Christopher Reeve will always be the True Man of Steel.
God, just listening to that awesome arcade soundtrack makes me feel invigorated.
Awesome video thank you
I still love this game, the music, graphics, the different ways to play it & that shin kick. I remember playing this at a grocery store of all places as well as playing mk for the 1st time
where did you find info on that Captian Marvel/Shizam connection?
my local Pizza Hut had this game so much fun
I loved this game in the arcades. It was the mix of 2D shootemup and side scrolling beatemup that I loved. Fun days
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How much dose the Superman 1988 arcade game sell for
I really enjoyed this game in the arcade , wasn't a total quarter muncher. Great video as always
I was too young to really understand that Atari Superman game. I couldn't figure it out.
1:47 I agree
I was reminded there was a "Superman Blue" and a "Superman Red" once in the comics, might be where they got the idea to pallete-swap?
We had this cabinet at our local YMCA where I played this all the time. What good memories! Thanks for the video!
Patman, I'm loving the videos keep up the good work. How about one on The Cliffhanger: Edward Randy? It was the Indiana Jones we always wanted but never got.
I used alot of quarters with one of my brothers at the local Putt Putt Golf and Games in 1988 and 1989 on this game. Great memories.
Why was this game mistaken with Castlevania: Arcade Game by YouTube?
Definitely an underrated gem…I remember playing it all the time at my local Rickel as a kid, back in the day, but didn't get to play it again until I installed MAME on my computer in the late 00s!
one of my favorites arcade machine (big superman fan at that time) never got past level 2 lol, until many years later on emulator of course. Every time I install an arcade emulator on phone, console, etc, i had to try this.
There aren't any old school arcade games for now since the 2010s
I thought player two was Mon-EL
I always thought it was Shazam lol
2p could have been Mon-El
Best Version even newer ones aren't close!
I got a theory about this game it was originally going to be a movie tie in game for superman 3
The arcade Superman game was my favorite
Considering the date of the release along with the use of a Brainiac villain and John Williams music it sounds like Sunsoft were trying to make a template for a fifth Superman movie.
You can actually fire the energy ball during the brawler sections, but you can only turn left or right.
00:21 That black and white version of Superman take-off was pretty good.
This is my favorite superman game. Yes, it's due to nostalgia but it's still a fun game.
Pretty cool. I remember a local video store by my high school had this, but never got to the end.
Probably didn't want to pay extra fees for using Brainiac. It was indeed a great game. I initially thought that player 2 was Captain Marvel, since the costume was red. Would have been great. Needs to be remade in modern graphics and make player 2 Capt. Marvel (the REAL one, not the brie lartard one)
thanks for sharing.
i remember this game, really wanted to play it but couldnt due shot of money when i was a kid.
I still wish player 2 had been Supergirl
Superman is so hard to do as a video game character because he's basically invulnerable, and you need the player character to seem weak so the player can overcome limitations and feel a sense of achievement.
Most Superman stories don't end with him just punching the super villain, but rather using his powers to discover the bad guy's evil plot and then using his and Lois Lane's skills as journalists to expose it. That was really hard to achieve in an arcade style game back then, but I think a modern action/adventure/rpg could work really well.
As a huge Superman fan, it always annoyed me that this game was hard to find near where I lived. I only got to play it a few times, and I never had enough quarters to get very far. I don't remember how it plays, but it certainly looks and sounds fantastic! Too bad it never had a straight port to the SNES or Genesis.
Hopefully the release it on the switch
It is very possible that Taito ojnly managed to buy the rights to use Superman in the game, and only Superman. So any villain or hero would be off limits for them to use, which is why they created an original character.
One of the local gas stations had this for a time; remember beating it on the way home from school one day.