WhatsHisFace
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Despite EA being the devil, I WILL be getting this game.
Superman Returns: The Video Game Q&A
-- July 27, 2006 by: David Craddock
While super heroes come alive superbly in comic books and cinema, video games have, for the most part, failed to capture the awesomeness of taking control of cultural icons such as Batman, Superman, Spider-Man, and the like. In fact, I'd venture to say that the only thing worse (on average) than a superhero-based video game is... a superhero-movie-based video game.
Hoping to change the perception of this dastardly breed of video gaming is Electronic Arts' Superman Returns: The Video Game, which is due to release this fall alongside the DVD release of the same movie. I conducted a short interview with Executive Producer Chris Gray to find out what's in store for Superman's latest foray into gaming--and if it will be worth foraying into ourselves.
Shacknews: What is the storyline for Superman Returns?
Chris Gray: The Superman Returns: The Video Game storyline is guided by, but not limited to, the hit movie. So youll see all the key action, actors and storylines from the movie, but those will be jointed by characters and storylines from over 60 years of comic lore. In the end, the game is about 50% movie/50% original elements.
Shacknews: How does the game go about blending movie action with 60+ years of comic book history? Please elaborate.
Chris Gray: Ultimately, the game follows the movies plotline, but this is not a literal play-through-the-movie type of game. We have managed to incorporate some major villains from the Superman mythology into the game world, to better tie the movie and the history of Superman together; we sort of bridge the gap between them.
Shacknews: How long is the main game's storyline? Also, how many main objectives are there, and how many side quests are available?
Chris Gray: The main storyline is shaping up to be about 15 hours for a skilled player, but open world games are all about sandbox time. There is plenty to see and protect in Metropolis, so this game will hold attention for quite a while.
Shacknews: Tell us about what went into designing the virtual Metropolis: how big is it, how does it showcase the game's nonlinearity, etc.
Chris Gray: The open world metropolis is over 80 sq miles and contains 8,000 buildings, so its very large. For reference, I believe the city of San Francisco is about 47 sq miles. Metropolis is the stage for all the action!
Objectives randomly spawn as you patrol the city, so its not like youll fly to a floating marker and be asked if you want to engage Bizarro. Youll be flying around and notice smoke and destruction below. When you fly down to investigate, it might be some puny bad guys, could be some of Bizarros minions escaped from Cadmus Labs, or it might be the anti-hero himself wreaking havoc on the citizens.
By the way, the team was recently able to squeeze in playable Bizarro levels, so gamers will be able to bust up the city themselves.
Shacknews: In past Superman games, I always smirked at the sight of Superman getting knocked on his keister by enemies far less than super-human. I mean, I'm Superman. What sort of obstacles exist that will provide Sups with an actual challenge, what are a few of the ways the player will be able to deal with them (as in, for Problem A, is there more than one solution?), and... in short, how has the game been handled to make the player actually feel like the Last Son of Krypton? Please elaborate.
Chris Gray: This is a tricky thing for game designers to address, but I think we have a solid solution. The goal of the game is not for Superman to protect himself and defeat the villains, its for Superman to defeat the villains and protect METROPOLIS. So the health bar actually belongs to Metropolis and most of the villains are just bent on destroying the city.
By the way, many have this perception that Superman is invulnerable aside from Kryptonite and thats not true to the character. Superman actually does get fatigued and that makes for good game play balancing as well.
Shacknews: What sort of powers will the player have access to?
Chris Gray: Youll have heat vision, Freeze Breath, Super Breath, Super Strength, Flying, etc, etc. There will be different levels of these powers as well based on contact sensitive controls. You will unlock new brawling combos and such as you gain experience, but youll always have your other-worldly powers from the moment you put the game in, since you dont have to unlock those as other games do.
Shacknews: What will set the "next-gen" versions of SR apart from current-gen hardware?
Chris Gray: Obviously the visuals will be greatly improved, but thats really the only noticeable thing. Current Gen will feature all of Metropolis, all Supermans powers, and all of the storyline.
Shacknews: With such outstanding intellectual properties behind them, it's always surprising and unfortunate to me that superhero games usually end up being rather bad. For example, games such as Batman: Dark Tomorrow and Superman 64, just to name two, had such great potential, but did not succeed. In your opinion, why do you think this has (for the most part) been the case so far, and why will Superman Returns be any better?
Chris Gray: Our goal for Superman was to let you actually become him with all of his amazing powers at your disposal. With the concept of protecting the city, we wanted to give you the ability to become the worlds most powerful super hero, but have to decide should I use these powers in each situation, as not every power will produce positive results in every situation. Remember, in order to protect the city, you have to keep from harming it yourself. Its that implied morality that makes us different, adds depth to the character and provides the player with many choices within each situation he comes in contact with.
Shacknews: In addition to superhero video games, movie games have a reputation for being less than stellar. How will Superman Returns provide an experience that will cause movie and superhero game critics to say, "They finally got one right?"
Chris Gray: From day one we knew we needed to make more than a movie game, and that helps tremendously. Supermans history is so rich with moments, why wouldnt we want to include them in the game? The additional content allows us to deliver an action-packed experience that never lets up. For example, the movie only shows you a taste of Metropolis, whereas, we allow you to get completely immersed within and interact with it.
Shacknews: Originally, it was believed that SR the game would coincide with the theatrical release of the movie, but this ended up not being the case. What was the cause for the game's delay, (please reveal as much as is allowed to be disclosed) and is it felt that this delay will help the inevitable release of the game?
Chris Gray: Open world games are incredibly difficult to develop and balance properly. Couple that with the inherent challenges of next gen development (massive team sizes, data pipelines, etc) and its really, really tough to scope and schedule these games.
The additional time allowed us to shore up game play and add the little details to Metropolis. It also allowed us to add a few elements that the community have been BEGGING for, like playable Bizarro. In the end, it was the right decision, were going to deliver a higher-quality, more robust game.
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