PrinceWatercress plays Superman (NES) - Part 7 of 8

In this entry, we finally beat Lex Luthor, but now ghosts are running amok in Metropolis. It's not going to be long before we reach the end of the game!

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From the Metro Police Station, you'll need to the CBD area. Thankfully, we can fly there from Teaboro. From there, head to the left of the building you land near and use Super Spin to go down the funny look tiles. 

Once you're underground, head all the way to the right and go down the ladder. From here, head right and go down another ladder. At this point, you'll have no choice but to head left and go down the ladder. Then, you'll need to head right and go up until you reach the end, where you'll find Lex Luthor. Hit him with the Heat Vision and stay away from him and his club while also taking out the gangster. When you beat Lex Luthor, he will be arrested, but a gang of monsters will soon be on the loose.

Interestingly, enemies do not move until you're completely off the ladder onto the ground. Weird.

When you beat Lex Luthor, monster gangs will be on the loose. Welcome to the last chapter, where your attack, defense and health will be as high as they can go.

Level 5

Back at the Daily Planet, Lois Lane will you that The B.G. Bros are waiting for you at Battery Park in Senneville. The B.G. Bros (B.G. being short for bubble gum) are actually the F.B.I. agents that you've been seeing throughout the second half of the game. 

When you leave the Daily Planet, turn to Superman and use your X-Ray screen on every screen you enter so you don't get your butt handed to you by ghosts. The ghosts will be every single place you go from this point on.

Take the subway near the Daily Planet, then head east towards Senneville. Move to the left past the Metropolis Bank area, and you'll find the park and The B.G. Bros. They will tell you that the monsters' boss may be hiding beneath Metropolis Park. You'll also find out that this is the last time you will see them, as their work here is done.

Once you reach the park, keep heading right until you find the blocks you can go through with Super Spin.

When you go down the dig point at Metropolis Park with Super Spin, use your X-Ray Vision to see the enemies before going down the first ladder you see. Keep using X-Ray Vision at every screen. Go left and go down the ladder, then head right and head down the first ladder you see. Go left, then go down the next ladder. Head right, then go up the next ladder you see. From here, head left (right is a dead end), jump over the water, then go up the ladder. Head right from the ladder and go up the next ladder you see, then head right again and go up the next ladder. When you beat up the purple ghost in this room, it will tell you that their boss is waiting for them at Freedom Island.

Go back down the ladder, then head left and go down the next ladder. Head all the way to the left and go up the ladder, then go right and go up the ladder. Finally, head left and jump up the opening to end up back in the park.

Of course, that's if you want to do things that way. I take the quick and dirty route, and that's taking damage on the ladder from an invisible ghost and continuing to end up back at the Daily Planet.

If you die while climbing a ladder and return to the Daily Planet, you'll be in the ladder climbing animation when you come back. If you punch, you'll be standing in mid-air. You can also press and hold Down to get back on the ground.

PrinceWatercress plays Superman (NES) - Part 6 of 8

We'll need to take down a few fire beasts that Lex Luthor has unwittingly unleashed before we can Luthor himself.

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Level 4

Head down to the Art Museum in McKeesport. On the way there, you'll see the red zombies, which are the weakest of the three types of zombies that you'll face. When you enter, you'll meet the two guys from the F.B.I. They will tell you that Lex Luthor has failed in making a monster, which has turned into fire beasts that you'll need to defeat. You'll need to defeat these monsters, then return to the Metro Police Station in Teaboro.

The first fire beast is in University Plaza near Staunton, which is going to be quite the trek. You'll want to head right from the Art Museum until you see a subway station, then take it to Staunton. University Plaza will be right there, so go in and make your way all the way downstairs. Watch the blue as it jumps around and punch it when it lands. Beating it nets you the final Super Breath II extension of the game. Watch out for enemies, and use X-Ray Vision to see the enemies at the top half of the building.

The second fire beast is at the Palace Disco in Andersonville near the subway station that leads to Centennial Park. Thankfully, you just have the one room, and the fire beast here fights just like the one in University Plaza. Beating will net you the final Heat Vision extension.

The third fire beast is in front of the Civic Center. To get there, you'll need to take the subway to Teaboro, then keep going to the right until you no longer can. The fire beast will be right outside, and beating it will net you the final X-Ray Vision extension, which is the final power-up extension in the game.

Make your way back to the Metro Police Station and go inside. The F.B.I. will tell you that Lex Luthor is hiding under Central Station.

PrinceWatercress plays Superman (NES) - Part 5 of 8

In this entry, we reprogram the computer - by force - and beat down Jay Falk to stop Ross Webster's plans before getting ready for the fourth chapter of the game.

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If you have no idea that there is a computer center, you'll be looking all over for it. Thankfully, it's easy to find, as we have passed it before: it's at the "E" in Metropolis Park on the map. When you reach it, go inside and fight the enemies as you make your way to the lowest level.

Beating all the enemies on the entry floor will net you a Super Spin extension, while clearing the first floor below that will give you a Super Flight extension. Two floors down, you'll find the computer. When you see it, avoid the lasers as you jump into the computer and punch at the core. This will reprogram the computer to act as it normally did. Make sure you defeat all the gangsters on this floor so you can get a Heat Vision extension, too. After that, make your way back up and get out of here, and watch out for the zombies and ghost cats that have taken over the building on your way out.

From here, you'll want to head to the Metro Tower, which is to the east of the Computer Center. If you need to, use the nearby phone booth to turn back into Clark Kent and get your health refilled, then turn back into Superman and enter the Metro Tower.

Once inside, take out the gangsters and enter the elevator to go down. There are no pickups on the first two floors, but there will be a Super Breath II extension on the third, an X-Ray Vision extension on the third, a Super Spin extension on the fourth, a Super Flight extension on the fifth, and a Super Breath I extension on the sixth.

Always wait on the top of a stairs and keep punching if an enemy is below you; they'll eventually jump your way and into your attacks.

When you reach the bottom-most floor, equip Heat Vision. You'll eventually face Jay Falk himself. If he jumps, run under him and hit him with Heat Vision from floor level as he makes his way down, and punch him when he gets close in case you run out. You'll eventually beat Jay Falk, and you'll complete the third chapter before being sent to the fourth, where the museum is robbed courtesy of Lex Luther, who has posed a challenge for Superman.

At the Daily Planet, Lois Lane will tell you to go to the Art Museum in McKeesport to start the chapter off.

PrinceWatercress plays Superman (NES) - Part 4 of 8

After just four videos, we're about 50% of the way through the game...already!

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If you headed straight to the stock market west of Senneville and talk to the people there, you would have found out from one of the people there that the people at the Fish Market in the Old City are worried about their stock. That is your one clue that you need to go there. Of course, when you head there, you'll be simultaneously getting extensions for your abilities as well as advancing the plot for the game at the same time. In the first chapter, getting more energy for your powers and advancing the plot were independent of each other; in this chapter, they're not. You'll also find out that Glernmorgan Square is also in a slump.

The two people in sunglasses all the way tot he right at the Stock Market are F.B.I. agents. They will tell you that the Dragons Gang (or "Dragon's Gang") has caused the stock slump.

From here, you'll need to head back to Teaboro and head east to China Garden. Enter China Garden and equip Heat Vision, then take out the gangsters. When you see the big guy, hit him with Heat Vision, and punch at him when you get him close to the wall. When you beat this guy, you'll head to the next part of the game. No sooner do you beat the Dragons Gang and save the stocks that a professor and top scientist is kidnapped.

Level Three

You'll be back at the Daily Planet with more health, attack power and defense power. Talk to Lois Lane, and you'll find out that there are two universities to go to: Nordham University around Mt. Royal, and Metropolis University around Andersonville. Jimmy Olsen will tell you that ghosts have been seen at both universities.

We took care of the ghosts around Nordham University at the start of the game while searching for ability extensions, so we only have Metropolis University to head to. Leave the Daily Planet, take out the gangsters and turn into Superman, then take the nearby subway north. Head left towards Andersonville, and when you reach Metropolis University after continuously heading in that direction, you'll meet the F.B.I. agents again. They will tell you that can use X-Ray Vision to see the ghosts, and that the police seem to know something about the kidnapped professor.

This is your cue to head to Teaboro and head to the Metro Police Station. At this point, you'll notice that some enemies will take fewer punches to defeat. The one person who is there will tell you that a man who looked like the kidnapped professor was spotted at Centennial Park. Refer to your map, and you'll see a help signal on the map. You'll need to head east from Andersonville until you find a subway station, then take it north to Centennial Park. When you get to the general area of the park, keep heading to the left, then go down the ladder by standing on top of it and holding Down. Keep in mind that the only way to get off a ladder is to climb all the way up or down it, and you have to be on the ground in order to use them, so keep that in mind as you fight the enemies around here.

Head all the way to the right and climb down the ladder. From that ladder, go right and climb down the next ladder. You'll find a man who will tell you that Jay Falk - a mobster from the movies in the 1980s as well as the comics around the time the movies came out - forced him to put an evil mind in a huge computer, and that something must be done or else Loss Webster (a misspelling of Ross Webster, the main antagonist from Superman III will control the computers of the world. You'll have to destroy the huge computer in order to stop Webster, EVEN THOUGH HE NEVER TELLS YOU WHERE THE COMPUTER IS. From here, you'll need to get back to street level.

PrinceWatercress plays Superman (NES) - Part 3 of 8

When you hit the second chapter of the game, things get a little more interesting...and a little easier.

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From the Daily Planet, I head back to the Apollo Theater. Since we have enough extensions for Super Flight, I fly straight to Metropolis Park and head right to the theater from there.

This time, I head down to the bottom-most floor. Take down the gangsters, then equip Heat Vision. You'll face Zaora, who runs at you to hit you with a whip. She will also jump around a lot, so hit her with the eye beams from the Heat Vision ability whenever you're able to get a clear shot on her. If you run out of Heat Vision, punch her when she gets in close, and watch out for her jumping!

When you beat Zaora, you'll see a "Daily Planets" newspaper with the headline "Superman defeats Zod Gang." (Whoever that is.) You'll then get another headline stating that the stock market is in a panic and that prices are falling. Now Superman will have to investigate what is going on with the stock market.

Level Two

You'll be at the Daily Planet, and you'll have the subway pass in your inventory, as noted in the upper-left corner of the screen. If you talk to Jimmy Olsen, he will tell you to take the subway pass. At last, you can finally use the subway routes all over the city. If you talk to Lois Lane, she will tell you that you can learn all about stocks at the Senneville Stock Market. This looks like the first place you're going to go.

When you leave the Daily Planet and get to the phone booth, be ready to have Super Breath II equipped, as you'll need it to freeze the zombies in place and beat them up. After you beat up the zombies in front of the Daily Planet, use Super Flight to fly to Andersonville to make it easier to get to Senneville.

After landing at Andersonville, I head left until I reach a subway entrance. I also keep tapping the direction I want to go so that I'm not taken by surprise from enemies. When I reach the subway entrance halfway to Senneville, it takes me to Teaboro. When you arrive, be ready to fight a zombie, then head to the right. You'll find the "Help" alert at the Firemen's Memorial Museum. Equip Super Breath I, go in, and use the ability on the fireball enemies that you see to take them out and get a Heat Vision extension. You're done here, so take the subway back to where you originally were and keep going left to the Old City.

But first...equip Super Breath II and head to the Metropolis Bank, which is further to the west. Go inside and fight the enemies here to get to refill Super Flight if you need to, then fly to the Old City. When you land, fight the enemies on the screen, then enter the building to the right, which is the Fish Market. Defeat the enemies here and get a Super Breath I extension. When you leave, there will be NPC's who will be thanking you for saving them - and their first - from the Dragons Gang. Well, that explains all the kung fu fighters we've been facing recently! Another one will tell you that they are going to set fire to One Lexcorp Plaza in Lafayette. 

Fly to Senneville and refill on Super Flight back at the Metropolis Bank, then fly to Lafayette. When you land, fight the enemies that surround you, refill on health if you need to by going back and forth between this screen and the one to the east by fighting enemies as Clark Kent, then turn back into Superman with the phone booth and enter the building to the west, which is One Lexcorp Plaza. Go inside and equip Super Breath I to take out all the fireball enemies and get a Super Spin extension, then leave to talk to the NPC's. They will thank you before telling you that the Dragons Gang is about to rob Metropolis Bank, where we've just been. That explains the "Help" alert in the upper-right corner of the screen.

Head back to Metropolis Bank. Thankfully, you'll know where the bank will be on the map thanks to the "Help" alert. Go inside the bank and fight the gangsters. One will ask if you like Chinese noodles, while another tells you not to look for the Dragons, because it is useless. You'll also get an X-Ray Vision extension.

When you leave the bank, there will be no more enemies inside or outside of the bank briefly. The guy near the door will tell you to take the criminals you just fought to the Metro Police Station. If you go in and out of the bank, however, enemies will pop up in this area again. This is where you ended up when you took the subway to Teaboro, so take the subway that took you to Teaboro earlier and enter the nearby building, which is the police station. You'll also have a picture of a guy with a hat and sunglasses next to the subway pass in the upper-left corner, which lets you know that you have suspects in custody. 

When you enter the Metro Police Station, the criminals will be taken out of your inventory. Talk to the people there, and you'll be thanked for bringing the Dragons Gang to justice. From here, you'll need to head to Senneville and the stock market.

PrinceWatercress plays Superman (NES) - Part 2 of 8

We could get back to advancing the plot...or we could get more power-ups. Let's get more power-ups!

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From here, you'll need to head to Mountain Records in Andersonville, and to do that, you'll need to head left from Glernmorgan Square until you get there.

The guys with the green jumpsuits have daggers, and unlike the gangsters who shoot at you, they can only hit you from close range. The best way to take on enemies in this game is to let them come to you, then start punching when they get close.

There will be guys with red hair and blue outfits (they even share Superman's color palette!) ready to fight you at Mountain Records. If you take them all down, you'll get a Super Breath I extension. The main difference between Super Breath I and II is the type of enemies that each one works on, and that will be explained soon enough.

The next stop is the dead end near Sunneville, and you'll need to head all the way to the left from here. At the dead end, a gangster will rush at you very quickly, and you'll need to punch him. When you do, he will say that he will never snatch anything again, then you'll get a Super Flight extension.

Sometimes power-ups can appear randomly when you walk past certain parts of an area, and those power-ups could effectively help you out.

Ladders in the ground lead down to the sewer, but there's no need to go there until later.

At the dead end, I jump into the water to continue and end up back at the Daily Planet. From here, I head to Metropolis Park, but I don't take care of what I need to take care of there yet. Instead, I go further east past the park until I reach the Apollo Theater, which is spelled "Appollo Theater" here. Equip Super Breath II and use it to freeze the fast-moving zombies when you go inside, as Super Breath I will not work on them. Beating the enemies here will give you a Super Spin upgrade. From here, go down a floor and take out the blue zombies to get a Heat Vision upgrade. Take on the red zombies on the next floor down to get another Super Flight extension.

From here, if you go back up, you'll fight off members of the Dragon Gang instead of Zombies.

If you see blocks in the ground that look slight different from the rest of the road and have blue pixels, you can use Super Spin on them to use them as a shortcut to the sewers. Again, we have no reason to head to the sewers yet.

From the nearby phone booth, I can fly to the dot where "CBD" is. Use Super Flight and press A to move the white triangle to "CBD," then press Start to fly there. From here, head all the way to the left until you reach the Mercantile building. Go inside, hold Up and press B to go up to the rooftop with Super Flight, then equip Super Breath II and take out the zombie. There is no power-up extension here, sadly.

From here, I die and continue back at the Daily Planet. 

PrinceWatercress plays Superman (NES) - Part 1 of 8

I did a set of notes on this some time ago in order to figure out how to get started. Now that I've played through the game and gotten even more things figured out, I think it's time that I played through the game myself.

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If you don't do anything at the game's title screen, you'll get the Statue of Liberty telling Superman that Metropolis will become the base for the evil General Zod before telling him that he is the reporter Clark Kent and that he will fight for truth and justice. 

Level One

When you start the game, you'll be at the Daily Planet as Clark Kent. You'll have gauges for your super power (health) and item power (abilities) at the top, with the X-Ray vision being usable at the start of the game. Pressing Start lets you select your power. You can jump really high with Up, and you can also punch and talk to people with A. Punching while in mid-air can help you keep your jump low when you face enemies and jump over their projectiles.

The bald guy to the right is the copy chief, and he tells you to go out and get some news as there is a deadline. To the right of him is Lois Lane, who well tell you that strange things are happening in Metro Park and that you can access the map with the Select button to see where it is. The shield icon indicates where you are. You can only use the map while outside; you cannot use it inside of a building or a sewer. Orange dots are landmarks, while black dots are regular locations.

The guy to the left is Jimmy Olsen, who just takes a picture of you.

Head all the way to the left and go through the door with Down on the D-Pad, then head right and press Down in front of the phone to enter it and become Superman. As Superman, you can move faster and you can also use your superpowers.

By beating up enemies, you can get blue crystals that restore your health. There are also red and green ones, but those decrease your health and should not be picked up. If your health gets too low, you'll change back to Clark Kent. You'll have to refill your health with blue crystals to become Superman again...so watch out for those bullets!

You'll need to beat up enemies to get power-ups. The Roman numerals I and II are Super Breath I and Super Breath II, respectively, and the first one lets you extinguish fires while the second one lets you freeze enemies solid. By picking these symbols up, you can refill the energy gauges for these powers. The eye icon is the X-Ray Vision, which allows you to see ghosts. The Up Arrow icon is Super Flight, which allows you to fly and acts as the fast travel of the game. The Down Arrow icon is Super Spin, which lets you drill into the ground in specific areas. Finally, the V icon is the heat vision, which lets you shoot heat lasers out of your eyes to do damage, especially to bosses. You can refill some of these powers by fighting enemies as Superman in public, but if you want to refill Super Flight, you'll need to fight enemies in buildings.

Pressing Start will allow to switch abilities with the D-Pad. It should be mentioned that you have an attack power and defense power rating on the left side of the screen, as well as Super Hearing, which is a passive ability and is always on. The attack and defense ratings will go up as you progress through the game.

Pressing Select brings up the map, and the flashing diamond indicates your current location. Any yellow dots near where you are indicate where you can use your Super Flight to teleport to, assuming you have the energy to do so, and you can move the white triangle under them to switch where you can go to with the A Button.

You won't be able to enter the subway with Down unless you have a pass.

By going up to signs near doors and pressing A, you can see what that location is.

At the Government Tower, which is just to the right of the Daily Planet and the nearby phone booth and subway, stand near the left side of the doorway, equip Super Flight, then hold Up and press B. This will let you fly to the top of the building. Fight off all of the enemies here, and you'll be told that their boss is at Apollo Theater in Metropolis Park, which is where you need to go next. You'll also get an extension for Super Breath II, which allows you to use it more. To get back to the streets, just leap off the side of the building.

Believe it or not, you're also supposed to go into the building and fight the enemies there for another Super Breath II extension. When you get the extension, the last enemy that you beat will tell Zaora that they failed her. (More on that later.) Because I didn't find this out, I miss out on this one, and I'm unable to get it later in the game as it's only available in the game's first level.

From here, head to the right until you see a building with the word "Help" coming out of the doorway. This is Jewels by Alexander. Go inside with Down and fight the enemies here to get another Super Breath II extension. With the enemies gone, NPC's will line the area, thanking you.

The vertical lines with the small horizontal lines in them are the subway paths. You can use the subway paths in these locations, but you need the Subway Pass first, and you won't get that for a little while.

From here, I don't know how to refill Super Flight manually, so I decide to do it the other way, which is losing all of my health and getting teleported back to the Daily Planet when you continue as well as using a password that I get from the Daily Planet when I head back over there. If you talk to your boss at the Daily Planet when you return there, you'll get a password. You'll also get something that sounds like gospel music playing in the background. As it turns out, the song in question is a Christian hymn called "Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus."

From the Daily Planet, I fly to Mt. Royal. To do that, I equip Super Flight, use the ability, press A until I have the white triangle under Mt. Royal, then press Start. From there, I head to the right to Nordham University and use the X-Ray Vision to see the ghosts in the area. The ghosts will try to leap over us, but I can stay on the ground and hit them as soon as they get back on the ground. By beating up all the ghosts here, I can get an extension for the Heat Vision. You don't need to defeat these ghosts for a while, but you'll need to eventually, and I'll mention when.

From here, head to the left until you reach Glernmorgan Square. Go inside and use your X-Ray Vision to see the cat ghosts, and punch them in the face while avoiding their fireballs, which they shoot straight forwards. Beat them all to get a Super Spin extension.