He came from the doomed planet Krypton with powers and abilities far 
beyond those of mortal men.  "Faster than a speeding bullet, more 
powerful than a locomotive, able to leap tall buildings at a single 
bound...Look!  It's a bird!  It's a plane!  It's Superman!"
     The most diabolical of all of Superman's arch rivals is the evil 
Darkseid, whose hatred for the Man of Steel has brought them into battle 
on numerous occasions.  Despite the efforts of all his foes to date, 
Superman has emerged triumphant, free to fight the never-ending battle 
for "Truth, Justice and the American Way."
     In First Star Software's SUPERMAN, the fate of metropolis is up to 
you.

DARKSEID:
     Darkseid's overwhelming ambition is to discover the Anti-Life 
Formula.  The person who knows the formula can command all living beings 
with merely a word, and be, in effect, the only independent will in the 
universe.  Everyone else would be like a robot, totally subservient to 
him.  Darkseid knows that the Anti-Life Formula is contained in the 
minds of certain unknown people on Earth, who don't even realize they 
have it.  His goal is to discover their identities, wrest the secret 
from them, and insure his dominance throughout the universe.
     Darkseid has built underground lairs for his minions beneath 
Earth's cities to trigger worldwide disasters.  In this atmosphere of 
chaos and terror, his mind-scanning machines will more easily detect the 
few who possess the Anti-Life Formula.
     Darkseid's principal power is his mastery of the Omega Effect.  He 
uses the omega beams generated from his eyes for many malevolent 
purposes.  They can be powerful force bolts.  He can use the beams to 
transport a person or object to any point in time or space.

ABOUT THE GAME:
     In SUPERMAN, First Star Software's first game in its Super Powers 
collection, players can assume the identity of Superman or Darkseid.  
Competing either against the computer or another player, Superman tries 
to rescue as many of Metropolis' inhabitants as he can before they are 
captured by Darkseid.
     These two arch rivals battle in space, in the city's streets and in 
Darkseid's subterranean lairs as they compete to rescue/capture the 
citizens of Metropolis while weakening their opponent.  Darkseid employs 
his dreaded Omega Beam to both weaken Superman and catch and teleport 
humans to his underground prison.
     Superman calls upon his heat-vision to zap Darkseid while utilizing 
his powers of flight, super-breath, and strength.  In the game, 
Metropolis itself has been divided into six sections, three at street 
level and three below ground.  When traveling from one section to 
another, players experience many different transitions called combat 
zones to advance to the next section of the city.
     When Superman and Darkseid confront each other, the player with the 
most strength can push the other.  If the players are facing in the same 
direction, then either can pass the other.  Remember that you can use 
the same deflectors to bounce beams at your opponent and direct at the 
movement of the people of Metropolis.

COMBAT ZONES:
     In traveling from any part of Metropolis to another, a combat zone 
is automatically activated as soon as either player exits a Metropolis 
screen.  Important: A player must qualify to exit a screen by collecting 
as many Dimensionizers as the selected level of play, he may exit a 
screen.  These appear randomly in the streets and caves.  Superman and 
Darkseid each collect them by using the same technique as they do when 
picking up or  teleporting people.  Once collected, Dimensionizers are 
lost each time that player is hit by his opponents beam.  Upon entering 
a combat zone, both players unused dimensionzer are forfeited.
     In combat zones, Superman and Darkseid are pitted in battle.  These 
"games within the game" must be won by the player who first entered the 
combat zone for the players to advance to the next Metropolis screen.  
Should that player lose, both players will be returned to the original 
game screen.  Watch the red (Superman) and blue (Darkseid) status bars.  
They show who won.  The winner of the contest in combat zones is the 
first to appear in the adjacent Metropolis screen.

METROPOLIS SCREENS:
     Here, Superman and Darkseid battle against each other while trying 
to rescue or capture the people of Metropolis.  In all of these screens 
the people walk in the direction dictated by the angle of the moveable 
deflectors.
     Screens 1,2,3 are the streets of Metropolis.  In screen 1, all the 
way to the left, there are two archways.  People who walk through these 
arches are rescued from Darkseid and Supermans score will be credited.
     Screens 4,5,6 depict the underground caves and tunnels beneath 
Metropolis.  In screen 6, in the bottom right corner is the entrance to 
Darkseid's prison.  Once a citizen enters, he is captured by Darkseid, 
whose score will increase accordingly.

ABOUT THE BEAMS:
     Both Supermans heat vision and Darkseids Omega Beam come from their 
eyes so the beams only shoot in the direction they are facing.  In 
metropolis, the beams are activated by pressing the joystick trigger.  
The beams will bounce off the deflectors and follow the open paths.  
When the trigger is pressed again, will determine the beams length.  The 
longer you wait before pressing the trigger for the second time, the 
longer the beam will grow.  The longer a beam is when it hits the 
opponent, the more damage it will cause.  As a beam travels, its tail 
will eventually catch up to its tip.
     Beams in the combat zones work differently.  Their lengths are pre-
determined.  In some cases, a beam must reach its target before another 
can be fired.
     Supermans heat vision beam will not hurt humans, but it will weaken 
Darkseid.  When either player is hit with a beam, they are weakened.  
Not only is their energy level lowered, they are temporarily stunned.


PICKING UP OR TELEPORTING CITIZENS:
     Darkseid can use his omega beam to both weaken Superman and 
teleport humans.  To teleport double click (press the joystice trigger 
twice very quickly) after starting an ordinary omega beam.  If Darkseid 
chooses to teleport people by double clicking, then that beam will frist 
travel away from Darkseid and then, once making contact with a citizen, 
it will carry that person back to where Darkseid was at the moment he 
double clicked.
     Darkseid should wait for the beam to make contact with a citizen or 
Dimensionizer before moving again, otherwise the beam will not teleport.
     Superman does not have teleporting powers, but he can fly using the 
joystick.  Superman can be directed through the streets anywhere within 
a given game screen.  By placing Superman on top of a human and double 
clicking, Superman will lift that person.  Next, fly Superman and his 
passenger anywhere in that game screen.  At the desired location, double 
click again to release the person.  If Superman is hit with a blast from 
Darkseid's omega ray while he is carrying someone, that person will be 
dropped.  Superman cannot carry any people with him into a combat zone.

DEFLECTORS:
     At metropolis' street level screens, deflectors appear at the 
street intersections.  The angle of the deflectors will affect the 
direction of Supermans heat vision.  Darkseid's omega beam, and the 
paths of the inhabitants.  In the underground screens, the "V" shaped 
deflectors, as with all deflectors, are changed by either Superman or 
Darkseid.  To do this, Players must first touch the deflector with 
either Superman or Darkseid.  Then, each double clicking will rotate the 
deflector one position.  Keep double clicking until the desired angle 
has been attained.  When touching a deflector, double clicking will not 
permit Superman to pick up people or Darkseid to teleport them.  Only 
the deflectors will rotate.
     If a person walks out of a Metropolis screen he will be found at 
the corresponding entrance for the adjacent game screen as soon as 
Superman and Darkseid advance to that section of the city.

COMBAT SCREEN:
     Darkseid drops bombs from his destroyer attempting to demolish the 
city's buildings, forcing the inhabitants underground.  Pulling down on 
the joystick will drop the bombs, pressing the trigger will send them 
trailing behind.  If 8 boms reach the city, Darkseid will win.  Superman 
flying below the destroyer must try to punch and explode bombs in space.  
Press the trigger to punch.  If Superman successfully punches 8 bombs, 
he wins the transition.

COMBAT SCREEN:
     As Superman flies down a tunnel to the caves below, Darkseid 
launches deadly Kryptonite boulders up toward him from the bottom.  
Superman can dodge them or blast them to smithereens with his heat 
vision.  With precision timing, Superman can also attempt to direct his 
heat vision past Darkseid's protective sliding panels to destroy the 
Kryptonite launcher.  The first player to score 8 hits wins the 
transition.

Due to memory limitation, the Atari version of Superman does not have 
combat zones A,C, and D.

These are 3 very cool looking screens!  but nothing we can do about it.  
If you exit out of some of the screens and into where one of these 
(combat screens a,c,d) combats is supposed to take place, you will have 
to start the game over again. fun.  Also the higher the level you choose 
the more dimensionizers and people you are required to pick up.  Enjoy!