Superhero League of Hoboken

Last updated
Superhero League of Hoboken
Superhero League of Hoboken cover art.png
Floppy disk version box art
Developer(s) Legend Entertainment
Publisher(s) Legend Entertainment
Designer(s) Steve Meretzky
Platform(s) DOS
Release1994 [1]
Genre(s) Role-playing video game
Mode(s) Single player

Superhero League of Hoboken is an adventure and role-playing video game developed and published by Legend Entertainment. Designed by Steve Meretzky, the game combines the superhero, comedy and post-apocalypse genres. It was available on both floppy disk and CD-ROM. It uses 256 color 2D graphics. It was re-released in 2019 with support for Windows, macOS, and Linux. [2]

Contents

Setting

In the future, the world is ravaged by wars, nuclear disasters and pollution. Mutations become common, resulting to individuals and creatures with mutant superpowers who unite in crime and become supervillains. However other individuals decide to unite their powers for the common good and become superheroes.

The game is set in the post-apocalyptic New Jersey-New York-Pennsylvania Tri-state area, where the player controls a team of off-beat and often useless superheroes who battle a number of strange enemies, most notably the evil Dr. Entropy, a human jack-in-the-box with plans to bring chaos in the world.

The missions in the game were typically bizarre and often satirised present-day society.

Characters

Anytime the player can choose their team from a retinue of off-beat characters. The protagonist is the Crimson Tape, whose power is to make organizational charts. His companions are the Iron Tummy, who can eat any amount of spicy food without suffering intestinal distress, Treader Man who is a fantastic swimmer, the Tropical Oil Man, who defeats villains by giving them high cholesterol, the Oxide Man who can damage mechanical enemies such as robots etc.

Every character has three stats which help him in battle: Brawn stat determines weapon damage, Brains affects the effectiveness of super powers, and Toughness is the character's defense.

Each character can be taught or achieve secondary superpowers by drinking colored liquids bought or found anywhere in the game. Superpowers mostly are used in combat, although the superpowers of some characters are just a part of the plot (e.g. for solving certain puzzles).

Development

Due to designer Steve Meretzky's heavy freelance workload during development of Superhero League of Hoboken, he contracted a friend to help with the game's programming in the last months of 1993. [3]

Reception

According to game designer Meretzky, Superhero League of Hoboken sold only 20,000-25,000 copies, which he considered "pretty disappointing." [6]

Computer Gaming World 's August 1994 preview of the game stated that "Legend has gone beyond the boundaries of graphic adventures and interbred their traditional fare with elements of computer role-playing". [7] Two month later in the October issue, Scorpia wrote, "[Superhero League of Hoboken] is lightweight fare, and as such, may disappoint those looking for challenging puzzles. On the other hand, this zany melange makes up what is the first true comedy CRPG ever, and that alone is worth the price of admission." [8]

In the October 1994 edition of PC Gamer US (Issue 5) Trent Ward called the game "an exciting mix of adventure and role-playing, perfect for the gamer who's more concerned with game play than graphics." He stated that it "isn't a game that will change the face of entertainment for years to come, but in the end it really is pretty good fun." [5]

In the October 1994 edition of PC Gamer UK (Issue 11), James Leach summarized Superhero League of Hoboken as "good", but he believed that those who "don't like the surrealism ... will soon get bored." [4]

In the May 1995 edition of Dragon (Issue 217), Lester Smith admitted that "Some people may find a few aspects of the game tasteless." But he thought those elements were minor, and that the game "provides quite a bit of entertainment. Its unique characters, captivating missions, overarching story line, and engaging details of play result in a satisfying sense of role-playing." [9]

Awards

The game was nominated for Computer Gaming World's 1994 "Role-Playing Game of the Year" award. The editors remarked that Superhero League of Hoboken "broke most of the rules", and that its "goofy dialogue and storyline, and well-balanced gameplay, make for a wild ride through designer Steve Meretzky's left-of-center imagination." [10]

Related Research Articles

<i>GURPS Supers</i>

GURPS Supers is a superhero roleplaying game written by Loyd Blankenship and published by Steve Jackson Games. The first edition was published in 1989.

<i>Marvel Super Heroes</i> (role-playing game) Super hero role-playing game

Marvel Super Heroes (MSH) is a licensed role playing game set in the Marvel Universe, first published by TSR in 1984. The game lets players assume the roles of Marvel superheroes such as Spider-Man, Daredevil, Hulk, Captain America, the Fantastic Four, and the X-Men. The game was designed to be easily understood, and this approach proved popular. TSR published an expanded edition, Marvel Superheroes Advanced Game in 1986.

<i>Champions</i> (role-playing game) Tabletop superhero role-playing game

Champions is a role-playing game published by Hero Games designed to simulate a superhero comic book world. It was originally created by George MacDonald and Steve Peterson in collaboration with Rob Bell, Bruce Harlick and Ray Greer. The latest edition of the game uses the sixth edition of the Hero System, as revised by Steve Long, and was written by Aaron Allston. It was released in early 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Meretzky</span> American video game developer

Steven Eric Meretzky is an American video game developer. He is best known for creating Infocom games in the early 1980s, including collaborating with author Douglas Adams on the interactive fiction game of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, one of the first games to be certified "platinum" by the Software Publishers Association. Later, he created the Spellcasting trilogy, the flagship adventure series of Legend Entertainment. He has been involved in almost every aspect of game development, from design to production to quality assurance and box design.

<i>Return to Zork</i> 1993 video game

Return to Zork is a 1993 graphic adventure game in the Zork series. It was developed by Activision and was the final Zork game to be published under the Infocom label.

Legend Entertainment Company was an American developer and publisher of computer games, best known for creating adventure titles throughout the 1990s. The company was founded by Bob Bates and Mike Verdu, both veterans of the interactive fiction studio Infocom that shut down in 1989. Legend's first two games, Spellcasting 101: Sorcerers Get All the Girls and Timequest, had strong sales that sustained the company. Legend also profited from negotiating licenses to popular book series, allowing them to create notable game adaptations such as Companions of Xanth and Gateway. Legend also earned a reputation for comedic adventures, with numerous awards for Eric the Unready in 1993. As the technology of the game industry changed, Legend continued to expand its game engine to take advantage of higher graphical fidelity, mouse support, and the increased media storage of the compact disc.

<i>Warcraft Adventures: Lord of the Clans</i> Unreleased 90s adventure game

Warcraft Adventures: Lord of the Clans is a cancelled graphic adventure game developed by Blizzard Entertainment and Animation Magic from 1996 until 1998. Set in the Warcraft universe after the events of Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal, it followed the orc character Thrall in his quest to reunite his race, then living on reservations and in slavery following its defeat by the human Alliance. Assuming the role of Thrall, the player would have used a point-and-click interface to explore the world, solve puzzles and interact with characters from the wider Warcraft series.

<i>Dark Sun: Shattered Lands</i> 1993 video game

Dark Sun: Shattered Lands is a turn-based role-playing video game that takes place in the Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting of Dark Sun. It was developed and published by Strategic Simulations in 1993. It received positive reviews although released initially in an unfinished state. The game had a sequel, Dark Sun: Wake of the Ravager, in 1994. An online MMORPG taking place in the same setting, Dark Sun Online: Crimson Sands, was released in 1996 and hosted on the Total Entertainment Network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Bates</span> American computer game designer

Robert Bates is an American computer game designer. One of the early designers of interactive fiction games, he was co-founder of Challenge, Inc., which created games in the 1980s for the pioneering company Infocom. After Infocom's dissolution in 1989, Bates co-founded Legend Entertainment to continue publishing games in the Infocom tradition, but with added graphics. Notable games that he has designed, written, or produced include Unreal II (2003), Spider-Man 3 (2007), and Eric the Unready (1993), listed as Adventure Game of the Year by Computer Gaming World magazine and also included on the 1996 list of "150 best games of all time". In 1998 he wrote the award-winning game Quandaries for the U.S. Department of Justice. He has twice been the chairperson of the International Game Developers Association, which honored him with a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010. Bates has written extensively about game design and development in works such as the 2001 book Game Design: The Art and Business of Creating Games, which is commonly used as a game design textbook in college courses. From 2011–2014, Bates was Chief Creative Officer for External Studios at Zynga. He continues to work as an independent consultant with various publishers in the games industry.

<i>The Space Bar</i> 1998 video game

The Space Bar is a 1997 graphic adventure game developed by Boffo Games and published by Rocket Science Games and SegaSoft. A comic science fiction story, it follows detective Alias Node as he searches for a shapeshifting killer inside The Thirsty Tentacle, a fantastical bar on the planet Armpit VI. The player assumes the role of Alias and uses his Empathy Telepathy power to live out the memories of eight of the bar's patrons, including an immobile plant, an insect with compound eyes and a blind alien who navigates by sound. Gameplay is nonlinear and under a time limit: the player may solve puzzles and gather clues in any order, but must win before the killer escapes the bar.

<i>ShadowCaster</i> 1993 video game

ShadowCaster is a first-person role-playing video game developed by Raven Software. It was published in 1993 by Origin Systems after Electronic Arts acquired them. A CD-ROM version was released in 1994, featuring two additional levels with new monsters, and replacing text boxes with FMVs and spoken narration through CD-DA audio tracks.

<i>The Elder Scrolls: Arena</i> 1994 video game

The Elder Scrolls: Arena is an open-world action role-playing video game developed and published by Bethesda Softworks. The first game in the Elder Scrolls series, it was released for MS-DOS on March 25, 1994. The game follows the player trying to uncover a conspiracy against Emperor Uriel Septim VII.

<i>Hodj n Podj</i> 1995 video game

Hodj 'n' Podj is a 1995 computer board game and minigame compilation developed by Boffo Games and published by Media Vision and Virgin Interactive. It was designed by Steve Meretzky, previously known for adventure games such as The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Hodj 'n' Podj features 19 minigames based on peg solitaire, Pac-Man, Battleship and other games. These may be played separately or within an overarching fairy tale story, which follows the suitors Hodj and Podj in their attempts to rescue two princesses.

<i>Al-Qadim: The Genies Curse</i> 1994 video game

Al-Qadim: The Genie's Curse is an action role-playing game for the personal computer set in the Al-Qadim campaign setting of Advanced Dungeons and Dragons. The game was developed by Cyberlore Studios and published in 1994 by Strategic Simulations (SSI). The game combines role-playing game and adventure with a simplified interface; the player character is a young corsair trying to clear his family's name, rescue his betrothed and determine who has been freeing genies from their masters.

<i>Knights of Legend</i> 1989 video game

Knights of Legend, released by Origin Systems in 1989, is a fantasy role-playing video game.

<i>Anvil of Dawn</i> 1995 video game

Anvil of Dawn is a 1995 fantasy role-playing video game developed by DreamForge Intertainment and published by New World Computing. Anvil of Dawn was named the best role-playing game of 1995 by Computer Gaming World and Computer Game Review.

<i>Alien Logic: A Skyrealms of Jorune Adventure</i> 1994 video game

Alien Logic: A Skyrealms of Jorune Adventure is video game based on the Skyrealms of Jorune role-playing game. It was developed by Ceridus Software for MS-DOS and published by Strategic Simulations in 1994.

<i>Ravenloft: Stone Prophet</i> 1995 video game

Ravenloft: Stone Prophet is a fantasy role-playing video game developed by DreamForge Intertainment for MS-DOS and published by Strategic Simulations in 1995.

<i>Bad Medicine for Dr. Drugs</i> Role-playing game supplement

Bad Medicine for Dr. Drugs is an adventure published by Chaosium in 1984 for the superhero role-playing game Superworld, using the Basic Role-Playing rules system.

<i>Dark Champions: Heroes of Vengeance</i> 1993 role-playing game supplement

Dark Champions: Heroes of Vengeance is a supplement published by Hero Games/Iron Crown Enterprises in 1993 for the superhero role-playing game Champions

References

  1. ↑ "CES Report part 2". Computer Gaming World. September 1993. p. 18. Retrieved July 12, 2021.
  2. ↑ "Superhero League of Hoboken".
  3. ↑ Shif, Gil Alexander (November 23, 2000). "Steve Meretzky". Computer Games Magazine . Archived from the original on March 24, 2005.
  4. 1 2 Leach, James (October 1994). "Wacky". PC Gamer UK . No. 11. p. 79.
  5. 1 2 Ward, Trent (October 1994). "Superhero League of Hoboken". PC Gamer US (5): 62, 63.
  6. ↑ Rouse III, Richard (2005). Game Design: Theory & Practice Second Edition . Wordware Publishing. 192. ISBN   1-55622-912-7.
  7. ↑ Wilson, Johnny L. (August 1994). "The Toxic Humormonger". Computer Gaming World. pp. 46–48.
  8. ↑ Scorpia (October 1994). "Red Tape and Rubber Chickens". Computer Gaming World . No. 123. pp. 49, 50, 52.
  9. ↑ Smith, Lester (May 1995). "Roleplaying Reviews". Dragon (217). TSR, Inc.: 94–95.
  10. ↑ Staff (May 1995). "The Computer Gaming World 1995 Premier Awards". Computer Gaming World . No. 130. pp. 35, 36, 38, 40, 42, 44.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.