The game is for 2 players (or 1 vs the computer) and pits Superman against the character Darkseid. The object of the game is to save citizens of Metropolis (playing as Superman) or lure them to your underground lair (playing as Darkseid).

The game area is split into six sectors, 3 in the streets of Metropolis and 3 underground. Frantic citizens are running around the city and can be directed by deflectors (which can be set in certain directions) or by using super powers (Superman can pick up and carry citizens, Darkseid can teleport them). The players cannot leave a sector until they collect a diamond (or a number of diamonds depending on the difficulty setting). They then get to choose which sector to move to. In between each sector is a 'combat zone' mini-game These come in a variety of styles. If the player who chose to leave the sector wins, the game moves on to the chosen sector. If they lose, play returns to the previous sector. In the sectors, the players can fire beams of set lengths (Superman uses heat vision, Darkseid fires an omega ray). If they hit, the enemy loses energy and also drops any diamonds collected. These beams are also directed by the deflectors.

The game ends when there are no more citizens running around or one of the players' energy bars is fully drained. The winner is the player who has saved (or lured) the most citizens at this point.

Superman: The Game is a 1985 game designed by Fernando Herrera and first published in the US by First Star Software for the Commodore 64. The title was ported to a number of other home computers in Europe.