Have you ever dreamed of leading a team of superheroes as they fought evil, saved the day, and became generally revered by the public, showered with affection and praise? Then this is not the superhero league for you. The Superhero League of Hoboken is a rundown league of second-rate heroes, led by the mighty Crimson Tape, whose superpower happens to be the ability to make one mean organizational chart.

If you think that's ridiculous, then that's only the beginning. Superhero League of Hoboken is set in the rundown, flooded, and destroyed slums of the New York-New Jersey-Pennsylvania tri-state area. The game takes nothing seriously, and satirizes the entire superhero genre as it moves along. From missions involving a flock of rabid sheep terrorizing a village, to a dangerous supply of chili peppers about to be leaked into the water supply, these are the sorts of things you just don't see Batman bothering with.


Cholesterol, the silent killer.

Superhero League of Hoboken also manages to merge my two favorite genres into a single game. The RPG, and the point and click adventure game. After building a party, you take your group of superheroes out on missions assigned by the league's computer, the final gola being to stop your arch nemesis, Dr. Entropy, a human jack-in-the-box who plots world domination. Many times upon reaching your destination, the game will switch from the overhead traveling map, to the point and click interface that is so familiar to most adventure game players, complete with access to usable inventory and the powers of the superheroes in your group.


Mmm... plorpium....

Of course, it wouldn't be an RPG without combat, and while wandering on the map, your intrepid band of heroes will undoubtedly come across foes. When fighting, you are able to make attacks with either melee or ranged weaponry, cower in place (basically defend), or use powers. The enemies in the game are all animated, and fit the humorous tone, so it's always fun to see what you'll run into next.


JT in his younger years?

The script is very well written, and the game was designed by Steve Meretzky, a former employee of Infocom who collaborated with Douglas Adams on the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy game, and who was also the lead designer behind Leather Goddesses of Phobos. Superhero League of Hoboken was released in 1994 by Legend Entertainment, and like most older games, probably runs better under DOSBox.

I'd recommend the game to fans of RPGs and adventure games alike. As with most that I spotlight around here, the game is freely available at various Abandonware sites, and should be no problem to set up. So get moving young heroes, the Superhero League of Hoboken awaits!