Holy golden statuses, Batman, it's Superman! There's not a slight stench of kryptonite in the air here. Everything has gone smooth sailing for Electronic Arts. They have just announced that Superman Returns has now reached gold status and will be shipping to retailers on time. The game will be available on November 20 in PS2, Xbox 360, Xbox, NDS, and GBA.

Some of you folks must be wondering now about what happened to the PSP version. Well, quite honestly, we still do not know. The version for the Sony handheld is still stamped with an unsettling "TBA" release date, and there wasn't any mention of it in the gold status announcement. Was it delayed? Or worse... has it been cancelled? EA seems to have experienced a bit of kryptonite along the way after all.

Well if there's one thing we know about Superman (and if the title is any indication), it's that he will return with a renewed purpose to save Metropolis. And on that note, we'd like to end this article with a quote from Jor-El in the movie:

You will travel far, my little Kal-El, but we will never leave you - even in the face of our deaths. You will make my strength your own. You will see my life through your eyes, as your life will be seen through mine. The son becomes the father. And the father, the son.

Superman Returns will hit the shelves on November 20. Okay, we know fans of the game can't wait to master Superman's powers, slice through the free-roaming atmosphere, and earn the unlockables. We can't speed up the release date for you, but here's a little something from EA: brand new screens that you can feast on. Only catch is, you gotta find which ones belong to the DS platform, or which images match the Xbox and the PSP systems. They're all in a hodgepodge here.

Superman Returns features lots of new stuff, apart from the 80 sq. miles of free-roaming environment. Thing we like best is probably the fact that Superman is indestructible, but he can't abuse this power, since Metropolis will spawn casualties and destruction. We also heard reports that say EA won't pitch in Superman's "x-ray vision" in the game. Too bad, eh?

More screenshots at the full article!

Pre-Order: [Superman Returns]

Superman was further immortalized as a superhero after Electronic Arts announced that a videogame based from this year's box office hit film Superman Returns. The game is already being developed by EA Tiburon for Xbox 360, PSP and Nintendo DS. Featuring a virtual Metropolis, this single player game allows its players to have a first-hand experience of Superman's kyptonian abilities. Players must need to master these superhuman skills in order to combat an array of enemies like Metallo, Mongul and Bizarro, and save the lives of Metropolis' citizens.

Players are free to roam the 80 square miles expanse of Metropolis, with over 10,000 buildings. Having a large area for gameplay, players won't run out of missions to accomplish as changes in the city also affect Superman's progress in the game. The game is slated to be released November 20 this year so while waiting, check out these cool artworks for Superman Returns:

  
 

Electronic Arts has officially announced the release date for their upcoming cross-format title for portable, next-generation and current-generation consoles, Superman Returns: The Videogame. The game will span across the PSP, DS, Xbox 360, PS2 and original Xbox leaving you spoilt for choice as to which console to buy it for. The game features a Hollywood-style storyline from Warner Bros entertainment which won't disappoint, coupled with a free roaming 80 square miles Metropolis for you to fly around and complete your superhero missions on.

The 80-square mile city isn't small in height either as it stretches from the street right up into the clouds allowing you to make the most out of your flying ability. The game features some 'revolutionary' new flight mechanics that has been aimed towards giving the player full command of all possible aerial maneuvers in an almost acrobatic fashion. As Superman, the player must protect Metropolis from the most well-known villains in the 60 years of young DC Comics universe and conquer more than 100 missions.

The question is: Will it fly or flop? We'll see when this game is released and when we have more details on the features for the different console versions of the game. If you're really eager to get behind the scenes of this game, check out our Superman Returns: The Videogame E3 preview.

Getting a boost from the success of the "Superman Returns" movie, The Superman Returns: The Videogame is set to soar to retail shops this fall. David Craddock of comics2film.com had a chat with Executive Producer Chris Gray, hoping to change the way gamers view superhero movie-based games. Let's face it, these breed of games don't do too well on the charts for the simple reason that they fail to duplicate all the good things from the movies they are based on.

What will perhaps set the game apart from others movie-based games is that the storyline will not be limited to that of the movie. It'll be joined by characters and storylines from the Superman of yesteryears. Expect 50% movie and 50% original elements. It sure is an interesting fusion, but how'd the development team incorporate 60 years of Superman with the new movie's plot?  That's where the villains come into the picture. They bridge the gap between the the movie and the history of Superman.

With virtual Metropolis spanning 80 sq. miles, it's where all the action is. Objectives come randomly in the game. So if there's some strange events brewing, you can fly down to investigate. The team has recently squeezed in playable Bizarro levels, so you know that means - you can wreak havoc in the city.

As Superman, you'd have access to several "powers" including heat vision, Freeze Breath, Super Breath, Super Strength, etc. You can also unlock brawling combos as you gain experience.

When asked how will Superman Returns prove game critics wrong on their notion that movie games don't quite live up to the hype, Gray said, "From day one we knew we needed to make more than a movie game, and that helps tremendously. Superman’s history is so rich with moments, why wouldn’t we want to include them in the game? The additional content allows us to deliver an action-packed experience that never lets up. For example, the movie only shows you a taste of Metropolis, whereas, we allow you to get completely immersed within and interact with it."

Superman Returns: The Videogame will ship later in 2006 for PS2, Xbox, GameCube, Xbox 360, Nintendo DS, PSP, and PC.

It wasn't till the second day of E3 that I managed to carve out some time to explore EA's jam packed booth. I have to confess my eyes glazed over while I was walking around, there simply wasn't anything I was interested in seeing... except Superman Returns (huge, huge, HUGE Superman fan I am). I watched the trailer on display and lamented the fact that it wasn't playable on the show floor, I'd had reservations about all the screens I'd seen so far and really wanted my fears to be proven unfounded. I turn around to leave the booth and what do I see in front of me? Ol' Big Blue himself is what.

Find out what I thought after the jump!