He is the ruler of the planet Apokolips who is obssessed with finding the Anti-Life Equation to use to rule the universe. This includes conquering his rival planet, New Genesis ruled by the High Father with Darkseid's own son, Orion leading the fight against his father. In addition to the considerable forces at his command, he is personally formidable himself with his main power called The Omega Effect which he fires from his eyes.
After the premature cancellation of the series, Darkseid has become a major DC Comics villain who is an enemy to the DC Universe superheroes.
He has appeared in the later versions of The Super Friends animated television series, perhaps to fulfill the producers' request for a villain similar to Star Wars' Darth Vader. In addition, he appears the current series of DC Comics animated adaptations produced by Warner Brothers Television.