Game review: Mortal Kombat

It's been almost 20 years since Mortal Kombat first appeared, and took the world by storm. Tabloids erupted, stuffed public figures painted a bullseye on it and took pot shots at it, geeks rejoiced. Two bloody awful films were spawned, and one web series which is, surprisingly, good (check it out on http://www.youtube.com/show/mortalkombatlegacy ). More sequels and spin-offs than you can shake a stick at, some good, some dire. Yet, for a game that always refused to take itself seriously (at least, as seriously as the likes of Street Fighter 2 [all 3532 versions of it]), MK did quite well for itself. It became synonymous with fun and/or gore, was ported in most every format imaginable (from the lowly Gameboy to the PC and everything in between). Some of its catch phrases have made it into pop culture reference status, some even into every day life. Just try saying "Finish him!" or "Fatality" to a gamer and you'll know what I mean. And, disappointing sequels aside (*cough* deception *cough*), disappointing spinoffs aside (*cough* mythologies *cough*) and crossovers (*cough* dc universe *cough*), it never really lost any fans throughout the years. Not even at its most awkward, the transition to 3D in Mortal Kombat 4.

I'm assuming you know what MK is, after all, it's the one game everyone knows, even the ones who haven't played it. On the off-chance you don't, it's a fighting game. Good? Up to speed? Then let's break it down.


I never really considered the story/lore bit to be paramount, yet, still, after so many games, some sort of story was there. Convoluted, complicated, retconed, but there nonetheless. So it's good that in terms of story, the new game (symbolically rebooted as, simply, Mortal Kombat, henceforth referred to as MK9), takes a cue from its last collaborator, DC comics. Much like DC retcons and straightens out parallel universes, characters and events in every Crisis event, so does MK9 simplify and straightens out the story so far: Shao Kahn has won, in a titanic battle that's decimated almost all fighters. Outworld, Earthrealm and NetherRealm fighters' bodies litter the battlefield aplenty. Only one remains: Raiden, the thunder god, Earthrealm's protector, hat-wearer extraordinaire, seconded in that respect only by Kung Lao. But, surprise surprise, it doesn't look good for him. Shao Kahn is giving Raiden the beating of his life, his victory moments away. The Elder Gods absent, and the Big Bad just toying with the thunder god at this point.

 Oh, how do these villains/bosses/etc just love the sound of their voice...

So, Raiden has this great idea: How great would it be if I knew then what I know now? And, just like that, uses his amulet to send visions of the future to his past self, hoping to alter it. There's one major flaw in his plan: it's bollocks. The cryptic clue "He must win" nudges Raiden into making all the wrong choices, botching up many characters' lives, and leads to the deaths of quite a few characters. Almost every character in MK ever appears in this game, but not quite as many survive it. Needless to say, history finds a way, and some of the things we wouldn't have any other way do eventually happen: the original Sub Zero does die, Cyrax and Sektor do go metal, Jax does eventually get his staple high-tech arms, just not the way they originally did. The story, told in cutscenes between fights, is surprisingly involving, considering it's just a retcon, and well worth playing. But, it's in no way where you'll be spending most of your time.



Fighting another human being is where the game's at, and it's always been about that, first and foremost. Far from the original 7 characters of the first game, this one has a whopping 27 (28, if you count the PS3-only bonus Kratos from the God of War games). Still less than, say, Mortal Kombat Trilogy (the definitive MK so far, in this author's humble opinion), but more than a bang for your buck. 

From left to right, top to bottom:


Scorpion, Liu Kang, Kung Lao, Sub-Zero
Sindel, Ermac, Reptile, Kitana
Johnny Cage, Jade, Mileena, Nightwolf
Cyrax, Noob Saibot, Smoke, Sektor
Sonya, Jax, Kano, Stryker
Shang Tsung, Baraka, Kabal, Raiden
Cyber Sub-Zero (don't ask), Sheeva, Quan Chi and Kratos (PS3 version only).






Thankfully, imba characters such as Shao Kahn, Goro, Motaro and Kintaro are not playable, but do feature as NPCs (the abomination that is Motaro reduced to a mere cutscene or two in Story Mode). The characters, unfortunately, pretty much handle all the same way: some kicks may have more range, and some punches may pack more of a...well...punch, but that's it. Thankfully the special moves, the x-ray moves (executed when your combo meter fills up) which slow the world down and show an animation unique to each character punching the crap out of their opponent (assuming they connect) and the ultra-violent fatalitiy finishing moves, do succeed in bringing some flavour into the ring.


The game is far from flawed, of course. If it wasn't flawed, it wouldn't be Mortal Kombat. Some fighters are ridiculously overpowered, balance is a non-issue and you can't help feeling the AI cheats very, very often. But, that only counts so far as you play versus the AI: against a human opponent, quick reflexes, better grasp/knowledge of the game and a knack for memorizing combos still rule the game, making playing against a player who's invested more time than you a daunting task. With its variations of ladder, 2vs2, handicaps, customizations in the game rules, Tag etc, it is a fun way to spend an evening, though. 


Fun will also be had in the Challenge Tower, a series of very specific fights/events that will, in fact, teach you how to be a better player as well. They will hone your reflexes, your timing, they will challenge you in specific areas (such as not blocking), and they will make you a better fighter in the end. But, when you're done with them, that's it.


When the story mode and the challenges are out of the picture, very few things remain. The "Nekropolis", where you'll view characters, bios, concept art etc, and the "Krypt", where you'll spend your "Koins" (if it's one thing I hate, is MK's persistence of spelling words beggining with a C with the letter K instead) to unlock extra fatalities, alternate costumes and ("yay", he said unenthusiastically) concept art. 


Still, organizing fights with your friends or playing over Xbox live or PSN is still a good way to spend an evening, and this game will remain close to your console till the next best thing comes along. 

Namely, Soul Calibur 5. 

Hur hur.