Forget all the Mortal Kombat games post MKII. Seriously, you’re wasting your time. It doesn’t matter how much Midway and series creator, Ed Boon (that “Toastie” guy), attempted to flesh out their world, the original 2D face-off arcade classics, Mortal Kombat and Mortal Kombat II, are the series’ highlights.
It’s with great pride then I tell you the latest MK entrant goes right back to its roots, and then some. All the classic characters are back, and while it is a 3D game, it fundamentally plays and feels 2D, which in the case of Mortal Kombat, isn’t a bad thing at all. Oh, and there’s some Bat-guy in there as well.
Tekken, Virtua Fighter and Soul Calibur were all great games when they first arrived, but nothing electrified the fighting game genre like the war between Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter II. Like the playground (and street) arguments of Sega vs Nintendo, SFII vs MK had friends divided, schools divided and arcades divided. Knowing how to perform the secret moves for both games immediately made you a God when playing either; your massive crowd would look on in awe wondering if you were still on your original $1. But it was the gut-spewing, spine-ripping, shoulder-popping, wondrously decapitating Mortal Kombat that grabbed me most.
Don’t get me wrong, I loved Street Fighter, but because of its graphic nature, Mortal Kombat just seemed like the bad-boy of the two, the anti-hero if you will and it was through its blood-drenched ways it became the mainstay series it is today.
Yet despite this, Street Fighter was always more popular, and that series seemed to pull away even more with the advent (and introduction of) Marvel vs Capcom (a spin-off that has essentially become a genre unto itself). Having Hulk, Spider-Man and Wolverine in the same game as Ken, Ryu and Guile was just too cool to overlook, and all of a sudden the bad-boy of the group just seemed old and boring.
However, like some blood-curdling phoenix from its own ashes, Mortal Kombat has risen again, and this time they have their own friends along for the ride.
This year seems to be DC’s year: Dark Knight killed it at the Box Office, The Watchmen will arrive very shortly to the silver screen, DC Universe Online is digging its heels into the MMO market and now they’ve equally teamed up with the Mortal Kombat crew. Will this guarantee success for the title? Possibly. But the consensus so far seems to be one of confusion – after all, how can you have Superman in a beat-‘em-up? He’s strong enough to kill everyone right?
It’s the same argument that has seen one too many people question Darth Vadar and Yoda’s presence in the latest Soul Calibur, but the answer for both is the same - it’s a fighting game. Lighten up.
That said, don’t expect characters to simply be pounding on each other. Each DC hero and Mortal Kombatant will bring special skills, moves and abilities to the fray, and the few rounds I took the game with revealed a system that appears to be pretty well-balanced overall.
As mentioned in my intro, while fully 3D, the overall fight structure is much closer to the classic 2D games. This works pretty well as there are two new additions: one being a close-up boxing style form of fighting (aptly named Klose Kombat) where you can lean in or out (to attack or avoid) and block or punch. Being the person who combos it correctly will obviously garner you more hit points on your opponent and subsequently drain their life bar that little bit more. The other is expanded fighting beyond the immediate environment but with a twist called Free-fall Kombat. Now you can rush an enemy through a wall, which will then send you and said foe hurtling. While falling though, you’ll still be able to attack, and getting the upper hand here helps all the more as the person who builds their “super bar” first will end the sequence with a character-specific power move. It’s exciting, interactive and dynamic, and it works really well.
For you crazy people who need a plot for this type of game, you’ll be happy to hear comic book writers, Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray, have been brought on board to craft a palatable plot that works. For the rest of us who don’t care and just want our favourites pummeling each other, the list of known characters thus far is (From DC): Batman, Superman, Wonderwoman, Catwoman, The Flash, The Joker, Green Lantern and Shazam. (From Mortal Kombat): Kitana, Liu Kang, Sub-Zero, Scorpion, Jax, Shang Tsung and Sonya Blade. There are more to be revealed, and it’s a safe bet there’ll also be hidden, unlockable characters unrevealed until the game is released, but this list – as it stands – should suffice.
So it all sounds pretty good then, right? Well, I did leave the bad news till last, and unfortunately it pretty much negates my gushing over the series in the first place. For the sake of including the Warner Bros. owned DC license, there’ll be no gore in the final version. This means no gory fatalities, no ripping off of people’s heads and so, for all intents and purposes, it all might as well end up being finishes like Babalities and Friendship.
It’s true working with DC will propel the series further into the mainstream, and it’s not the first time Mortal Kombat has taken a blow for the worst (does the name Paul Anderson ring a bell anyone?), but with such a solid fighting mechanic back in place and less of a focus on bullshit mini-games and side-quests, it felt like MK had finally come home. You can definitely beat the pants off your opponent with their faces bruising and costumes becoming torn and tattered, but it feels like posturing to me.
Mortal Kombat is about gore! – it’s the bloodless MKII on SNES argument all over again. 
Still despite that, I can honestly say the game really surprised me. It was fun to play, easy to pick up and immediately felt familiar. And can anyone really complain when you can face Batman off against Sub-Zero? I didn’t think so. For more related media, check out our AusGamers Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe game page.
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