Hands On Preview
Adding up all the fighters that span the Mortal Kombat history comes to more
than 60. That’s how many fighters are available in MK Armageddon. Of course
they are not all available when you first start the game. Similar to
Deception and Deadly Alliance, the game is loaded with options and modes.
You are encouraged to spend time in the game to unlock all the characters
and other bonus items.
The play modes include your traditional Kombat, the improved Konquest mode,
both the chess and puzzle modes from previous games, and the flexible
character creation mode. Not all the modes were available on the demo, but
the heart of the game has always been Kombat.
A number of things have been changed or improved in this version of MK.
Unlike the previous 2 versions, you now only have 2 fighting styles. One is
more hand-to-hand, and the other is weapons based. The environments are
interactive and allow you to knock opponents into pits of lava, down or up
levels, and into other areas of the stage.
Classic fighting games of the past have always included plenty of jumping
and projectiles. The move to 3D and newer fighters have reduced these 2
elements, and focused mostly on hand-to-hand combat. This version of Mortal
Kombat includes plenty of projectiles, and a very good reason to jump in the
air. That is because they have added air combos to the game. You can knock
your enemy into the air, and jump up after them to juggle them for a larger
combo.
The series is known for it’s fatalities, and this version ups the ante by
allowing you to create your own fatalities. Basically, at the end of the
match, you are able to “finish him” by stringing together a handful of
different beatings. For example, in one fatality you can knock your opponent
silly with a couple nice uppercuts, rip their arm off, punch into their
chest ripping their heart out, finishing with a simple deadly stare in their
shocked face. The variations make fatalities important again, because you
can mix it up.
I was told that they are focusing on making this game very balanced. The
previous 2 games are good games. This game should offer more than enough
variety to keep fighting fans busy in the MK universe.
