Mortal Kombat: Armageddon

"If you're looking for a fighter to just pick up and play with your friends, it's a fine addition to your library."

Guest's Score:

7.0

Mortal Kombat is arguably the most famous franchise in the fighting genre. With such a past, there is some automatic hype that Midway's latest instalment, Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, has to overcome. Their efforts have created a game that feels a little too familiar, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing.

One of the big draws of Armageddon is that you can play as any character from a Mortal Kombat game, whether or not they were playable before, as well as two new characters. In total, there are 62 characters to play, each with their own strengths and weaknesses to make them feel different.

The problem with this many characters, however, is that the developers had to make sacrifices in order to jam them all into the game, and the biggest sacrifice was the graphics. While not bad, they look too similar to previous games in the series like Deception. And it doesn't end there. About a quarter of the arenas are straight from Deception and Deadly Alliance. Furthermore, any character that appeared in Deadly Alliance or Deception has their model and animations reused. Scorpion, for example, looks, stands, and attacks the same way he did in Deception. Armageddon even reuses many animations among the characters. After losing a round, over half of the characters stand up the same way, and everyone stands up the same way if they end the round on their stomach.

The main draw of each character is their special attacks and Fatalities. Fortunately, the characters' special attacks remain true to their past, however there are some repetitive ones amongst the fighters in a line-up this large, considering that a handful of fighters are clones of others. This isn't that noticeable, as it's hidden by the different combinations needed to use them, or different animations.

These special attacks, plus Fatalities, would give each character their individuality. However, some individuality is lost with the introduction of a Create-a-Fatality system. When you win a fight, instead of pulling off a complicated button combo, you pull off easier combos, each time doing a small animation, such as ripping off a limb, or snapping a neck. Each character uses the same animation and the same button combinations, which is the opposite effect of older Fatalities. I think it could have worked had it been introduced in the first or second game in the series, but not the seventh.

The Konquest mode also gets a makeover. In previous games, it was a large quest that set up the game's story, but all you did was collect "koins," chests of unlockables, and fight the other characters. In Armageddon, it's a smaller quest, but modelled as a beat-'em-up similar to MK: Shaolin Monks. Traversing the land forces you to fight ninjas and demons, and at certain points you switch into Arcade mode to fight the game's characters. Along the paths are chests, musical notes, koins, and relics of the characters. Most items are visible, but some are hidden unless you're close to them, which could encourage multiple play-throughs. The relics are used to unlock hidden characters and arenas, and if you find them all, you will unlock everything in the Krypt, a collection of unlockables. While short, it is a lot of fun running around beating enemies up and collecting stuff.

The biggest addition is the Create-a-Fighter mode. It is fairly simple to use, and allows you to create the fighter you've always wanted. You can choose the character's clothes, facial features, hairstyle, moves, and special abilities. Also, you can name your fighting stances and input the ending shown when you finish the Arcade mode. While virtually all of the special abilities and stances are taken from characters, and only two characters per save are allowed at a time, it is very solid for a first attempt.

The one thing that hasn't changed much is the gameplay: one-on-one, fight to the death. One new addition is air combat, which I found difficult to utilise. Deathtraps make a return, sporting some nice animations while retaining their cartoon-like Fatalities. There are also some remodelled arenas, like the Subway level from MK3, with trains running over fighters knocked onto the tracks.

Mini-games have also been staples of Mortal Kombats, and Armageddon continues this with Motor Kombat. Think Mario Kart with deathtraps and you've got a pretty good idea of how it works. You race around the track and pick up koins and the game's two icons: a green lightning bolt, which gives you a short speed burst, and a yellow star, which gives you one shot of your special ability. Each of the ten characters gets a different special ability to help them gain an advantage over other racers. It's a lot of fun at first, though with only 10 racers and five tracks it could get pretty repetitive over time for some gamers.

Armageddon allows online play, with the option to fight or race against other people. When you select a player online, it shows their win/loss record, and whether that player is racing, fighting, or waiting to be challenged. While fighting is limited to one-on-one, Motor Kombat allows up to four players simultaneously. While Motor Kombat seemed to be lag-free, fighting appeared to have a half-second delay. It was noticeable at times, but it didn't disrupt my experience.

Fans of the series might be interested in the premium edition, complete with Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, a bonus DVD with character profiles and commentary from the creators, and a history of Fatalities. It also comes in a metal case complete with unique cover art, though I don't think the additions add up to an extra $10.

If you are into fighting games because of strategy, you will be disappointed. Armageddon is a fast-paced fighter that tries to let any player picking up the controller win. Also, owners of MK: Deception may feel a sense of d�ja v�, as the game feels the same. However, if you're looking for a fighter to just pick up and play with your friends, it's a fine addition to your library.

-Chris Brill is a student enrolled in the Video Game Design & Development program at the International Academy of Design & Technology.

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Bottom Line

Guest's Score:

7.0