By Tyler Davidson
By Tyler Davidson
For almost 15 years, the “Mortal Kombat” series has been at the forefront of the fighting genre. The ESRB rating system was created from the game’s host of gory “fatalities”.
Since then fans of “Mortal Kombat” have been treated to an entire series encompassing several realms and countless characters. The latest game “Mortal Kombat: Armageddon”, will showcase the last of the series to be ported to the Xbox and PlayStation 2 consoles.
Every fighter in “Mortal Kombat: Armageddon” universe has been growing more and more powerful. In fact, the powers of the fighters threaten to destroy the very fabric of the universe.
To combat this apocalyptic fate, the Elder Gods have created a fire spawn named Blaze and commanded him to sit atop a pyramid and destroy as many of the fighters as possible. This is where “Armageddon” comes in.
The graphics of the game are stunning. The detail of the fighters is astounding, the backgrounds and the arenas may even distract you from fighting. In addition, the game play is fast-paced and easy to pick up. The fighting styles have been made simpler.
For example, the fighting styles are one weapon and one hand based. Players will find it much less of a challenge to figure out the best strategy for their character.
“Armageddon” boasts the largest roster of any MK game to date, with a grand total of 62 playable fighters, ranging from legendary, like Scorpion and Liu Kang to the obscure like Meat, Mokap, and Rain.
If 62 characters is not enough to satiate you, “Armageddon” also sees the addition of the “Kreate-A-Fighter” mode, in which players can make their very own “Kombatant” and take them to fight Blaze.
This mode carries a vast array of possibilities with it, allowing players to add capes, horns among other things. Players can also write their characters biographies.
The story element however, is where “Armageddon” is lacking. While the back story is compelling and gives the game a cataclysmic atmosphere, individual stories have been sacrificed to allow for the sheer mass of the roster.
This game will mark the first time that character biographies will not be included, in the game or the instruction manual. This can be frustrating because characters that have been long thought dead are resurrected with absolutely no mention of how or why they have returned.
Also, after completing Kombat mode and defeating Blaze, all one gets for an ending is watching their character perform a demonstration of the character’s fighting style. This demonstration accompanied with a narrative lasts for about 30 seconds.
Long-time “Mortal Kombat” fans will also be disappointed to see that character specific fatalities have been done away with, in order to allow for the huge roster.
Instead the “Kreate-A-Fatality” system has been implemented in which players will input button commands to pull off a variety of different moves. These moves vary from tearing off a limb or ripping out an organ.
Skilled players may be able to pull off an “Extreme Fatality” which equates about nine or ten of these commands.
The “Konquest” mode returns and is much easier, if not a bit shorter than the game’s previous incarnations. It follows the story of two brothers, Taven and Daegon who were in suspended animation at the news of the oncoming apocalypse. Taven and Daegon have been awoken to defeat Blaze and determine the fate of the other fighters.
Small disappointments aside, “Mortal Kombat: Armageddon” is a visually and technically impressive game that will satisfy the fans of the series. Add hundreds of unlockables, a Mario-Kart style mini game “Motor Kombat” and online capability and you have a title that will hold over fans until the next installment.
