What the New Kombat Brings to the Mortal Kombat Brand

The Mortal Kombat brand is a video game genre that is very familiar to anybody who has played video games since the early '90s. Their first games had memorable characters, revolutionary fighting techniques, and awesome fatalities that really brought the regular fighting game into a new era. Recently Midway has released a new spin on their genre titled "Mortal Kombat VS DC Universe". I took a visit over to my local Movie Gallery store and picked up a copy for the Playstation 3 to see if all the hype in the advertisements was true.

First Impressions

The first thing to understand about my gaming setup is what I am using to play the game. I have a 40 Gigabyte Playstation 3 Console that is connected to a 22" HD Monitor. I have these connected with an HDMI cable that can support a full resolution of 1080i, and I am using a generic Computer Associates 3 piece speaker system.

This game title is released for PS3 on Blu-Ray HD DVD disc. As an avid gamer I would hope that this bad boy was ready for 1080i or at least close. However, as with most PS3 games, this title only supports 720p at the most. What this means is that the image is slightly scaled down for my monitor and the monitor has to adjust its resolution to compensate. The end result for me, as a graphic lover, is an image that is nice to the eye but not as good as it could be. This is a decision that was enforced by Midway as they had to make this game work for multiple platforms. When this happens you usually end up with a generic version of the game that is "ported", or transferred, from console to console.

What Stood Out

Even despite this graphical flaw, I found that the opening menus for the game were quite impressive. Most games give you a static image that doesnt really do anything while you set your options and usually ends up being visually boring. In this game you actually get to watch a small fight between Scorpion and Batman while you adjust the controls and other settings to what you desire. I felt it was a nice break from the traditional standard and really helps the game to stand out.

The game features a few different playing modes in the single player option. The most familiar option is Arcade Mode, where you pick your character from the roster and compete in a traditional Mortal Kombat event. This mode is almost exactly what I was used to finding in the other Mortal Kombat games, with the exception of the character line up.

The other single player option is story mode. This option to me is where the game really had an opportunity to come to life. When you start the option you get to choose if you want to represent Mortal Kombat or the DC Universe. Upon choosing a side you get to view comprehensive in game videos that explain the struggle between Kombat and DC and how it all fits together. Without spoiling the game for those who haven't played it yet, I can say that this mode was pretty impressive.

I felt that the story itself was pretty well rounded and made a good attempt at tying all the characters together to form a nicely woven story. The only part of the experience that bothered me was the pixelated graphics in some spots. This was a direct result of the resolution that the game was operating at, and not really something that is fixable without reworking the whole title. As you progress though the story mode you will be given an option to play as almost every character on your side of the roster, minus one or two, and there doesn't seem to be an option to "unlock" any of the bosses. For me this was a bit of a bummer, as most of the Mortal Kombat games of the past had secret characters that you could get as you went though the game. This added a nice replay value to their other titles and really made you want to achieve something.

Overall Gameplay & New Features

A new feature to this title is some enhancements to the fighting scenes. Other than the traditional moves that I have come to expect from Mortal Kombat, this game has added some new features to really help the fight stray away from being stale. As you move around in your environment you can throw your opponent or otherwise kick or punch them into objects and watch them be destroyed. When you reach the edge of an environment you also get the bonus opportunity to knock them off a cliff and inflict falling damage. During this falling montage you can punch and kick with a chance to perform a nice finisher, but be warned your opponent can counter or reverse the beatdown.

Another great feature of the fight scene is the ability to engage in a close-up grapple with your opponent. This allows you to lay some major punches and kicks that really inflict some crucial damage, as well as, bruise up your opponents face and body. I noticed overall that the game designers paid attention to detail on the results of the damage you inflict and have allowed for your character to get torn outfits and bloody faces as the fight progresses.

Closing Remarks

Overall I feel this game is a nice addition to the Mortal Kombat series, and does well to incorporate the DC Universe. In general however, I don't really see what the DC Universe has to do with Mortal Kombat other than giving the game makers a reason to release another title to drive profits. The game as a whole however has a small amount of replay value, and probably won't be on my shelf past the rental due date. For me 5 days of fighting is more than enough to experience all that this game has to offer. If you haven't seen the game yet then I encourage you to at least rent it and see what you think for yourself, but in my opinion I wouldn't shell out the 50 or 60 dollars it takes to own a copy.