Mortal Kombat: Armageddon

Mortal Kombat: Armageddon
Developer(s)	Midway
Publisher(s)	Midway
Series	Mortal Kombat
Platform(s)	PS2, Xbox, Wii
Release	October 11, 2006 (PS2) October 17, 2006 (Xbox) May 16, 2007 (Wii) October 27, 2006 (PS2) June 8, 2007 (Wii)
Genre(s)	Fighting
Mode(s)	1-8 players. Online play

Mortal Kombat: Armageddon is the latest title in the Mortal Kombat fighting game series. The PlayStation 2 version was released in stores on October 11, 2006 while the Xbox version was released on the 16th, with a Wii version confirmed to be released on May 16, 2007 in North America. There are no plans to release an Xbox version in PAL territories. It was thought to be the final Mortal Kombat in the series, but Ed Boon announced an unnamed Mortal Kombat sequel. This game is the last Mortal Kombat for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox, and the first on the Wii.

Storyline

Throughout the Mortal Kombat universe, the warriors were growing too strong and numerous for the realms to handle. The warriors' powers threaten to utterly destroy the fabric of the MK universe. These warriors clashed in a single battle royale that would threaten to rip apart reality and bring about the apocalypse. Without warning, a pyramid rises from the ground, and the tip bursts into flames, attracting the warriors' curiosity to see what it was. The kombatants fought one another to get to the top, while Blaze revealed himself to them. The firespawn was created by the Elder Gods to destroy as many fighters as possible in order to save the realms from Armageddon. This would be the warriors' last battle, their last chance to prove that they are worthy of surviving, while many others will perish. This will be the final battle for Mortal Kombat, the battle that will determine the fate of the realms...

Character roster and information

The PlayStation 2 and Xbox versions of Armageddon contain 62 fighters (other than those that can be created by the player in Kreate a Fighter mode and Wii exclusive Khameleon), the most of any Mortal Kombat game to date:

File:Mkacs.jpg

A pre-release version of the Armageddon character select screen; Raiden's and Kitana's portraits were later changed for the game and Taven and Daegon traded places

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The Wii Character Select Menu; the four locked portraits belong to Taven, Daegon, Meat and Blaze. Khameleon replaces the red Kreate A Fighter cursor.

File:Updated Roster Render Armageddon.jpg

A render of the Armageddon character roster (Khameleon, Taven and Daegon are not included)

Ashrah Baraka Blaze Bo' Rai Cho Chameleon Cyrax Daegon Dairou Darrius Drahmin Ermac Frost Fujin Goro Havik Hotaru

Hsu Hao Jade Jarek Jax Johnny Cage Kabal Kai Kano Kenshi Kintaro Kira Kitana Kobra Kung Lao Li Mei Liu Kang

Mavado Meat Mileena Mokap Moloch Motaro Nightwolf Nitara Noob Saibot Onaga Quan Chi Raiden Rain Reiko Reptile Sareena

Scorpion Sektor Shang Tsung Shao Kahn Sheeva Shinnok Shujinko Sindel Smoke Sonya Stryker Sub-Zero Tanya Taven Khameleon (Wii only)

Originally, Armageddon was billed as featuring every single fighter from the six main installments of the franchise thus far. Later, developers went on to add characters that were exclusive to the renditions of such titles (for example, Chameleon from Mortal Kombat Trilogy) to the final roster. Still, however, Armageddon does not include every single fighter that has appeared in the franchise. Some characters that have appeared in the adventure titles - Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero, Mortal Kombat: Special Forces, and Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks - are not in Armageddon. Also absent was Khameleon, a secret character who appeared in the Nintendo 64 version of Mortal Kombat Trilogy, however, due to fan complaints, it is confirmed that she will be a playable character in the Wii version of the game.

Only two characters, Daegon and Taven, are new to the series, while Sareena makes her debut on non-portable consoles. Another character, Meat, also makes his debut as a legitimate character (he previously appeared as a minor character in Mortal Kombat 4).

It should also be noted that not all the characters have alternate costumes. Some of the "boss" characters, such as Onaga, Moloch, and Blaze do not have alternate costumes, while some of the special characters, such as Chameleon, Meat, Mokap and Daegon, are limited to one costume as well. It is still uncertain whether these characters will get a second outfit in the Wii version, or if Khameleon will have a second outfit as well.

New features

Krypt

A returning element from the preceding titles, the Krypt appeared once again in Armageddon with a completely new look that's more like a catacomb than the traditional graveyard or tomb. This time around, all of the Koffins are clearly marked with what they contain, and are broken up into groups for Artwork, Gameplay, and Media, so the player knows precisely what they're going to unlock before they unlock it. Also unlike past Krypts, a player can unlock the items in Armageddon through different means, either by paying the requisite amount of koins like before, or by unlocking them via the game's Konquest mode. Gathering up all 60 Relics in Konquest mode will unlock nearly everything in the Krypt straight away, allowing the player to save their koins for unlocking items for the Kreate a Fighter mode (which also requires koins to unlock). One Koffin in the Krypt, a question mark box, allows codes to be inputted to unlock items at no cost.

The Krypt in Armageddon includes four unlockable characters, almost two dozen arenas, alternate costumes for most of the characters, blooper and concept videos, and more, though it is worthy of note that none of the items available in the Krypt this time around are "joke" items (such as Cooking with Scorpion in Deadly Alliance), and are all meant to be directly related or used in the game.

Konquest

The Konquest mode in Armageddon is a combination of the same mode seen in Deception with elements borrowed from the spin-off adventure title Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks. The storyline centers on Taven and Daegon, two brothers who were put in suspended animation because their mother known as Delia, (a sorceress) and their father, Argus, (the Edenian protector god) foresaw a cataclysmic event brought about by the Mortal Kombat fighters. Their awakening leads into the Konquest mode, which in turn leads into the game's standard play.

Taven is the main hero that the player controls in Konquest, whilst Daegon is the primary antagonist, plotting with villains such as Shinnok and The Red Dragon Clan to destroy his brother. Certain weapons are available at times in Konquest mode, which appear to handle very much like those found in Shaolin Monks. Collecting various artifacts, one for each Kombatant (except Taven and Chameleon), throughout this mode. Konquest unlocks characters and rewards in the rest of the game, while successfully completing the Konquest entirely will unlock Taven for arcade play.

Kreate a Fighter

A sample custom character from early screenshots

In addition to the choice of over sixty characters, Armageddon gives players the ability to design and use new fighters in the game.

From the number of options, there are potentially thousands of different combinations available. During production, the game offered at least fourteen different character classes, which include humans, Tarkatans, Mercenaries, Black Dragon Members, Ninjas, Retro Ninjas, Geisha Assassins, etc. However, after the game's release, only one preset was available to the two genders, Sorcerer to Male, and Tarkatan to Female. Although the clothing of each class is still available, it must be individually unlocked, and cannot be preset. (All these presets can indeed be unlocked by unlocking each piece of clothing that makes up that class. The preset will then appear under the preset menu.)

Players can give their character a unique fighting style, by changing their stance and assigning different attacks to the buttons on their controller. There is a range of swords and axes and special moves to choose from. Most moves and costume items need to be purchased with koins earned in the game's other modes, though some moves and items are available for free from the beginning.

The fighters can also be given their own storyline. If a player uses their creation to finish a single player game, they will see the ending that the player designed for them, although the ending will cut off after roughly twelve lines or if the last line consists of one word. They can also be used in multiplayer games and online, using the PlayStation 2's online capability or Xbox Live. The ending that the game shows is the same text that the player inputs as the fighters biography.

Kreate a Fatality

Also new to the series is the ability to create a Fatality. These custom fatalities are a constant series of commands that players input until the Fatality ends. This method of performing Fatalities replaces the character-specific Fatalities of previous Mortal Kombat games, where gamers would simply enter one input and view the Fatality cinematically. As the player adds each input, less time is allowed for further inputs and some moves cannot be repeated. There are ten levels that can be achieved with Kreate a Fatality (novice gamers average 4 or 5 inputs, achieving a "Bloody Fatality" or "Mortal Fatality", while an expert may reach 11 inputs and achieve an "Ultimate Fatality"). It should be noted that custom-created fighters lack the ability to transition the opponent into another position during these Fatalities.

Motor Kombat

File:Motor Kombat 1.JPG

Character select in "Motor Kombat"

Mortal Kombat: Armageddon's mini-game is named "Motor Kombat". True to the name, Ed Boon compares it to Mario Kart in the September 2006 issue of Official Xbox Magazine. Each of the characters has a customized go-kart, as well as their own special moves. The Motor Kombat characters keeps their cartoonish "super deformed" style that was introduced in Deception's "Puzzle Kombat" mode. It also includes style-based fatalities for characters, and deathtraps.

Motor Kombat features online play, as well as off-line support for up to four players (two players in PS2 version) with a split-screen display. In the game, players can knock their opponents into various deathtraps on the courses.

The character roster for Motor Kombat is Scorpion, Sub-Zero, Bo' Rai Cho, Jax, Baraka, Raiden, Kitana, Mileena, Cyrax, and Johnny Cage.

The 5 tracks available for Motor Kombat are Bo' Rai Cho's Brewery, Botan Jungle, Lin Kuei Raceway, Lost Pyramid and Outworld Refinery.

Other info

File:Motor Kombat 2.JPG

Raiden's special move in "Motor Kombat"

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A versus screen from Armageddon, featuring Kano vs. Sonya Blade

• The "Versus Screen" feature from previous titles in the Mortal Kombat series (MK through MKG) makes a fresh return in Armageddon with animated backgrounds.
• Each character possesses two fighting styles (instead of three), one hand to hand and one weapon. It has been said that some kombatants will focus more on weaponry styles, while some will focus more on hand to hand combat and others will mix and match weapons and martial styles. Some of the larger bosses, like Onaga, will only have one fighting style available (which does not show up) to them to reflect their massive size. [1] Other Characters forfeit their weapon style for a second unarmed style.
• Several classic fighting arenas such as "The Bell Tower", "Goro's Lair" and "The Subway" return in Armageddon in 3-D, with new arenas such as "Lumber Mill", "Meteor Storm" and "Outworld Spire" as well. There is a total of 34 fighting arenas in Armageddon [2].
• New special moves assigned to many characters in Armageddon, for example, Kitana now has a teleport move, Sonya has a new projectile move, Hsu Hao can use the laser turret on his chest and so on.
• Techniques such as Breakers and Parries can be done in the air.
• There are alternate ways to unlock all the features.
• There are 4 different limited editions featuring the following content:
  • A 60-minute bonus DVD with a History of Fatalities movie and new videos for more than 50 characters, an animation cell of the cover art autographed by creator Ed Boon and an arcade-perfect version of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. The limited editions are only available on the PS2.
  • These limited editions have different metallic covers exclusive to certain stores:
    • Wal-Mart: Kano/Sonya
    • best buy: Shao Kahn/Sindel
    • EB Games/GameStop: Johnny Cage/Goro
    • Game Crazy: Dragon Emblem
• The upcoming Wii version of Armageddon will have a new motion-based control system, along with playability on the Classic Controller and a GameCube controller. [3] It will also bring a new Endurance Mode, and Khameleon as a playable character; however, this version will not have online features.

Reception

So far the response has been mostly average to positive in the US with an average score of 76% at Game Rankings. [4]

• EGM - 5.67 out of 10
• IGN - 8.5/10
• GameSpot - 7.0/10
• Game Informer - 8.25/10
• GamePro - 4.5/5
• Gamestyle - 7/10
• Official Xbox Magazine - 9 out of 10
• Official PlayStation Magazine (US) - 3 out of 10
• X-Play - 2/5
• PSM - 8/10
• Official PlayStation Magazine (UK) - 7 out of 10

As the final-generation Mortal Kombat game, fan response to Armageddon has been extremely varied. Positive responses cited a complete character roster (athough initially without Khameleon, she will now appear in the Wii version), improved Konquest, and increased playability due to feedback from Deception. These features include the inclusion of aerial combat, the "wake-up" game, and the removal of many "free throws" (ie, a throw against which an opponent has no defense), a common irritation for many fans playing on-line.

Negative reactions from some fans related to the rather short length of the Konquest mode, the new but generic Fatality system that removes part of what made each character unique, the recycling of Deadly Alliance, Deception and Shaolin Monks character models, and what some view to be limited resources in the Kreate a Fighter mode.

The storyline of Armageddon has met with the most amount of criticism. Character endings have been ridiculed by many fans, claiming they do not follow the characters' established continuity, are generally nonsensical, and/or poorly written. Attention was also given to the absence of character biographies, as this is the first Mortal Kombat game to date that doesn't include any. It is unknown why Midway chose to eschew the bios this time around, especially as without them, many characters that appear in Armageddon do not have any explanation as to how or why they have returned (other than for the sake of simply including them in the roster). The "Premium Edition" of the game included brief character videos, but these usually rehashed what was already known of character storylines, and further details were left unclear.

The Krypt in Armageddon features an unused concept video for Ermac's bio, and rumors were circulating that bios were in fact made for the game, but were not included for creative reasons. However, fansite Mortal Kombat Online had confirmed with Midway that no such bios existed. Nearly a month later, in a chat event held by Mortal Kombat Online, Ed Boon said that bios would be made available on the Armageddon website. Kenshi's bio was the first to be released, on December 21 2006, and some other bios have been made available since then.[5]

Awards

• 2006 Spike TV Video Game Awards: Best Fighting Game.
• 2006 IGN Awards: Best PS2 Fighting Game.
• 2006 Official Xbox Magazine "Xbox Game of the Year"
• Gaming Target - 52 Games We'll Still Be Playing From 2006 selection

Trivia

• In Armageddon's intro movie, if you listen closely enough, you can hear an original robot voice sample from Mortal Kombat 3 after Sheeva throws Cyrax from the pyramid.

• In October 2006, the attorney Jack Thompson sent a letter to Midway Games, demanding they cease and desist selling Armageddon, claiming that the game was illegally profiting on his likeness, because gamers could use the Kreate a Fighter option to make a character who looked like him.[6]

• In a Konquest Mode promo movie, unlocked in the Krypt, it shows that Taven has the option of using bow and arrows in battle (also seen in concept art). Also, it depicts him using his Drakesword anytime during gameplay, and the sword is attached to his back. However, neither of these features appear in actual gameplay.

• An Xbox 360 version for the game was not slated, as the game was exclusively for the original Xbox. Along with its three predecessors; Deadly Alliance, Shaolin Monks, and Deception, Armageddon was not featured on the Xbox 360 backwards compatibility list, resulting in many criticisms from fans who had already purchased an Xbox 360. An online petition was organized on the internet, hosted by popular Mortal Kombat forums, and after many months, Midway and Microsoft agreed to add Deception and Armageddon to the list. However, the verdict for Deadly Alliance and Shaolin Monks is still awaited.

External links

• Official Mortal Kombat: Armageddon website
• Official Mortal Kombat: Armageddon website for the UK
• Mortal Kombat: Armageddon media and information archive at Total Mortal Kombat
• Midway's MK Armageddon Forum
• Midway's E3 page on MK Armageddon
• Mortal Kombat Armageddon Opening on IGN

Reviews

• Game Trailers video review