Are the next generation of EarthRealm kombatants worth a look? Find out in the MK X review!
Mortal Kombat fans of the world rejoice! The next installment of the iconic fighting game is here. Newcomers to the series as well as mainstays will be pleased with what’s in store! The game tells the tale of the next generation of Mortal Kombat kombatant(Why shouldn’t a game that plays on the next gen systems show the next gen of MK fighter?). I promise that will be the only “next gen” joke so with that out of the way, let’s get right into it.
Regulars of the fighting genre know that there usually is a tutorial mode that allows the player to get accustomed with the controls and attack patterns/schemes. MK X makes you play the tutorial mode before the story mode is even available to play. Another thing the game makes you do is pick a Faction. Factions are basically teams that you become a part of and your points go to the global total. Best score wins at the end of a certain time frame and rewards can range from Faction specific skins or attacks.
The Faction Wars add to the gameplay in the regard that you always have a reason to play. If it isn’t for you, you can play for the Faction and get points for the cause! The faction wars are global so everyone is a part of it. You can change what Faction you belong to so you can try your hand at different groups and try to help each one win the Faction war!
Another real-time feature are the different modes of play. What I mean is there is different modes of the game that change in real time, such as the Towers, Online play, as well as the Faction Wars. Different towers have different rules and different fighters to fight. The towers are constantly updated so you’ll probably never play the same looking tower twice. The online features were done very well with the lagging being nonexistent. The Faction Wars portion was having trouble but as the game is on the market longer, I don’t expect that to persist.
Mortal Kombat X allows the player more customization options than in the past. There are different variations of fighters to pick from as well as different fighting styles as well. My favorite, Kung Lao’s, different fighting techniques and variations feel like they have been a part of him from the start of the franchise. You get that feeling with all of the characters and their different variations.
Practice makes perfect and some of the characters will need just that. You might get accustomed to one variation of fighter and then have to learn how to fight with a different variation of that same character. You learn the fighting styles of most of the fighters in story mode, where character variations play a key factor( that was the best way of saying it without giving away anything).
The fighting is straight forward and like most Mortal Kombat games, it’s easy to pick up and play right away but tough as hell to master. If you’re interested in playing online, I suggest you practice and get really good first because most of the people online are high-level and are pretty damn good!
There are different types of attacks as well such as environmental interaction as well as X-ray attacks. Unlike in previous Mortal Kombat games, you have to be near the object in the environment that you can interact with and press the corresponding button that goes with it. That could make your fighter grab a tree branch and swing it or pick up a rock and throw it.
X-ray attacks on the other hand, really show off what the graphics of the game can do. As stated in the tutorial, the X-ray attacks are the strongest attacks in Mortal Kombat X. These attacks do a large amount of damage at one time but be warned, if you miss the opponent, your attack gage goes back to empty and you’ll have to fill it again! You might not be able to recover from a missed X-ray attack so pick your moments carefully.
The Krypt returns but this time around, you walk around to the various tombstones and purchase them as you go. There is a krypt-time clock that appears on the screen and different chests appear at different “times” so you’ll have to look around for a while to get your hands on all of the unlockable goodies. However, you’re not the only one in the kyrpt as there are various animals that attack you like spiders and wolves. You can get more koins if you successfully attack them.
However if you don’t feel like wondering around the krypt for hours on-end, for twenty bucks, you can purchase everything the krypt has to offer from the PlayStation Store. Having to walk around and locate everything on your own eliminates the repetitive factor but I also understand why someone would want to get everything in one shot. There’s nothing better than finally unlocking something that you spent hours looking for!
The Story mode introduces the players to the next generation of Mortal Kombat fighters, the group that will be tasked with saving EarthRealm. Story mode plays out like a Mortal Kombat history book, being able to see events of the past and get a feel for why certain characters turned out the way they did. The next generations of Mortal Kombat kombatants continue bloodlines of classic fighters. See the trials and tribulations of Cassie Cage (Jonny Cage/Sonya Blade) Jaqui Briggs (Jax) Takeda Takahashi (Kenshi/Scorpion protégé) and Kung Jin. (Kung Lao/Liu Kang)
The story mode plays like a reflexes test. What I mean by that is in each chapter there are cut scenes and during these cut scenes you have the chance to press certain buttons relating to the action going on in the scene. If you press the right button will affect the action as well as if you push the wrong button. The attacks in the krypt play the same way as the reflexes test of the story mode does. There are fights in each chapter as well but the amount of fighting depends on the chapter.
To conclude, Mortal Kombat X is a fine addition to the Mortal Kombat franchise. The story mode tells the tale of the next generation of Mortal Kombat fighters and how they interact with the classic generation. The game has a few modes that keep it from feeling stale and within these modes; there is always something to play for. It’s these reasons that I’m giving Mortal Kombat X for the PlayStation 4 an 8.5/10.
Give me Kung Lao or give me death! That might be too harsh, how about give me Kung Lao or give me mild paper cuts!
Score: 8.5 / 10
