Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance Q&A

It's been common knowledge for quite a while that Midway has been working on a new Mortal Kombat game--one that will allegedly reinvent the aging series. While the company is still a bit cagey about specific details on the game, which is called Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance, we've managed to get them to talk a bit about some of its particulars. While we're waiting until we see the game in action before we get too excited, the prospect of a new, relevant Mortal Kombat game is an enticing one indeed.

GameSpot: Which of the previous Mortal Kombat games do you feel Deadly Alliance will most resemble?

Midway: Other than returning characters and fatalities, I don't think Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance is going to resemble any of the previous Mortal Kombat games. This game has a completely redesigned fighting engine and is a dramatic departure from previous Mortal Kombats.

GS: How does Deadly Alliance fit into the MK storyline?

M: It takes place after Mortal Kombat 4. Shang Tsung and Quan Chi have each acquired an enormous amount of power as individuals, and in order to ensure victory, they've decided to join forces to form this Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance.

GS: Will there be new fatalities?

M: Absolutely. We do not want to "revisit" old fatalities, even the ones that are people's favorites. Instead, each fatality will be brand-new.

GS: How many total characters will there be? Will there be any hidden characters?

M: We aren't disclosing the final count just yet. We can tell you that Scorpion, Subzero, Raiden, Jax, Sonya, Reptile, Shang Tsung, and Quan Chi will be returning, though. We'll have more announcements soon.

GS: How many polygons will each in-game character model be constructed of?

M: We are averaging somewhere between 7,000 and 10,000 polygons per character. Some characters have very elaborate clothes and need more polys to model.

GS: Will the game use a control scheme that's similar to the schemes in previous games in the series?

M: You still control your character with the directional pad (or analog stick) and attack with the normal buttons. But that's pretty much where the similarities with Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance and the previous Mortal Kombats end. The new fighting engine is geared much more toward 3D movement and 3D attacks and evasions.

GS: What sort of modes can we expect to be in the game?

M: Now that we are designing this game for the console systems, we are going to greatly expand on the single-player experience. You can expect a variety of modes, including some surprises and old favorites.

GS: Thanks for your time.