Difficulty:

Just Right

Time Spent:

10 to 20 Hours

The Bottom Line:

"Best in series"

As a long time fan of the MK series since MK2 (MK1 was released when I was about 4 so it was a bit before my time), Mortal Kombat 2011 (MK from here on in) brings to life everything that the series should have been like from the beginning had technology allowed. It doesn't have quite so many characters as Trilogy, for example, but all the main contenders are there. Excluding DLC (which I don't but for any console game generally since once the console becomes obsolete and online support vanishes the DLC inevitably becomes unavailable leaving you missing the extra bits) you have around 18 characters to play with, including a couple of unlockable extra characters. Some fans will be disappointed that the boss characters (Goro, Shao Kahn etc) are not playable this time around, but I can live with that since I have always considered it a dick move to use them in multiplayer anyway. The characters are well balanced and no one feels like they have an unfair advantage.

There is, as always, room for cheap tactics with some characters due to the game including unblockable attacks for some characters which can be spammed, but there is always an alternative way to defend against them with a bit of practice so the game never becomes greatly unfair. There is actually a great deal of fun to be had in mastering different characters alongside learning how to defend against them. There is no universal tactic and so you will have to adapt your strategy based on what character you are playing vs your opponent. This adds another level of depth and excitement which keeps you on your toes.

As for the single player story mode, the story is a little convoluted with some fights occuring for pretty inexplicable reasons:

Johhny Cage: Hey, Jax, Sonya is pretty hot eh!?

Jax: You better quit it!

Johnny Cage: Just sayin'...

Jax: I CHALLENGE YOU TO MORTAL KOMBAT!!! *fighting ensues*

To paraphrase a situation during mid game which had me scratching my head, especially since these two are on the same side!

Situations like this aside, the story is solid if not a little silly at points and is true to the campy MK mythos, it doesn't take itself too seriously and doesn't brood too much.

The story mode is also structured differently difficulty wise to the arcade ladder mode which is a welcome change from some past entries. When playing story mode on any given difficulty, the game will kick your ass to kingdom come at times, especially when it throws you into 2 vs 1 battles (which can be a little frustrating at times and sometimes feel unbalanced), but it also thankfully plays fair. If the game detects you are struggling it will incrementally ease up on the difficulty to give you more of a chance at winning. After 3 or so losses, the game will play at roughly exactly your level, after 10 or so the game will pretty much let you win. Conversely, if the game feels you are willing a little too easily, it will increase the difficulty and attempt to put you back in your place. This means that hard spots never get frustrating while still keeping the challenge consistent. This also gives weaker players the chance to experience the story through to the end. The only slight problem is resetting the game seems to reset the game's track on your skill level and so the game will always be hardest when you have just started it up.

The arcade ladder mode, however, is classic MK rules. The difficulty won't shift regardless of how often you lose. You can, as in other MK games, select a difficulty level for the ladder mode, but this choice is static so be prepared to follow through on your claimed skill level. This setup works because the ladder mode therefore affords you a constant challenge that will give you the opportunity to better your skill level without mollycoddling you if you are losing.

This setup means the game provides for all skill levels, which is a huge improvement over past games (such as the DS port of MK3 which was insanely difficult even on easy) while still remaining challenging.

As far as gameplay improvements go, we are (thankfully) back to a 2D setup. The characters and arenas are all 3D but the fighters only move along a flat horizontal and vertical plane. The 3D arenas of past MK games were a nice experiment, but time has shown that the old ways, in this respect, are still the best. Sticking to a 2D setup removes a lot of the frustration of throwing an attack only for it to miss inexplicably since you aren't on the exact horizontal plane you needed to be.

Also new to the series is the awesome "X-ray" attack system. In addition to your health bar, you also have a bar which raises when certain things happen (you throw a special move or your opponent blocks an attack etc). When the bar reaches 1/3 full, you can unleash an "enhanced" special move at the expense of the points you have accumulated along this bar. When you reach 2/3, you are able to perform a reversal on an enemy combo provided you press the command at the right time, which can be tricky. When the bar is full, you can, with the push of the two trigger buttons, attempt your character's x-ray attack. These are devastating special moves which halt gameplay and play out as a cutscene where we see in full lovely, gory detail, the bones and organs inside of your opponent being pounded, shattered and crushed in slow motion. They are deliciously satisfying and can change the balance of the fight if used correctly. Thankfull (for your opponent) the success of the attack depends on the player initiating it to land a smaller lead in attack which can be blocked. Whether the attack lands or not, the bar for the attack resets and you have to start over. This prevents the x-ray attacks from being over used and adds another level of strategy as you decide whether to spend your points on more frequent slightly enhanced attacks, or go for gold and save up for the x-ray attack.

Of course, fatalities make a return, along with unlockable babalities and animalities for each character. All the returning characters can also unlock their "classic" fatalities for use, which are their fatalities from whichever game they first appeared in. This makes for 3 fatalities, a babality, and an animality for each character, which provides plenty of (ultra-violent) variety. Environmental fatalities (pits etc) are also back and bloodier than ever. As far as I have experienced, brutalities and friendship finishers have been removed from the game, but they were (in my opinion anyway) superfluous to begin with.

Overall, if you like your beat em ups of the gore drenched, satisfying, challenging, over the top variety and packed with content to explore, MK is for you, so get out there and buy it... And love it.

9/10