Mortal Kombat: Armageddon Q&A
We caught up with Ed Boon to find out how Midway's classic fighter is shaping up for the Wii.
Midway's Mortal Kombat franchise has been a fighting staple for well over a decade now, and in that time its winning formula has been experimented with a number of times--with varying degrees of success. The series' Wii debut will be an updated version of Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, which was released for the PlayStation 2 and the Xbox last year. We recently spoke with executive producer Ed Boon about his plans for the upcoming Wii game, which include a gesture-system control scheme and an all-new gameplay mode.
GameSpot: How long has the game been in development?
Ed Boon: We have been developing the Wii version of MK: Armageddon since we finished the PS2 and Xbox versions.
GS: Why did you decide to bring MK: Armageddon to the Wii, as opposed to creating an original installment of the series?
EB: MK: Armageddon is such a hit with the fans, and what better game to bring to a new console than a game with every character from the history of MK in it? Any "new game" would have fewer characters; we wanted to bring them all to the Wii to bring as much kontent as possible to the Wii.
GS: Was taking an existing game and tailoring it to the Wii a challenge?
EB: Certainly any new console brings challenges to development, and the Wii brings its own additional challenges because of its innovative controllers. The controllers have been the biggest challenge, and as such, have been the focus of most of our design time. We wanted the controls for the Wii to feel different and exciting. Right now it feels great--we're really excited to get it into people's hands and see what they think.
GS: Did any of the user feedback on the released versions of Armageddon affect development of the Wii game?
EB: Yes; MK fans will notice some additional features and tweaks to the kombat. For example, we have implemented and are tuning some new kombat centered around the "laying down" actions in the game. We listen closely to feedback on the game and like to make things better where we can.
GS: Were you able to upgrade the visuals on the Wii over the current-gen versions of the game?
EB: The Wii has some things that it naturally does better than other consoles, just like others have things they naturally do better. However, in general your average player will not see a big difference in the graphical look of the game.
GS: How did you approach control in the game? Did you feel like you had to use the Wii Remote and motion sensing? How did you implement it?
EB: Using the Wii-mote for MK: Armageddon was a must for us. We felt there would be no point in doing this game for the Wii if we did not support the Wii-mote for all modes and features. We didn't want to just support it, though--we wanted to utilize it and customize the gameplay experience. When you play it, you will notice that every single super move in the game is controlled by a Wii gesture system; also, the fatality systems will use the gesture system. For example, to do a move like throw Scorpion's spear, you will swing the Wii-mote away from your enemy and then bring it back toward your enemy, as if you are throwing the spear yourself toward the enemy, in an "away-toward" motion. It makes all of the moves feel more visceral, and it feels like you are more directly doing the action over just button presses. We want the controls of MK: Armageddon to be the biggest feature of this game on top of all of the content it already has.
GS: Did you implement alternative control methods to make sure longtime MK vets weren't alienated?
EB: Yes! To make sure we stayed true to our fans and people who like the other controllers, we are also supporting the Wii's Classic Controller as well as the GameCube controller for use in MK: Armageddon for the Wii. You could be playing Mortal Kombat with one person using a Wii-mote and Nunchuk, one person with just the Wii-mote, one person on the GameCube controller, and one person on a Classic Controller. We wanted the player to have as many options as possible.
GS: How much Wii-exclusive original content is in the game?
EB: There are two main things that we are bringing to the Wii exclusively over the PS2 and Xbox versions. As we've talked about, we have focused a lot on the controls and how we'll use those in the game as creatively as possible.
Additionally, we have implemented a new mode called "Endurance mode" for the Wii. We wanted to enhance the single-player experience on the Wii. In this mode you will fight a series of opponents one round at a time, without getting any additional health after each enemy. How many can you beat? Can you beat all 20 in Endurance mode?
GS: Is there any online functionality in the game?
EB: No. The online components of the Wii were not ready for us when we would have needed them in the development cycle.
GS: Are you or were you tempted to include Mii support?
EB: It is an interesting feature, but not something that really fits into Mortal Kombat.
GS: Was there anything about the hardware or remote that surprised you?
EB: Other than the controls, not really. The Wii is focused on a new and innovative way of playing games and a different kind of gaming experience. The hardware is about what you'd expect from Nintendo under the hood.
GS: What are your overall impressions of the hardware?
EB: From a gamer's standpoint, many of the guys on the MK team are big fans of the Wii. I already have a lot of Wii games at home.
From a developer's standpoint, doing a game for the Wii is very similar to doing games for the GameCube, with the addition of the Wii's controllers. It will be interesting to see how developers approach the Wii going forward, considering how different it is than other next-gen consoles.
GS: Thanks for your time.
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