Mortal Kombat: Deception enters retail arena

Xboxes and PlayStation 2s--prepare to be pummeled. Today, Midway Games shipped Mortal Kombat: Deception for the two consoles, meaning Scorpion will be skewering gamers with his harpoon shortly. As one might expect from a game that involves decapitations, eviscerations, and the occasional ripped-out spinal column, Deception is rated "M" for Mature, and it will retail for $49.99. According to the publisher, it will also be backed by "the most extensive marketing campaign in Midway's history."

Though not the first 3D fighting game in the series, Mortal Kombat: Deception will be "the first ever 3D fighter to be playable online via both the PlayStation 2 and Xbox Live," according to Midway's chief of marketing Steve Allison, who also bragged that "[the] fighting game plays as responsive online as it does offline."

Besides the new-school online fighting mode, the game will come with some old-school characters from the franchise, including Scorpion, Mileena, Baraka, Sub-Zero, Kabal, Ermac, and Nightwolf. Besides the self-evident kombat mode, the game will also come with three other modes, including chess kombat, puzzle kombat, and conquest. GameSpot's full review of the game--which will be up later today--will feature all the gory details on Mortal Kombat: Deception.