game news We played the last Mortal Kombat and bled its new system
Teased for weeks and finally presented in detail on the Summer Game Fest evening with several gameplay sequences, Mortal Kombat 1 – actually the twelfth episode of the series – was tackled in a stress test that we were allowed to participate in. So are there offspring at the heart of future NetherRealm production?
Punches, blood, cameos
In development at NetherRealms for more than four years, Mortal Kombat 1 presents itself as a fresh start for the franchise, a sort of reboot of the game universe that reinvents the combatants and the bonds that bind them. This new world sprang from the spirit of Liu Kang who became the god of fire. This episode opens with Ed Boon, the father of the franchise for the past 30 years.
If you’re not familiar with the series that hit arcades in 1992, we could summarize MK as a bloody fighting game with gameplay based on special moves. The player who defeats their opponent gets the chance to humiliate them with a killing blow. In the course of his episodes, the combos became more and more numerous, the “X-ray” shots appeared, the scenario became more dense and the content became more varied. Of course, the cast has grown too. As for the playable characters revealed, Johnny Cage, Kenshi, Kitana, Kung Lao, Liu Kang, Mileena, Raiden, Scorpion, Sub-Zero, and Shang Tsung (as a pre-order bonus) have been officially revealed as the main characters. Guest appearances announced so far are Goro, Jax Briggs, Kano, Kung Lao, Scorpion, Sub-Zero, Sonya Blade and Stryker.
Let the fight begin! From theory to practice
The content of the stress test is not very generous. It only offers access to two modes (Classic Tower and Online Versus) for as many levels. Only 4 characters can be played: Sub-Zero, Kenshi, Kitana and Liu Kang. This squad shares the three cameo appearances of Kano, Sonya, and Jax. This short time in the company of the most violent warriors of all dimensions was still enough to test the gameplay.
Mortal Kombat 1 introduces a “cameo” system that takes the form of a secondary character that can be deployed at any time during combat. Be careful though, the latter will only make a single move before leaving the play area: this is not a character swapping system. With the controller in hand, you’ll have to press RB/R1 while maintaining a direction for our comrade to perform a special hit. If I make Liu Kang and I have Sony Blade selected in my team, for example, I can put her in the ring to do her famous Leg Grab (Back + RB) or send Energy Rings (Forward + RB). Once the fighter has been summoned, you must wait for the gauge to recharge so that the teammate can intervene again. Cameos can also be called for Muggles, but also for fatalities.
With a little practice, it becomes easy to pull off devastating combos, two. Players must, of course, develop the most violent sequences, using the sixty moves (basic and special moves) of its main character and cameo actions that can be counted on the fingers of one hand. Fans of the series will be pleased to discover that these supporting characters, designed from the very first episodes of Mortal Kombat, come with a list of moves from the license’s original episodes.
For the rest, MK in general gameplay remains MK with this stiffness both in the animations and in the gameplay: The fights are always rigid and it’s not easy to improvise sequences. As for the technique, it’s already nice and fluid. X-ray attacks are distressing while stages vary (day/night). Our only regret is that the clothes weren’t torn: this effect, which we see in other games of the genre, would have had its place here.
Also read:
Mortal Kombat 1 will be released on September 19, 2023 for PC, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch. As a reminder, those who pre-order the software will have access to the Shang Tsung character. The Mortal Kombat 1 base game is priced at $79.99, while the premium edition, which includes the Mortal Kombat 1 game, Early Access (available September 14), comes with a bundle featuring a Jean-Claude Van skin Damme for Johny Cage, containing six playable fighters and five cameo fighters will be priced at $119.99. Finally, the Kollector Edition will be available for $249.99. It offers all the bonuses of the Premium Edition plus a 42 centimeter Liu Kang statuette.
