The new game Mortal Kombat 1 is set to come out in September. So I thought I would play the last few games to remind myself of the story and the gameplay. So I have just finished Mortal Kombat X and here is my review for the game. The premise of the game is set 20 years after the defeat of Shao Khan, the realms are at a flux with Earthrealm, Outworld and Netherealm all with their own objectives and lust for power.
Characters
With the extended timeline from the previous game we are introduced to a bunch of new characters here. The main ones being the four Spec Ops kids. Kung Jin, Takeda, Jacquie Briggs and their leader Cassie Cage. These characters are all really well realised and it was a risk to put so much time into new characters but I think it worked here. Cassie is probably viewed as the main character of the whole game and she is a fun character who is developed pretty nicely here.
Some of the iconic characters are back and handled really well. I really liked Steve Blum's portrayal as Sub-Zero and it is really cool to see how they have decided to use him as this clan leader who has respect and honour. His long term rival Scorpion is also treated really well, this is the most unique stuff I have seen from the character in games and that is cool to see.
Unfortunately, some characters are not given enough attention. Liu Kang, Kitana & Raiden are three of the most iconic characters in the franchise and they are really underused here, I mean Liu Kang and Kitana don't even have a chapter in the story mode.
It also doesn't help that the villains are poor in this game. Shinnok played by Troy Baker is just a bit over the top and generic for me, he had the hard time in coming after Shao Khan but he just feels short and isn't particularly interesting for me. Also Quan Chi is one of my favourite bad guys and he is treated so badly here, ever character beats him up and treats him like a jobber and that really upset me.
Main Story
The main story is okay. It does a really good job at introducing these new characters and giving us enough time and reason to care about them. I also like seeing how the more experienced characters such as Johnny Cage and Sonya Blade have been affected by the events of MK 9 and all their friends dying. But as I said before, the story involving Shinnok and the Neatherealm isn't particularly interesting and leaves little to really care about. I just wish certain characters were given more to work with and the main ending just feels a bit rushed (apart from an awesome post credit scene).
Side Content
This film has towers of fighting for each character and they are really fun. There is also a reward at the end of each tower by seeing a cutscene based on that character. Obviously some are better then others but they are all fun to watch and feel like a worthy reward. There are also living towers which sees different types of matches going on in the tower which is a nice change of pace. I didn't play too much online (because I am not that good) but it seemed to flow well and and work correctly. To get more unlockables and costumes you had to go through the Krypt, an interactable mini game where you go through a krypt of knowledge and easter eggs. The DLC are really cool also, as a big film fan it was cool seeing characters such as Alien & Predator in the game, though it does feel a bit cheap as they make us pay for characters who are in the story mode and already finished such as Tanya & Rain.
Gameplay
The gameplay is fantastic, the fighting feels so fluid and fast. It is just really exciting to play as these different characters with their different styles. Each character has 3 different varieties with different moves which shows the attention to detail that the creators went through to give the player a great experience. Some characters are better then others but I managed to find my way through all of them and find the versions I enjoyed. Though, one little thing is that I thought the intro discussions could have been better, they weren't written that well or feel that well voice acted which was a shame.
Graphics
The film was one of the first to be seen as next-gen for the PS4 and it looks great. It doesn't look as strong now but for when it was released it looked really strong with great design. Some really cool arenas and character designs mixed with fantastic cutscenes.
Overall
Overall, Mortal Kombat X is a good game that has some great things a fighting game requires. It falls a little short on other things but this is definitely a fun game and one I would recommend for sure.
Rating - 7/10.
