Mortal Kombat X

Who doesn’t know Mortal Kombat? Likely, no one and I’m not surprised. This game is one of the most successful fighting games from 1992. And, finally, in 2015 the tenth part of the legendary game was released by NetherRealm Studios.

I doubt that there are players who do not know what Mortal Kombat is, but just in case, I'll better explain. Basically,  in this game you get to a two-dimensional arena in which three-dimensional fighters pound each other, perform stylish tricks and special attacks, break bones, set fire, freeze each other, and so on. You might have some difficulties with the understanding of the Mortal Kombat gameplay, but just in the beginning. After you get acquainted with all the detailed instructions for each fighter, which can be viewed on the pause screen, the game becomes quite easy and enjoyable to play.

Graphics 5/5

Most of the Mortal Kombat fans love this game not only for beautiful graphics or exciting gameplay but for the lack of any loading screens between the fights as well. There are tons of amazing bright scenes that combine episodes with each other and lots of fatality moments that will make you just speechless. So be ready to watch more videos than playing the game, because there is so much video content that it would be enough for a full movie.

The main innovation in Mortal Kombat X graphics is the fresh approach to arena design. In this part we can notice that something always happens in the backdrop: people wandering around, someone is fighting, someone is watching your battle. But all these movements don’t distract you and create the illusion of the liveliness of the terrain.

In general, the graphic performance of the new MK is excellent. It looks even better than Injustice. The movements are realistic, and the animation is smooth, locations are colorful and highly detailed. All the characters look extremely unusual as always, and their designs and costumes are incredibly interesting and enjoyable to watch.

Gameplay 4.5/5

Mortal Kombat exists for twenty-five years, so the game obviously got a lot of changes, new characters and chapters. And Mortal Kombat X is not an exclusion. It brought into the gameplay lots of new twists and exciting heroes.

Each character from the MK series is a bright personality with a wide set of skills, unique twists and own story. In Mortal Kombat X, the devs have paid a lot of attention to reveal the character of each hero. The gameplay is structured such way that when you pick any character, you have three matches to play it (I’ll come back to this later). Moreover, you can see the story and the past of your character from the flashbacks that appear in pauses between the fights.

In total, there are 24 characters in this part of the game not taking into account the Kombat Pack. This is slightly less than what was in Mortal Kombat 9, but here you have an option to choose one of three combat styles before the fight begins and all of these styles differ by techniques and abilities. So, everyone should find something to like. For instance, one of the  Erron Black’s (a new stylish cowboy character) styles is using a special trophy - a Taraktan blade that Erron thrusts into the opponent's chest and makes him bleed and lose the health. Another example is a blind warrior Kenshi, who can use his sword and summon spirits to help him.

Mortal Kombat, as well as any other fighting game, does not have a super-intricated storyline, so you keep all the concentration on your battles which are quite cruel and bloody by the way. Mortal Kombat has always distinguished by its extremely high level of violence. Characters here do not simply fight - they do it highly brutally. So if you don’t know how to enjoy with liters of pixelated blood gushing from the chopped bodies of defeated enemies, then you better look for another game. The tenth part of Mortal Kombat didn’t change the traditions, and it also has ferocious fightings as well as a terrifying set of various disgusting "fatalities" and "brutalities.”

The notorious X-Ray was also added to the MK X. You can use this technique after a special scale is filled and keep in mind that X-Ray takes a decent portion of the enemy's health. However, after you use it for several times, it becomes a bit boring and slows down the dynamics of the bout.

Controls 4/5

No matter what part of Mortal Kombat we’re reviewing, its combat system will never get you bored. You need to use different keyboard shortcuts for each character because all of them have their own skills. Moreover, learning them is not quite an easy task. However, for those who are familiar with the series the controls will be easier to use, because the old heroes still have the same basic skills.  

As I mentioned above, in the new part of Mortal Kombat each character has three fighting styles. Before the fight starts, you can pick a set of additional skills for your warrior. For example, Sab-Zero in the "Great Master" mode can create his own frozen clone and throw it at the enemy. His another style lets him make a protective shield around him. Every choice of the style affects your tactics in the battle, but nothing can change the game's mechanics significantly. Also, in Mortal Kombat X you can not only use bonus skills of your character but interact with various objects on the battlefield as well which was borrowed directly from Injustice.

Replay Value 5/5

To play Mortal Kombat X you don’t need any knowledge about the specific subjects neither special skills, so you can start enjoying this game from a single campaign, learn all the combinations and improve more and more your skills with the time making them automatic. Whenever you're ready, try out an online battle and I’m pretty sure it will make you addicted. This game can satisfy veterans of fighting games as well as newcomers who want just to have fun.

In-app purchases

You get gold whenever you win and can spend it on purchasing different game materials in Crypt. Crypt is kind of a small separate game part which is full of suggestions how to invest money in Mortal Kombat for real. For example, the character of Goro can be purchased only by those who have made a pre-ordered. If you are not in this number, you can’t get this four-handed mutant for the gold you have earned, but you can spend real money on it. You can also purchase additional clothes for the characters in Crypt.

Conclusion

Mortal Kombat has always been popular for its highly realistic characters and bloody fights in the most severe manner. The audience of Mortal Kombat X includes fans of the series, veterans of brutal fighting games and just lovers to spend some pastime playing. The tenth part can satisfy demands of any players and is worth for sure to be tried by beginners as well as by those who still remember how the Death Battle part looked.

• Graphics 5
• Gameplay 4.5
• Controls 4
• Replay Value 5

Pros

improved graphics;
a wide range of new and well-known characters;
different styles of combat available;
beautiful interactive arenas;
dynamic mechanics;

Cons

expensive ingame content;
technical problems with multiplayer occur;
weak story campaign;
battle ratings needs improvements;