Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe Review
Thursday, December 18, 2008 4:03 PM
What's this? Lex Luthor beating Jax to a pulp in a bionic suit? Scorpion delivering a spear into Superman's chest? The Flash running rings around Raiden? What treachery is this?!
I never thought I'd see the day when Midway's warriors would face off against DC superheroes and villains, but such a time has come. Mortal Kombat Vs DC Universe is here.
The game packs in 22 fighters from the two separate arenas and hurls them fist first into a fast paced brawl to save the planet. Leading the way for the Mortal Kombat champions are various familiar faces, such as Kano, Shang Tsang, Sub Zero and Liu Kang, all of whom are facing off against the likes of Batman and Wonder Woman from the DC universe.
There's just about everything you could possibly imagine crammed into this platform beat em' up. The original arcade mode is still available as would be expected, but new additions include a story mode and online multiplayer.
The obvious big addition is the single-player campaign, where you're able to choose your side and watch the story unfold as the two worlds build towards a common goal. The game's story is driven by an infectious rage that has affected each character's ability to control their fury, making Superman and co. susceptible to damage.
New combat features have also been added to the game. 'Freefall Kombat' sees you take your opponent off the side of the arena, which in turn builds your Super meter to allow you to perform a special grounding attack. 'Test Your Might' forces your combatant through several arena walls, and 'Klose Kombat' allows you to perform a grab involving three to four devastating moves. But be warned, all of these actions can be 'Kountered.'
Each character's Rage Bar is filled up during combat and once full the character will be difficult to defend against for a short period of time. This also has a part to play in the battle's infamous Fatality stage. Once your foe has been defeated, you're given a small window to perform a spectacular character-specific finisher. DC Heroes also perform brutalities, which are non-fatal but entertaining moves.
It's a shame that the game was rated 'Teen,' as this has meant that Fatalities aren't nearly as aggressive as previous Mortal Kombat games. Still, the game's audience has not only widened but the Fatalities also match up to the non-killing brutalities of the DC Heroes.
The game's story mode will take roughly six hours to complete, after which there's the traditional arcade mode and Kombo challenges to complete with each character. The only unlockables to be found are the two boss characters (Darkseid and Shao Kahn) and trophies, which might take a fair amount of time to earn.
The story mode itself became quite repetitive and tedious. Furthermore, since you're forced to change to a new character relatively frequently, you'll have to learn new moves in order to survive. Often the characters will be unfamiliar, thus causing you to replay the same fights multiple times. I almost think it would bet better if you were able to choose a constant character to play the game front to back.
In conclusion, this is a great arcade fighter to play alone or with your friends in multiplayer bouts. Although there are a few minor let downs in the game, including the repetitiveness mentioned above, it still has plenty of entertainment value and a relatively long life.
7/10
Dan Kelly