As Mortal Kombat goes into it’s 11^th game in the series, it continues to be one of the oldest and most popular fighting game series of all time; and for good reason. While the series became synonymous with the extreme levels of violence at the start, later games enhanced the gameplay experience to grow past being just a bloody game. Now Mortal Kombat looks to keep that trend going with their 11^th installment which offers new creation mechanics, characters, and updates to features introduced in X. Does MK11 keep the series going strong, or is it bleeding out at this point?

[wpdevart_youtube]5LCty9v7_TM[/wpdevart_youtube]

Gameplay

When it comes to Mortal Kombat 11’s gameplay, it is quite possibly the best in the series. The mix of simplicity and complexity makes the game easy to pick up and play for casual fans and offers insane looking combos as a reward for those looking to go the extra mile to master the characters. With the return of the variation system from MK X, characters will have multiple variants to choose from that offer different costumes and varying playstyles. The variants help characters that would be weak in certain matchups (Baraka in a ranged match), by giving them specific moves to close the gap (spike ranged attacks, and various other moves). While each character only has 2 variants at the start, players can create new variants in the creation mode which we’ll go into later.

Story

One of the most interesting elements to MK11 is the story which brings the most 90’s plotline you can get. Following the events of MK X, the Keeper of Time, Kronika, becomes enraged with Raiden as he balances the moral compass of the universe. To counteract Raiden’s actions, Kronika looks to reset time using characters from MK’s past to create a universe without Raiden. Honestly the plot is fun to see characters from the series past interact with the present, however that’s about the best of it. Elements at the start of the game that seem to play a vital role in the story just get thrown to the side, characters seem to just appear in the plot for the hell of it. What makes it worse is the ending that (without spoiling the story) ruins everything that was built up through the rather short story.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

The Krypt Returns

Those who’ve played MK games in the past will be happy to know that the Krypt returns and is better than ever! Players can now explore the Krypts collecting various items to help dive deeper into the immersive island. Aside from all of the unlockable items and costumes you can nab, the map itself is pretty cool. Based off levels from the original MK games, you can view iconic areas such as the spike pits, Goro’s lair, and the stage with all of the character’s statues in the background. While it would have been nice to have more consistency with what chests unlock what level of rarity item, it does keep get you to explore to see all that you can find.

Kustomizations because Everything Starts with a K!

The game modes that you expect from the series return in tower challenges, online modes, and tournaments, with the addition of the customization feature we mentioned prior. The customization mode, err I mean kustomization mode, gives you the ability to create different variants for each character to meet your liking. New kustomization items can be found in the Krypt and applied to your variants to help boost performance and make them look extremely cool!

Presentation

The Mortal Kombat series has done an incredible job at offering a top-tier presentation, and this game is no different. Visually MK11 is the best-looking game in the series offering detailed, and realistic character models and animations. Watching the fatal blows makes you cringe in pain as you see characters brutally beaten. What makes these visuals even more disturbing are the incredible audio that makes each devastating attack more painful; I don’t think I’ve witnessed a more brutal move than Kotal Khan’s sword attack in any game period!

Overall

Mortal Kombat 11 builds upon previous games in the series offering little in terms of significant new content, however the improvements are definitely worth it. The enhanced character variations, kustomization mode, and larger roster make MK 11 a worthy purchase over MK X. If you’re new to the series, or veteran you’re only going to love every minute of MK 11; even if the story can be pretty lackluster.

THE BREAKDOWN

PROS:

• Gameplay is fun and rewarding for newcomers looking to get into the series, and experienced players looking for a challenge online.
• The Krypt is expansive and fun to explore.
• The presentation of MK 11 is the best in the series hands down!
• Kustomization offers a fun way to create new looks for characters that actually offer benefits beyond just aesthetics.

CONS:

• The story is all over the place with certain events feeling important one second, and miniscule the next.
• Krypt unlock system is inconsistent often making it annoying to unlock decent items regardless of how much you spend.