Available on Playstation, XBox S|X, PC, & Switch
Thoughts on the Story & Gameplay
So I purposely waited to do this discussion because when the game released the Switch and Steam Deck versions had their fair share of issues. The gaming world we live in today games release and get patched all the time. Do I like it? NO! Is it something we unfortunately have to deal with now? Yes. That being said let's get into the "soft" reboot of Mortal Kombat shall we?
In this entry, it picks up where MK11 aftermath left off with Liu Kang and Kitana setting off to create a new timeline after stopping both Kronika and Shang Tsung. The intro video does a good job of setting up how things are going in Liu Kang's new vision. Ever since MK9 WB and Netherrealm Studios have been doing a great job with the story of Mortal Kombat and this one is no exception. The characters they decided to go with are given new cricumstances/lives and I think it works well with the story they are telling. The character choice I think works for the most part. I am sure that there are some characters left out that people are going to be upset with but I think they have a good core group to start things over with. The gameplay is what you have come to expect from the MK series. You will need to spend some time in training and using the tutorial if you want to master the game. It is easy to pick up but challenging to master. The Invasion Mode is a fun mode where you have different challenges you have to meet in order to progress to the next objective and further through the mode. Tower mode also makes a return, which is essentially your classic arcade mode. This game does add a new element in the introduction of Kameo characters which are a set character that you team up with and can perform combos, fatalities, and more. It makes the game more fun and combos more interesting. There is a lot of content in this game and the first fighter pack has a lot of interesting characters in it as well. Needless to say there is a lot to do in this game which is always a huge plus.
Thoughts on the Good
In my opinion, the gameplay is where this game shines the best. The fights are fast and fluid, as I stated earlier its easy to pick up and challenging to master. The "Learn" mode (practice mode) is there to help players get up to speed and I found it to be very helpful. The soundtrack is very good and the voice acting is well done too. Just like with MK 11 the story is very good and very enjoyable. I am very interested in seeing what they come up with next as the story does leave an interesting cliffhanger of sorts. I like the array of modes as well and the characters that they have. I thought it was a good balance for this reboot.
Thoughts on the Bad
Here's where things get dicey for me. I purchased the Switch version as it is easier to carry the Switch with me as opposed to my Series X or PS4 PRO. To be completely honest while they have made considerable patches to the Switch version that have helped the experience immensely, it should have never come to that. This game should not have released in the state it was in and that's just the truth. Even now the game still suffers from long loading times, screen tearing in Story Mode. There are even times where cutscenes take a while to start, an issue that didn't happen in MK 11 mind you. I always knew there would be a visual downgrade as that was something happened with MK11 back in 2019, however, that was 4 years ago and that can't be an excuse at this point. I know some people are going to say 'well Nintendo should make a more powerful system and then these issues wouldn't happen' to that I say no. There are to many examples on the system of 3rd party games playing smoothly with little to no issues for a company like WB and Netherrealm to let this happen. There just is no excuse for this at this point.
For Parents
This is a Mortal Kombat game. Its rated M for Mature and it is as violent and bloody as any other entry in the series. From a gameplay perspective its a lot of fun. There story is interesting and there are a lot of modes and seasons in the Invasions mode to keep gamers busy for a while.
Overall Thoughts
If you have an XBox, Playstation, or PC I think the game is fun and worth a purchase. However, if you only have a Switch I cannot recommend this game as they are still issues and they can be frustrating at times. I really wished they would have optimized the game better or just build a version from the ground up for Switch. I could understand if WB was a small company and this was their first big release but this isn't their first rodeo and I refuse to give them a pass for this as it is not a good look on them in my opinion. Have you played Mortal Kombat 1? What do you think? Please leave a comment and let's talk about it.
Trailer
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