Review: Mortal Kombat: Armageddon (PS2)

Since its inception in the early 90s, Midway's Mortal Kombat series has always seemed to place brutal spectacle and absurd ultra violence above such niggling fighting-game details as a deep, inventive fighting system. Over a decade since its bloody inception helped birth the US ratings body ESRB, Midway are looking to close the book on the franchise so far with the aptly-named Armageddon, possibly the most extensive Kombat yet. But without moving on and leaving the clunky fighting of yesteryear behind, the series still seems to have a few more battles of its own to finish.

Some will blame it partly on the PS2's infamously inaccurate D-pad- too often a match-winning combo towards the end of the obligatory Arcade mode will misfire for no fault of your own, resulting in the ignominy of a fumbling defeat. Even with an arcade stick, and it remains doubtful anyone will run out to buy one merely for this title; combat is mostly a clunky, dial-K-for-kick-his-face line-dance rather than the intricate, instinctive ballet of other fighters. The root of the problem seems to be the animation, which while smoother than the robot disco of MK: Deadly Alliance still relies on ever-so-over-long motions playing out before the next kick, punch or swipe takes place.

That's not to say it is without its charm- far from it in fact. One of the overriding pleasures of MK titles, especially since their arrival in glorious 3D, is the unpretentiously amusing nature of battles. Blood, whatever the colour, sprays hither and thither, fighters stumble around with all the over-the-top enthusiasm of a 70s kung-fu movie extra and those trademark fatalities provide a ridiculous punctuation mark to the end of each fight. No longer based on a single, mangling combo for each character, the so-called Kreate-a-Fatality system lets players string together anything up to 11 moves, from 'mere' knees to the face to having entire bodily organs removed at sword point. In single-player matches they amuse; with friends or online, they can reduce a man to tears.

Indeed, MK Online provides a whole world of giggling, immature fun at times. Slick and near-lagless, it provides what Mortal Kombat hasn't had since the arcade days- an endless stream of willing opponents. In an ingenious move, characters generated in the impressively flexible Kreate a Fighter mode can be used online, and they are transferred between players with barely a hint of a pause. It's not uncommon to have your newly-fashioned avatar's face rearranged by Lara Croft, Jack Thompson and Jesus in a single day (watch out for that Christianity fighting style, folks). For exploring the various combat techniques characters offer in a genuinely testing environment, it proves invaluable.

With a roster as wide as Armageddon's, you may need quite a while to explore them. Every character that has appeared in an MK fighting title is here bar one or two obscure oddities, and with a few exceptions all are available, unlocked and ready to go from the start. It proves more than a little overwhelming- while long-time fans will be in their element, those new to the series will likely be turned off by the endless reams of fighters, and have issues choosing a Kombatant that will suit their needs. The simplest option, and one many will no doubt take, will be either to stick to known series faces such as Scorpion or Sonia Blade, or go for the Konquest mode's character, Taven.

It would be a sensible chose. Konquest essentially punctuates phenomenally OTT adventure-beat-em-up sections with Arcade mode battles with series regulars, helping not only explain the game's paper-thin premise of gathering together the entire character list but also providing a fighter to grow and learn with. The adventure itself is a welcome and amusing addition- all flying bodies and exploding torsos, with an almost alarming tendency for gifting every few feet of progress with bonus costumes, tunes and money to buy more unlockables with. With sensibly-placed checkpoints and a tendency to announce your death with a theatrical stab of strings and a close-up of your mashed body, finding new ways to end your fighting career is even fun of itself.

A throwaway carting game starring the most famous of the series' rounds off proceedings, along with the obligatory Krypt feature allowing players to blow hard-earned Koins on bonus content. It makes for a big, if rarely clever package, entertaining if hilarious ultra violence is your bag, tryingly awkward and limited if it isn't. The hefty amount of finality that this instalment's plot and content provides suggests a series reboot is around the corner. It couldn't come sooner.

Rating: 7 / 10

Words by Colin Whiteside