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Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance
GCN Review by: Kazooie

Mortal Kombat has come a long way since the debut of the original game in 1992. However, Mortal Kombat II has remained hailed as the best of the series by hardcore fans even with the releases of MK3, UMK3, and MK4.

Midway's second 3D entry of Mortal Kombat reinvents the series and redefines what fans should expect from the MK world. Veterans of the series can toss their old MK skills in the garbage can and take a trip to the dump with 'em, cause they won't be needing them this time around. Get ready to play a whole new kind of fighting game.

This game plays completely different from all previous MK games to date. And in my opinion, it plays better. You no longer have your standard High Punches and High Kicks, or your Low Kicks and Low Punches. Instead, you have your Attack 1-4 buttons (which can be remapped to whatever you like). Each of these, in combination with a certain direction on the D-Pad (the control stick is NOT supported in this game) will perform a different type of attack completely unique to your current fighter's Fighting Style. Each character has 2 hand-to-hand fighting styles, and a third Weapon Style which makes your fighter take out his/her weapon, or in some cases, both of their weapons. Weapons cannot be dropped in this game, like they could in MK4. You can switch your Fighting Style at any time during a fight with the L button.

Pressing up or down no longer makes you jump or duck, but instead makes you walk toward/away from the screen, while still keeping you looking at your enemy. To jump or duck, you have to press up or down respectively, while also holding forward or back. The Z button will make your character do a taunt which slightly increases health, do a special weapon attack, or perform an evasion maneuver depending on who your character is and what fighting style you are using. Pressing Z while holding forward will do your character's Throw move, which can now be blocked. Blocking is used with the R button. There is no Run button in this game, just like MK2. Fights are definitely slower-paced, which suits the deeper controls much better. The game allows you to be completely flexible and has excellently responsive controls; you just got to get good first.

Mortal Kombat has always been known for its deeply inter-twining and epic storyline. This game picks up right where MK4 left off. Quan Chi had been imprisoned in the Netherealm, but managed to escape. He stumbled upon the ancient Rune stone, which described of an immortal, unbeatable army. The army could be awakened and controlled with the spirits of fallen warriors. In his quest to resurrect this immortal army and conquer the Earth, Quan Chi sought out the evil sorcerer Shang Tsung and formed an alliance with him. Together they would dominate their foes, and Shang Tsung would take their souls and channel them into the lifeless immortal army, thus resurrecting it. With each soul he captured, Shang Tsung would also strive for immortality himself. With this plan, the duo start the destruction and Mortal Kombat begins.

The best looking MK yet, and also one of the prettier titles available on the next-gen systems. Real-time reflections, dynamic shadows, lighting, beautiful transparencies, particles, and highly detailed environments for fighters. Blood drips down your fighter's body and stains on the floor. Bruises and cuts appear on your fighter as you take damage. Runs at a solid 60 frames per second, and NEVER dips.

The sound is what I believe to be the weakest point of this game. The sound quality is high enough, but the variety of sounds themselves is somewhat lacking. Player grunts and yells get extremely repetitive and annoying in some cases, especially when playing as Scorpion or a few of the other male characters. There are probably 4 or 5 voices in the game, with around 10 grunts/yells/etc for each one. Unfortunately, you could probably get the same audio experience on an N64

If you've never played an MK game before, rent it first. If you say ''hey, this is kind of fun...'' buy it and you will be very pleased with what the MK series has to offer. If you have played previous MK games, just buy it immediately! It's Mortal Kombat with a deep fighting system and everything you love about a new MK game. I give Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance for the GCN a 9/10.
9/10