News Archive - May 2004

HomeLAN - How does the storyline of MK Deception follow up on the events in Deadly Alliance?

John Vogel, Storyline & Animation - In Deadly Alliance there was a back story about an ancient Dragon King of Outworld and his “undefeatable” army. In MK Deception we’ve built upon that myth. The Dragon King has somehow returned from the dead and the characters of MK Deception must deal with him in classic MK style (by joining him or opposing him). Our opening FMV sequence will start right at the climax of the Deadly Alliance storyline and follow through to create the beginning of the new storyline. The fans will find out what really happened to the heroes and villains of the last game. I feel the storyline for Deadly Alliance deviates quite a bit from previous MK conclusions in that there is an ending with a clear “winner,” but a new threat presents itself almost immediately as we go into MK Deception. (There is no “...and we all went home to wait for the next dilemma” situation.) Deadly Alliance and Deception act very much like a two-part story, even though that was not the plan initially.

HomeLAN - While you are bringing back old favorites from past Mortal Kombat games, there will be some new characters. What can you tell us about MK Deception’s new fighters?

Steve Beran, Character Designer - We have a lot of new characters in MK Deception. Kira is a leather clad beauty and the newest member of Kano’s infamous Black Dragon gang. Hotaru is a guardian of Order. His current mission is to restore order to Outworld. Dairu is a deadly mercenary. Ashrah is a demon hunter bent on purifying herself of evil.

Game Industry’s Most Successful Fighting Game Franchise, Mortal Kombat, to be Packaged on a SmartSkin™ Interactive Accessory for use on the New Identity™ Wireless Phone

LOS ANGELES – May 12, 2004 – Wildseed Ltd., a software company pioneering SmartSkin interactive accessories, today announced the first GameSkin interactive accessory featuring Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance. The announcement was made at the world’s largest gaming show, E3.

This legendary franchise tops the list as one of the most successful in console history. Since its debut in 1992, the Mortal Kombat series has sold over 20 million copies. Most recently, the latest version has sold over 2 million units. That game is currently available for Sony’s PlayStation2 computer entertainment system, Microsoft’s Xbox video game system, and Nintendo’s GameCube and Game Boy Advance.

The GameSkin featuring Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance marks the first time a Mortal Kombat game will be played on a wireless phone. This game accessory will add Game Boy Advance style controls to optimize the phone for competitive Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance play. This first GameSkin will debut later this year, and it will be available for use with Identity, a new phone manufactured by Curitel that will be launched this summer.

Wildseed research indicates that teens and young adult consumers want a robust gaming experience on their phones. Young people indicated that they want a way to take the console gaming experience with them on the go without having to carry multiple devices. The research and Nintendo’s market demographics also demonstrate that young consumers do not want to carry around a “game console” or put one up to their ear for voice calls, rather, they want “a cool looking wireless phone that also entertains.”

“ We are honored to launch our gaming strategy with Midway Games’ legendary Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance,” said G. Eric Engstrom, Wildseed CEO. “We are dedicated to dramatically improving gaming on a wireless phone with specialized GameSkins designed to optimize the game play of each title delivering an arcade experience in the palm of your hand.

For the first time on a wireless phone, there will be no compromises required in order to enjoy a great game playing experience. In seconds, consumers can hot swap between a handheld game console experience, a music player or a thematic fashion experience by changing the SmartSkin accessory that wraps around the outside of the phone.

When this GameSkin is snapped on the phone, the entire wireless experience morphs into the brutal world of Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance; the phone’s interface, backgrounds and ringtones automatically transform to portray the ultimate fighting experience. Using the 16 megabyte smart key memory chip in the SmartSkin, the hand-held console game will be available with the same attacks, characters and levels that have made Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance a hit in one of the industry’s most famous franchises. The traditional handheld gaming experience is augmented by the mobile communication aspects of the handset. The mobile capabilities enable remote head to head competition and the ability to augment the game with more characters, levels and weapons downloaded over the air. In keeping with the console feel, the phone is turned on its side while the game is being played providing the proper landscape perspective.

Fighting games are experiencing what might be considered a renaissance these days, with the advent of online play. Many of us at GameSpot were hardcore into the genre at one time, but as the nation's arcades dwindled, competition became harder to come by, and our interest naturally dwindled. But this looks like the perfect opportunity to dive right back in, and we absolutely can't wait. There were other promising fighting games at E3, but Mortal Kombat: Deception had us most excited.

After 2002's surprisingly sound 3D rendition of Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance, Midway has taken its time to dig deeper into the MK chest of goodies. Mortal Kombat: Deception adds to the combo carnage by bringing expected new characters and moves, but it's upped the ante with brutally punishing environmental traps, and it's rounded out the fighter with solid, likeable side games giving players secondary and tertiary reasons to goof around. The fighting itself is still skill-based, combo-laden and tighter than ever, and the wealth of moves and character rivalries brings new life to the aging series. Mortal Kombat may be an old series, but the new engine and tireless work on Midway's part to hone it have shown us the spine-ripping beast of a brawler still has all the right moves.

Mortal Kombat: Deception (Xbox, PS2)
Street Fighter Anniversary Collection had us pretty excited, but Mortal Kombat is, well, new.

Nominees
Guilty Gear Isuka
Street Fighter Anniversary Collection
King of Fighters Maximum Impact
Guilty Gear X2 Reload