Mortal Kombat 4
- January 01, 2000 00:00 AM PST
No more palette swaps! No more canned sound! Fighting gurus and fans of the franchise, rejoice: Mortal Kombat has finally hit the Nintendo 64 in style!
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Kombat Kontinues
In MK4, the warlord Shao Khan has been defeated, but his antics have freed the evil demon Shinnok from imprisonment. Now Raiden must assemble Earth�s most powerful fighters to combat Shinnok and his minions (including the fearsome, four-armed Goro, last seen in the first MK). Fifteen kombatants will thus battle for the future of Earth, each with several special attacks, multi-hit combos, and unique weapons. Those who are familiar with the arcade version will be pleased to hear that the home version is even more advanced than Revision 3, with extra secrets, stages, and characters.
The 3D konversion has been good to the MK warriors. It�s a challenge to imagine MK without digitized, motion-captured animation, but Eurocom has done a magnificent job using polygons of duplicating the series� trademark realism. The Mortal Kombatants look and move like real live people, without goofy, cartoony faces or Raggedy Ann limbs�and some are enhanced with intimidating special effects, such as the jumping, crackling lightning which emanates from Raiden�s body. These impressive visuals are complemented by a soundtrack that�s vastly improved over MKT�s: Agonizing screams, brutal smashes, sizzling energy spits, and Shao Khan�s trademark taunts (even though he�s not in the game) will echo through your living room in stereophonic splendor.
Komplete Control
Thankfully, the move to polygons hasn�t harmed the heart of the MK franchise: strategic fighting. Unlike so many 3D fighting games, this series has never been about random button-mashing, and neither is MK4. In fact, this is the most "2D" of any 3D fighter available, and that�s good news�characters can move to and fro within each arena, and the camera adjusts for maximum viewing (although it�s often a bit behind the action). Still, you�re almost always on a 2D plane, which makes for optimum head-to-head fighting. Combined with MK4�s impeccably responsive controls, the result is extremely tight gameplay.
Armed and Dangerous
New to the MK formula, each Kombatant is equipped with a weapon�like a crossbow, a sword, or a mallet�that can either be drawn during battle and used as normal, or thrown at an opponent. However, while wielding your weapon may be advantageous (a good hack inflicts a plethora of pain on your opponent), it can also be detrimental (you�re very vulnerable while drawing or swinging your weapon). Plus, if you�re hit with a weapon in hand, you�ll drop it and your opponent can then pick it up and use it against you.
Mortal Mania
As for gameplay, MK4 delivers the goods, featuring two-on-two fights, a couple of types of endurance matches, and a Practice mode. There are also tons of secrets (including hidden characters), level-specific fatalities, special attacks, killer combos, Kombat Kodes, and cinematic endings for each character. Unfortunately, there aren�t any animalities, babalities, brutalities, or friendships this time around.
Grab your controllers, N64 fighting-game fans, and prepare for MK4�the franchise is back with a blister-worthy game that�s ready to pummel you!
