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An excellent entry in the classic fighting game series

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 23 / 23
Date: August 04, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Mortal Kombat: Armageddon (Wii Edition.)

INTRODUCTION:
The Mortal Kombat series is, well, anything but mortal. Ever since its birth in 1992, the series has been loved and hated by many. With its unique take on the fighting game genre, as well as blood and gore galore, it's the series that has taken the world by storm and never let go. After a lengthy hiatus following 1998's Mortal Kombat 4, the series made a comeback in recent years with games like Deadly Alliance and Shaolin Monks. The most recent entry in the series in Armageddon. Just a year after Armageddon's release, it has been ported to the Nintendo Wii.

OVERVIEW:
Mortal Kombat Armageddon was released in 2006, and the Wii version was released in 2007. The game features numerous gameplay modes, including traditional arcade play, Motor Kombat, Endurance, Konquest, and a Kreate-A-Fighter mode. The fighting roster features every playable character from every traditional MK game so far.

REVIEW:
When the Mortal Kombat series went on an extended hiatus following the release of Mortal Kombat 4, a lot of people forgot about the series and lost interest. I was amongst them. New titles began to surface, but I paid them little attention. But as soon as a friend of mine introduced me to Armageddon, I was almost instantly back into the series. MK is back with a vengeance. And this is the finest installment to date.

-THE GOOD-
-HUGE CHARACTER ROSTER. Every character ever featured in a Mortal Kombat game as a normal, playable character or a boss, is playable here. From the well-known members of the cast like Sub-Zero and Scorpion, right down to the forgotten characters like Reiko and Kabal, they're all here. The characters from the most recent installments on modern systems appear too. Plus there are a few new characters. The total roster comes out to around SIXTY CHARACTERS!
-KREATE A FIGHTER MODE! I honestly doubted whether or not this sort of thing had a place in the Mortal Kombat universe, but after giving it a whirl, I forgot my doubts. This system works out great. You get to customize your character's appearance, moves, backstory, and plenty of other stuff. You start the game with limited options, but can unlock new moves and clothes in other gameplay modes, and with the currency you get in other modes.
-MOTOR KOMBAT. The real oddity here, but fun nonetheless. Imagine Mario Kart but with Mortal Kombat characters and gore. It's a fun, simplistic game, but definitely worth checking out.
-ENDURANCE MODE. Think you're the best MK player out there? Then take a fighter and pit them against opponent after opponent until you die. It's the ultimate test of skill.
-TONS OF UNLOCKABLES. Throughout various game modes, you'll earn currency you can trade for unlockables. These include pieces of music, alternate character outfits, new levels, concept art, videos - the list goes on! This aspect of the game definitely adds something the old pre-hiatus games lacked. The currency can be earned in nearly every mode of the game, as well.
-MULTIPLE FIGHTING STYLES AND WEAPONS FOR CHARACTERS. Weapon fighting, which was godawful in Mortal Kombat 4, is perfected in this game. The fighting styles appeared in other recent titles as well, and they definitely add something to the experience.
-KONQUEST MODE. This is essentially a story-oriented mode revolving around the new character Taven, and it mixes Shaolin Monks-style action/adventure play, as well as traditional MK one-on-one deathmatches. In this mode you can find plenty of unlockables, further adding to the mode's value.
-EXCLUSIVE WII CHARACTER: KHAMELEON. The Wii version lacks some of the features of other versions of the games, but makes up for it by including an old character that didn't make it into the other console's ports of the game.
-WII EXCLUSIVE CONTROL SCHEME. The game makers took advantage of Nintendo's motion-sensitive controls, and put them to good use. I was a skeptic at first, but was instantly proven wrong. (For info on how this system works, watch Amazon's video on the control. Scroll up to find it.)
-COMPATIBLE WITH OTHER CONTROLLERS. Don't like the motion controls? No problem. Just hook in a Gamecube or Classic controller, and play the old-fashioned way.
-MAKE OUR OWN FATALITY. This is an innovative feature, and an interesting edition to an excellent series.

-THE BAD-
-NO ONLINE PLAY OR ULTIMATE MORTAL KOMBAT 3 PORT. These things appeared on other systems and it disappointed me not to find them in the Wii version of the game.
-REPETITIVE PLAY IN THE KONQUEST MODE. This mode is required to unlock stuff, so you'll find yourself playing it a lot. But you'll also get frustrated by the repeated scenarios and instant death traps. They could have done a lot more to keep things fresh.
-UNEVEN COMPUTER INTELLIGENCE. Sometimes the computer plays a smart game and/or cheeses you to death, other times it doesn't seem to know what the hell it's doing.
-MOTOR KOMBAT NEEDS WORK. I think this was an excellent idea, and I'm glad they put it in the game. But the gameplay is repetitive and the control needs work. More diversity in this mode would have been nice.
-ONLY TWO FIGHTING STYLES PER CHARACTER. Not a big deal to me, but it will be to gamers who played the last few MK games which had three of them per character.
-NO CHARACTER SPECIFIC FATALITIES. I was glad to hear about the Fatality creation mode, but had no idea it would take the place of the age-old, classic, character-specific Fatalities that have defined the series since the beginning. As such, Fatality customizing gets old fast, since every character does the same things.
-NO "SPECIALTY" FATALITIES. What happened to Babalities, Friendships, Brutalities, and Animalities? I miss all this stuff. When's it coming back to the series?
-ONLY ONE VERSION OF SUB-ZERO, AND ONE OF SMOKE. We only get the ninja-style versions of these characters - meaning no unmasked Sub-Zero and no robot Smoke. Not a big deal, but it's still worth mentioning here.

OVERALL:
Mortal Kombat is back with a vengeance. If you're one of those guys who lost interest after the fourth installment, this is the entry that's good enough to get you back on the series bandwagon. I'm being a bit generous with the five-star score, but this game deserves it since it's a rare example of a good Wii fighting game. Do yourself a favor and pick this one up if you're fan of the series, old or new alike, or a fan of fighting games in general.

EDITION NOTES:
The Wii version of this game is a recent release and readily available at most major video game retailers.

Wii Controls NOT Nearly As Bad

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 9 / 9
Date: August 01, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I am a "returning" gamer (haven't really played since SNES and a brief 3DO ownership in the early 90's), having been romanced by the Wii into coming back. I am 26 years old, married, all that jazz.

Anyhow, I used to play Mortal Kombat II as a kid and, to me, ONCE YOU'VE DONE TRAINING MODE for a while, the Wii controls work great. They work consistently for me, BUT I have significantly modified some of the suggested moves. For example, the "U" shaped moves I perform in the sort of way you would a "hit" in Rayman, when you're playing a music game: like hitting a drum with a drumstick, except I either do a little roll to the left or right at the end depending on what move I want.

Coordinating the B button is not that hard, come on. Go into training and do the moves repetitively until it happens every time. Was a little long for me, but I remained humble, had some faith in the developers and sure enough I found movements that worked for me.

The back-forth or forward-back motion requires you hold and move the remote on a fairly flat plane. My wife pointed out when I was not performing it correctly, my motions were "warping" to one side or another, or I was holding the remote oddly. A nice flat back-forth works great, every time.

Just like other reviewers say, sometimes it doesn't work. But I honestly think this is just "in the heat of battle" excitement making you a little sloppy with what are physical motions.

Honestly, the only thing I really DON'T like about this game is the "rubber doll" feel to the characters. Sometimes I feel like I am playing with Barbie and Ken just like I did when I was a kid by making them fight. They seem to have this sort of glazed over sheen over much of their personality and it feels a little plasticy. But boy are they vicious.

Anyhow, a solid four-star game all around. Worth the purchase price, or at very least the price of a used copy.

Mortal Kombat Armageddon Wii Review

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 6 / 6
Date: June 09, 2007
Author: Amazon User

This review will detail the features of the Wii version. If you wish to know more about the game as a whole, there are plenty of other places to look.

Wii Exclusives:

Wiimote Motion Control
Wiimote Training Video
Wiimote Training Mode
Khameleon Character (From N64 MK Trilogy)
Endurance Mode
Fastest Load Times (3 Seconds compared to PS2's 9 Seconds)
Sharpest Graphics

There is a demonstration video showing you how to use the new motion controls...you can also test them out in the practice mode.

I had absolutely no problem adapting to the controls, and I much prefer them to the standard button input and can't imagine going back. It's not always accurate...I'd say it's about as accurate as the button inputs would be. The motion controls are just for special moves and the kreate-a-fatalities in Arcade mode.

Tilt steering is supported in Motor Kombat of course and Menu navigation is a breeze with the Wii remote as a laser pointer style mouse.

IF YOU ARE TURNED OFF BY THE WII CONTROLS, both the GAMECUBE and CLASSIC CONTROLLERS are supported as an alternative! You can even play with a combination of control types.

The only thing missing is the online play, and I'll leave it up to you weather that is a big deal of not...It really depends on if you play games online. I don't, so I don't mind.

Nintendo not the way to go

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 11 / 17
Date: May 31, 2007
Author: Amazon User

First let me say that this is a fun game. It's easily the best Mortal Kombat yet. The combat system is simplified from Deadly Alliance and Deception so that you only have to remember two move sets per character (including weapon kombat) instead of three. Some might see two styles as more limiting, but for me it helped make each fighter more accessible and made it easier to get into the game. Having the full cast of characters from every previous Mortal Kombat game is also nice and being able to create your own fighter is possibly the best feature of the whole game.

However, the Wii version of this game has a lot of strikes against it. Having come out so much later than the other platform versions, I was hoping Nintendo would have added a few things to make it worth the wait. Unfortunately, the Wii version has much less. Sure it has the female version of Khameleon, but that is about all the Wii version has over the other versions.

The Wii controls aren't as easy to learn as they're made out to be. Judging from the message boards I've been to, I'm not the only one with a problem. You have to hold the "B" button while making the special move motions and you have to time precisely when you press it and when you let go. Some times the motion sensor will mistake a side/side motion with a half circle motion and give you the wrong move. Sometimes it won't do anything at all. And you can't always tell what you did right or what you did wrong. In a fighting game where every split second counts, controls simply have to be more responsive than that. I've gone back to simply using the Gamecube controller. Thank goodness they made that an option.

The X-Box and Playstation versions also had a port of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 included with their games. Not so with the Wii version. This may not be a big deal for some. After all, you're paying for MK Armageddon, not UMK 3. All the same, when a game comes out for Nintendo so much later than the other platforms, I'd expect there to be more options to choose from, not less.

But possibly the biggest shortcoming is no online play. That is simply inexcusable. With the Wii, Nintendo has the ability to start increasing their online playability in games. There's simply no excuse to cut out online play for a game that has it on all other platforms.

Nintendo better get on the ball by making their third party games comparable to what people are getting on the other platforms. When the other platforms have a whole other game port with Ultimate MK3 and online playing capabilities; meanwhile the Wii has nothing to show for their version coming out months later, the choice is painfully obvious.

All that said, Mortal Kombat Armageddon is a fun game. I see no need for me to go back to Deadly Alliance or Deception any time soon. I also love that I can make my own characters for the game. It'll keep me playing for some time.

Nice game but the Wii controls are not that easy

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 3 / 7
Date: June 03, 2007
Author: Amazon User

In paper it looks that doing moves and fatalities will be very cool with the Wii Controls, but they don't. All the basic moves are easy to do, but fatalities, if you try to do something, most times the system will do something different or it won't work at all. This is very frustrating. I might get a Virtual Console game pad, but there is no game pad fatality list available at the Internet. The game will tell you the basic moves itself but the fatalities you have to search at the web. The Wii control fatality list is available, but no for the GCN or Virtual Console game pad yet.

I had great expectations for this game, I had some satisfaction, but it is frustrating trying to do fatalities (somes in specific) and watch something else to happen

screw playing online

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 4
Date: June 03, 2007
Author: Amazon User

this game in general is awesome, and the Wii version is no different. if you're biggest concern is playing online then buy a 360. Nintendo never had online compatability with their consoles in the past and their hardcore fan-base (including myself) are used to that. besides I ever cared, becuase I dont really play games online anyways. a possible reason for them not including MK3:U is because of the virtual console and potential plans to release it on there in the future. I played the game on xbox, but waited to buy it for the Wii and the inclusion of Khameleon is a welcome addition. don't listen to people who give this game a horrible review based soley on the fact that it doesn't play online. it's a great game, to me it's honetly the only MK game to play now, making most otehr obsolete. buy it, play it, love it.

The best fighting game on the Wii so far

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: June 27, 2007
Author: Amazon User

This game would be the perfect Mortal Kombat game if all of the old fatalities were still here. Instead, every character can now do the same fatalities and none of their own unique ones like the kiss of death, turning into a dragon or ripping someone's heart out.

The levels are great, the moves are easy to get used to on the Wii and if you're looking for a great game to play with a friend, look no further.

Best of the MK Series

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: November 13, 2007
Author: Amazon User

If you're a returning fan of the Mortal Kombat series, then Armageddon is unquestionably going to bring you hours of entertainment. This is in my opinion the most comprehensive and well-executed installment of the series. All the characters of previous games have been included, as well as over 10+ maps. I'm talking 60+ characters, everyone from every game! Special moves are done using the Wii motion controls. The Wii motion controls are optional and are easy to execute with 90%+ accuracy after sufficient practice. Though they do appear confusing and difficult at first.

Fairness in game play has been INCREDIBLY improved. The development team has obviously made a great attempt at leveling the playing field between all characters. No more are there any characters or moves that seem inherently "cheap", or impossible to block. All characters have their own individual fighting styles and special moves, but the controls to execute the same type of move across characters is the same for all characters. This makes it easy to be proficient at multiple characters without having to re-learn an entire control map, while keeping the characters distinct styles and moves.

KREATE-A-FIGHTER: One of the best features of the game, as well as something people have been asking for for years. Use gold coins earned in Konquest and Arcade mode to create a FULLY customizable character. Body type and features, clothes, special moves, fighting styles and moves, colors, weapons, etc. A feature that ads many hours of playability and really enhances 1-on-1 combat with a friend by creating your own foes to pit against each other.

KONQUEST: This is the single-player campaign mode. It's a simplified and refined version of previous MK action RPG's, and conforms to the action RPG style of game play. You run around maps collecting coins and unlocking treasures in the game / Krypt. Along the way you fight enemies, solve puzzles, etc. Throughout Konquest you are pitted against various characters from MK at increasing levels of difficulty. Konquest is the main way to unlock extra costumes, characters, maps, etc. in the game. The only other way is to earn money and purchase the items in the Krypt. Konquest has a simple but solid story and gameplay engaging enough for you to keep wanting to play further & further.

LOTS OF CONTENT: More unlockables and content than any other MK game previous.

ENDURANCE MODE: Defeat as many enemies as you can. You get one bar of life, and each time you defeat an opponent a new one appears each time with extra difficulty.

MAKE YOUR OWN FATALITY: Because of the HUGE character roster, MK no longer has character specific fatalities. Instead there is a custom scripted fatality system, where you create custom fatalities on-the-fly when you finish an opponent.

All-around an excellent addition to the Mortal Kombat series. Everything that a MK game should be is included, plus so much more! A game worth owning.

well worth it

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: November 03, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I rented this game, and it was so rad that I had to buy it. The best part about it is challenging a roommate or friend to a battle, and being able to use the player that you created.
It's just easy enough that if you have had game experience you can pick up the wiimote and dive into two-player mode, and not feel left behind.

the idea sounded good....

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 2 / 6
Date: June 13, 2007
Author: Amazon User

When I heard that MKA would be coming out for the Nintendo Wii, I thought that it would easily be the best version of the game. With the Wii motion sensor system, one could mimic the movements of character-specific fighting and have them translated into actual on-screen maneuvers. Unfortunately, it seems that either the technology isn't advanced enough to handle such demands, or else there just wasn't enough effort put into the Wii controls. Since the release date was quite a bit later for the Wii version than for the PS2/Xbox versions, I was certainly expecting much better.

The only way movements of the Wii remote are utilized in this game is in the execution of the characters' special moves and fatalities. You press the B button on the back of the remote down, perform the specific motion for the move, then let go of the B button. Many of these gestures just reflect the movements one would be doing with their thumb on the joystick or D-pad of a regular control and do not actually reflect the movements of the characters on the screen. Furthermore, while performing these moves has never been flawless on a controller, accuracy is far more difficult with the Wii remote. New-comers and veterans alike struggle to get the desired move to occur, usually either executing the wrong special move or none at all. Furthermore, the normal punches and kicks are executed by pressing directions on the D-pad (Left for Attack 1, Up for Attack 2, etc.), which becomes very tiring for the thumb, is difficult for the brain to handle, and results in handicapping the player (when the idea of this control system was to ENABLE players). Fortunately, Nintendo seemed to know this new system would frustrate players, so you can still use a GameCube controller or one of those "original" controllers for the Wii. Still, for those of us who own one or both of the other systems, it seems like "Why did I buy this for the Wii if I'm just going to use a normal controller?"

...particularly because there is NO ONLINE PLAY for the Wii version (big surprise). For whatever reason, despite the utter failure of Nintendo's GameCube against the PS2 and Xbox (largely blamed on the lack of online gameplay capabilities), the availability of Wi-Fi play on the Nintendo DS, and the Wii's ability connect to the Internet, Nintendo seems to be stupidly holding its Wii owners back from the opportunity to experience online gameplay on titles that would obviously benefit from it. Why Nintendo would choose to dig their own grave now that they are ahead is beyond me. The Wii version does have the exclusive fighter, Khameleon (who has the abilities of Jade, Kitana, Mileena, and Tanya) added to the roster, and the graphics could be slightly better than those on the last-generation systems, but that hardly makes up for the disapointing work done on the controls and lack of online capabilities.

The actual game is pretty good. It does feel like there is some redundancy between the characters' moves and combos, and some of the stages are less appealing than usual in new MK installments. Also, it is annoying that there is now only one fighting style for each character (plus the ability to switch to a weapon....except with some of the "boss characters") when the previous installment of MK wowed players with the ability to have two styles per character (plus a weapon). Finally, I think the choice to REPLACE the character-specific fatalities with the Kreate-A-Fatality system was very unwise. I have a feeling this was done to save space because of the huge roster of characters, but I would have rather had no Motor Kombat and Konquest Mode and character-specific fatalities. Creating your own fatalities can be fun, but MK was largely based upon character fatalities! Luckily, the other "Kreate" idea (Kreate-A-Fighter) is a great one, and customizing your own fighter can be really fun.

Overall, the game is fine for those who don't have a PS2, PS3, Xbox, or Xbox360 (as long as you have a GC controller or Wii original controller). However, if you could own it for one of those systems and are still deciding if you want to get it for the Wii, I'd strongly suggest you stay away from it.

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