Mortal Kombat vs DC: How do you learn fatalities/brutalities?
So I'm basically done with everything I need for my review of "Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe." I finished the story mode (on the DC side, anyway, and checked out the MK side), did some arcade ladders, and overall had a ton of fun, way more than I expected.
Only thing left to do is try out some online kombat. So I do and as I inevitably lose match after match (reminding myself why I usually only play with friends on XBL), I realize people are pulling fatalities and "heroic brutalities" on me, but I have no idea how to do them. How could I miss that? So I peruse the game's "move list," everything in the "extras," the instruction book... nothing. How the hell are you supposed to know how to do these? Do you just try a million different combos until something works?
It's been a while since I played another "Mortal Kombat" game, and as I recall, back in the day (aka the '90s) people seemed to just know how to pull off fatalities and would tell each other. Which makes sense in an arcade, I suppose. But I'm at home, playing a T-rated game that's supposed to be accessible to the masses (and largely succeeds at being just that). And there's no indication of how I'm supposed to activate what should be one of the enjoyable details of the game. That strikes me as a problem. It seems like that's information that should be available, or at least unlockable.
Is it fair to knock the game in the review I"m planning to write tomorrow for this reason? Or am I just missing something and revealing that I'm ignorant, clueless, and possibly suffering from a low IQ?
(Yes, I could scour the Internet to find the combos, and I may do that now. But if the only way to learn finishing moves for "MK vs DC" is on message boards, something is screwy.)
Chris Morris reports on the business and culture of video games and offers analysis of recent events and industry trends.
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Posted by: buy habbo gold | March 11, 2009 at 11:15 PM
I would also like to know how to make the fatalities. Played the entire game, but could not figure out how to make the fatalities that everybody is freaking out about. Send me a nice little email about it and I shall be considerate in the future. Puheeeaace!
Posted by: Dudewidaquestion | January 07, 2009 at 12:08 AM
so tell me how in the hell do u do it i mean i ain't got the game yet but im gettin it for christmas and i don't knw da shit either shit i wanna knw so i can beat sum ass wit superman or flash or sumbody
Posted by: Johnny | November 25, 2008 at 11:03 AM
I wouldn't knock the review too much because Midway is just sticking with tradition. But on the other hand, everything evolves, and there should at least be some clues or hints unlocked as you progress to tell you how to perform some of the moves.
Posted by: Nick K. | November 19, 2008 at 12:54 PM
I think that it's a good design decision to not have the Fatalities/Brutalities in the manual or in any online tutorial. A key part of the arcade experience was learning how to do the special movies and fatalities in SF/MK by watching other people and *asking* them. And, yes, EGM made a lot of money by selling mags with the special moves in them.
Nowadays, the arcade machines that are left all have the special moves on the cabinet - but they *don't* have the super movies (SF) on them. This was entirely the right decision by Ed Bon and the Midway crew.
Posted by: Sachin Agarwal | November 19, 2008 at 07:50 AM
Game sounds pretty good if that's your only complaint. I think most people understand how to use google so I can't see how that's a flaw. I think the harder it is to figure out the fatalities the more you want to do them. If everyone is doing it then it becomes kind of hum drum. The fact that most people will google and find out how to do them rather easily may be the real flaw.
Posted by: Oneil | November 19, 2008 at 06:44 AM
You're experiencing Fatalities and Brutalities as intended.
In the original MK in arcades, they were something that had to be discovered, and some were closely held secrets, that you saw first by getting your but kicked.
They're actively reviving that feeling. Unfortunately you aren't a kid with hours upon hours to try different things, but an adult with a job who's not going to spend too much time with the game.
Besides, I'm sure you can find them all with a simple google search.
Personally I never cared about fatalities, and was more of a street fighter kid, but I like the throw back idea of not having the fatalities right there in the manual.
Posted by: Joseph | November 19, 2008 at 05:39 AM
That's a really good point Ben. Growing up, I remember being able to do two fatalities in Mortal Kombat games, and one of them was the Pit levels uppercut that shot them to the bottom of the pit. I could either not get in position in time or just wasn't good enough to pull it off. I could pull off Sub-Zero's finishing move in MK2 consistently if I knew ahead of time that I was going to win and could be in position in time. But really, unless I was playing against an opponent who, at the time, was working with me to try out fatalities, they just never worked for me.
Do you call this a flaw or a feature? I really think that it would have to be up to the person to decide that. I guess I can see both sides of the argument, but to me, Fatalities are definitely a function and a draw of the MK titles (and really these days, one of the only draws), but when you can't easily pull them off or be taught how to, how do you expect to let casual fans enjoy them? How can you create a game that is meant for a more casual audience and allow one of the bigger draws of your titles to simply sit on the sidelines to see if players figure it out?
Wouldn't this be like putting the focus of Bioshock on gun play and having plasmids as an afterthought and hidden in the game? There are probably a million other examples you can give, but I have to say that I think its been a longtime flaw of the MK series in my opinion.
Posted by: Curtis | November 19, 2008 at 04:26 AM