But by the time MK 4 rolled around, the franchise had lost its luster, whether from a desensitized public or the fact that other games had followed in the same, violent vein. In fact, the most innovative concept in MK 4, fully 3D arenas, did little to leave anyone other than hardcore fans clamoring to do kombat once again.

With babalities, animalities and friendships having worn out their welcome, Midway needed to do something drastic with its next MK game, Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance. Believe me, this game does just that. But while the innovations in MK: Deadly Alliance are new for the series, they’re hardly new to the world of 3D fighters. And while the unlockable items number in the hundreds, the game could have benefited from a few of those programming hours being thrown toward the gameplay instead.

Gameplay
The biggest asset in MK: Deadly Alliance is its introduction of multiple fighting styles. Rather than battle through the ranks with just two punches and two kicks, each character can switch between two different hand-to-hand styles and one weapon-based style of kombat.

The hand-to-hand styles are actually quite different, both in animation and combo attacks. As a result, each character has more variety at his/her disposal and can string together back-to-back combos by rapidly switching between styles. Weapon-based styles are also quite varied, and to ensure gamers don’t use weapons only, your character moves and fights a bit more slowly with weapons, which evens the playing field when two human players aren’t “equipped.”

Unfortunately, the computer AI can be brutal, relentless and unforgiving, which unbalances that playing field at certain points. And contrary to what you might read in other reviews, jump-attacking doesn’t guarantee you victory. That’s a very good thing from a gameplay standpoint, but the brutality of the AI will at times make you wish the jump-attack did indeed act like your silver bullet.

What the MK: Deadly Alliance is missing in gameplay balance, though, it makes up for in the number of gameplay options. The Arcade mode is traditional MK: you make your way through a ladder of kombatants before coming face-to-face with the game’s ultimate opponent. Along the way you’ll also be able to partake in the strength challenges and follow-the-ball challenges from Mortal Kombats of yore.

The Konquest mode is essentially training, where your sensei walks you through the various moves and combos of your chosen character. Progress through the mode, and you’ll earn Koins that you can use to unlock various items in the Krypt (there are 667 unlockable items, so prepare to collect a lot). By the time you complete the Konquest mode with each character, you’ll either be a MK: Deadly Alliance master or have no recollection of your name, let alone any of the combos you just learned. But hey, you’ll have enough Koins to unlock some serious goodies and characters, so if you’re into that, you’ll want to head for this mode immediately.

Perhaps the most refreshing mode, Practice, lets you choose your character and an opponent who will remain stationary while you hone your fighting skills on his/her battered body. Unfortunately, you’re unable to practice/determine Fatalities in this mode, but that’s what Versus mode is for.

Ah yes, Versus mode is where MK: Deadly Alliance is strongest, which is what you’d expect from a fighting game. After all, you seldom buy a fighter for its engaging plot. (And if you do, please, for the love of God, go read a book.) Nothing quite says “fighting game” like talking smack to an opponent sitting next to you, and with MK: Deadly Alliance, there will be much smack-talkage.

A nice feature in all of these modes is the ability to pause the game and bring up a menu of your character’s special moves, combos and even his/her special attacks (but not fatalities). Now if only the computer AI would let up long enough to let you actually use one or two of those moves….

Graphics
With fully 3D fighting arenas, MK: Deadly Alliance is a nice evolution of MK4’s arcade environments. As in DOA3 and other next-gen fighters, some objects are destructible (stalagmites, statues, etc.) and several arenas include hazards that can damage your character if you’re not mindful (acid fountains and the like).

These environments are well-rendered if not the most creative, but despite their three-dimensional nature, they all have “walls” that keep you from straying outside of the ring. The graphical effect of hitting one of these walls is a nice blue force field-like effect, but putting such constraints on these environments is a true shame.

The character models are truly next-gen, with such finishing touches as collar bones, flowing hair and even the “bounce” of DOA fame. The variety of characters is also quite solid, and many of them are truly creative in their concept, design and implementation. My primary complaint in the character category is that the idle animations are a bit weak, but honestly, other than the opening bell, how often are your characters idle, anyway?

The special effects and special moves in MK: Deadly Alliance are quite nice as well, with defroster-like smoke cascading off of Sub-Zero and flames trailing from Shang Tsung’s fireball attacks. Ironically, the fatalities are surprisingly blasé in their presentation and “excitement,” which is a significant disappointment for a game known for its finishing moves.

Sound
If you’ve ever heard a video-game punching, kicking or blocking noise, you’ve pretty much heard what this game has to offer. It’s nice to hear the ever-present MK ringside announcer say “Fight!” “Flawless Victory,” “Finish Him” and “Fatality,” but the soundtrack and environmental sounds are certainly nothing to write home about. With that said, they certainly don’t detract from the game either, it’s just that you aren’t going to recall much about the sound in this game after you turn it off. The Krypt has some nice environmental sound effects, but that’s about it.

Replayability
As a fighting game, most of the replayability in MK: Deadly Alliance lies in its multiplayer aspects. If you don’t have any friends, you won’t get much replay with this title. True, you can play through the Arcade and Konquest modes with multiple players, but after playing by yourself for a while and repeatedly cursing the AI, you’ll beg to play some human counterparts.

For some gamers, the 667 unlockable goodies will entice them to keep playing, but in all honesty, only about 50 to 75 of those items are really worth your while. New characters, new costumes and the like are serious draws, and all of these will have you playing so you can experiment with the “new guy.” The remaining 500-plus sketches, renderings, series-related art and interviews with the development team aren’t going to inspire too many people to keep playing, though.

In the end, if you like the Mortal Komat series or are searching for a new fighting game, Deadly Alliance is a long-overdue and worthwhile update to the storied franchise. And while it won’t win any awards for genre-altering innovation or AI balance, it gives us hope that Mortal Kombat can, someday, return to its glory days of fighting greatness. It just didn’t quite finish the job this time around.

Note: Be sure to grab our copy of the Mortal Kombat Fatalities List !