Mortal Kombat 4

"This game IS good! and you can TRUST this review!"

First and foremost, PLEASE don’t judge this game on the basis of the first few reviews on this page. The game is NOT as bad as they say it is. It would be a shame for you to not buy this game on the sole basis of their shallow, uninformed comments. Please do read my review, and if you still don’t want to get the game, then that’s ok. But really, apart from rottenwood and Swriter, I’m the only one you can trust.

GAMEPLAY: The most pressing problem I have to address is the fact that so many reviewers say that the ability to draw out weapons in this game is far too slow, and that the game is much worse because of it. While it may be quite slow to draw out a weapon in the middle of combat, if you perform the weapon draw command during a combo, your character takes out his/her weapon IMMEDIATELY! No more slow weapon draws! And even if you were to take out your weapon when standing alone, if you’re far enough away you won’t get pummelled by your opponent, no matter what difficulty you’re playing the game at. It is incredibly unfair and misinformed of people to criticise this game for the slow weapon draw reason.

Another thing that needs to be made clear is the difficulty level of this game. Now, fair enough, it is quite hard, but not NEARLY as hard as some people are making it out to be. True, the computer will dodge your attacks sometimes, and true, you will get the tail end of quite a few combos (though this will happen less and less as you get better), but the game is far from impossibly difficult. It is quite possible to finish Mortal Kombat 4 on the hardest difficulty, no continues, Master II opponents. I did it just today. This will take a long time to accomplish, and the more novice of the gamers out there may find things a bit too frustrating at first, but the more you stick with it, the better you’ll become. Anybody who relies on the cheap jump-kick-in-the-corner tactic will be disappointed for this game, though, as the computer is too smart to fall for that. Practice makes perfect.

Controls. They are quite good. It is most advisable to use the D-Pad when playing this game, as it makes things infinitely easier to control, but you will probably work that out for yourself about one minute into a battle. Your character responds well to the buttons when you press them, contrary to what other people may say. Some of the moves are a little tricky to string together, but again, practice makes perfect. Live on the D-Pad and you’ll be all right.

STORY: Hmmmmmmm. It’s not too bad for this game. Each character has his or her own reasons for fighting, such as good guys fighting for justice and bad guys fighting for power. The usual deal. The endings for each character aren’t bad, and most of them make you feel that fighting your way through to Shinnok and beating him senseless was worth it. With the exception of Reiko’s ending. I won’t spoil it for you, but if you want to see a good ending AVOID REIKO AT ALL COSTS!!!!!! He wins my Crappest Ending Of All Time Awardä award hands down.

GRAPHICS: Most excellent. The characters are finely detailed and the backgrounds are clear. Each character has their own distinct look, be they a new comer or a re-doing of those from the original arcade game. Some of the new costumes are utterly fantastic as well. My personal favourite is Sub Zero’s new costume where his arms and legs are frozen. Not only that, but they actually SMOKE from the coldness as well! Some of the others worth noting include Scorpion’s grey suit, Reptile’s green one (from the earlier games, only better) and Johnny Cage’s James Bond-style dinner suit. Each character has about three or four costumes to choose from, and none of them disappoint, much like any of the graphics this game has to offer. Truly impressive.

SOUNDS: Everything is here, from the blood-curdling screams of a person who’s just had their heart removed to the sound of a weapon being drawn. The fighters make various noises after each attack; the attacks themselves are accompanied by some pleasing sound effects upon contact, and there’s even some voice sampling involved in most characters endings. Not only that, but each character has a different voice as opposed to them all sharing the same, monotones one. From Reptile’s hiss and Goro’s snarl to the sound of a weapon flying through the air and tearing into your opponents flesh, the sounds in this game continue to please.

REPLAY FACTOR: Seeing each character’s ending will keep you going on this game, and the challenge factor is high enough without being insanely difficult. I just recently played this game again after not playing it for about a year, and I still like it. It’ll keep you coming back if you’re a fan of the series.

BUY/RENT: This isn’t a terribly new game, so if you find a copy around it should probably be about $50. I wouldn’t pay much more than $60 for it, though. It’s not the kind of game you’ll play for hours on end, so think about how much you want it if it’s more than $60. But if you can find it in a second hand shop for something like $30, snap it up, as chances are you won’t find it cheaper and renting it won’t leave you completely satisfied.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 06/02/01, Updated 06/02/01