I have always been a fan of the MK series. Not because the graphics were great or the storyline was awesome, but mainly becasue the games were fun. SO Sunday I picked up the new iteration "Shaolin Monks". I have to say this is a fairly different MK experience than past games. The game is more of a platform fighter. It moves away from the traditional stand around and try to beat your opponent to a pulp, to move through a stage and try to beat a lot of guys to a pulp. A traditional Vs. mode is included, as well as an unlockable full version of MKII. The former however starts out with only a couple of fighters and you have to play through the single player missions to unlock more. There are tons of other secrets and things to unlock, including a bunch of fatalities, multalities, and brutalities. The gameplay has ranged from pretty easy to frustratingly difficult, mainly because some of the tasks you have to do require you to take on several bosses at once. If you are a fan of the series you'll probably like this one as well, however if you are a fan of platformers you'll probably also like the game. It gives a nice, new twist to the MK franchise.
I've also read a few other good reviews for this game... however, isn't the concept a little similar to "Death in Degrees"?
I've never played death in degrees, so I can't really comment. I guess the most basic way to describe the 1P mode is that it is a MK platformer. It has the basic elements of a platform game (Puzzles, jump areas, boss fights) with a MK setting. One thing I really didn't touch on in the first post was the KO-OP mode. I haven't played it but have heard that it is pretty fun. You and a partner team up and play through the 1P missions, but there are extras in those missions that you cannot access in single player. Add to all that, the fact that you can play a normal MK vs. mode, play the full version of MKII and you have a pretty versatile game. For me though one of the more enjoyable aspects is all of the references to past games. Fatalities use old fatality combos. "Toasty" reappears complete with a down + start Easter Egg. And a host of former characters make appearances.
Man I used to love Mortal Kombat. MKII was ridiculously fun and me and my buddies played that to death. I also played a bunch of MKIII. In fact there was a code or glitch in some of the early versions of MKIII (arcade) where you could get unlimited credits by passing the game, then turning off and on the machine and then doing some button/joystick combination. Me and my friend actually got banned from an arcade for doing that. After a short stint playing Ultimate MK III, I haven't touched the series since. Don't have as much time for video games anymore. Man, those were some good times though.
Death in degrees is derived from tekken, but I guess it only has one character, Nina, and there's no normal vs. mode. Tekken tag I remember has a mini game similar to what you are describing. I like MK, however, I don't know if I want to invest in current generation games anymore.
I totally understand. I told my wife that after this game and maybe one other in November, this would be my last PS2 purchases. I'll begin trading in for the presale of the PS3 as soon as I am through playing them. The only thing about it is that the PS3 is supposed to be backwards compatible so there a re a few classics I have kept that I'll still be able to play.
I thought I remember playing a game like this on the PS1 yeeeears ago... /google search Ah... Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero on N64
