Mortal Kombat

Jan 29, 2009
7,187
MK9_PS3.jpg

Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment just revealed that the famous fighting franchise will return to PlayStation 3 in 2011 in a new MK that will be played in 2D.

The company says that the game will include extensive online play, a "tag-team" game option that supports up to four players in two-person teams and "the deepest story mode of any fighting game." The game will also support classic 1 vs. 1 combat. The graphics engine is said to be brand-new.

MK creator Ed Boon is overseeing the project, which is in development at the new MK-centric NetherRealm Studios in Chicago. "This game really is a response to what players have been demanding," Boon said in a press release, "mature presentation, reinvented 2D fighting mechanic and the best, most gruesome fatalities ever!"

Mortal Kombat was last seen in video game form in 2008's Mortal Kombat Vs. DC Universe, a T-rated game that toned down the series' classic violence so that Superman could tangle with Sub-Zero and friends. Mortal Kombat has been in the news this week thanks to the Mortal Kombat Rebirth movie pitch trailer that we showcased here on Kotaku.

Order

Standard: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003O6E1JS/?tag=hidefnin-20
Collectors: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004GD1Q4G/?tag=hidefnin-20
Tournament: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004GD1Q2I/?tag=hidefnin-20
 
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Announcement Trailer:

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Confirmed Characters:

Cyrax
Johnny Cage
Kratos
Kira
Kitana
Kung Lao
Mileena
Nightwolf
Raiden
Rain
Reptile
Scorpion
Sektor
Shang Tsung
Shao Kahn
Sub-Zero

Confirmed Levels (Based on Trailer):

Throne Room (MK1)
Dead Pool (MK2)
Kahns Arena (MK2)
Living Forest (MK2)
Pit II (MK2)
Bridge (MK3)
Rooftop (MK3)

Screens:

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MKVS3.png


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Trailers:




Mortal Kombat - Welcome To The Pit!

 
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scorpion.jpg

Scorpion has been confirmed. Also notice the bottom right corner where the DLC characters will be. (I assume the arrow down will take you to a sub-menu)

SPOILER

Mortal Kombat Fatality Montage:

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E3 Encounters: Mortal Kombat for PS3

Mortal Kombat and I go way back — I can’t imagine the 90s without it. I still play Mortal Kombat II regularly on the PS3, and know the button commands for every single Fatality by heart, even Shang Tsung’s secret third Fatality that requires holding down the Low Punch button for 30 seconds. Ahem.

Anyway, Jeff Rubenstein and I decided to stop by the Warner Brother Interactive booth at the 2010 E3 Expo to check out the new Mortal Kombat. I met with Steve Beran, a longtime MK series veteran and director of art for the newly named Netherrealm Studios. We talked about the new vision for the gory brawler, got a sneak peek at the new Fatalities and stereoscopic 3D support, and went hands-on for a few matches.

Mortal Kombat is a re-imagining of the events of the first three games (“the fan favorites” according to Beran) meaning you’ll see lots of familiar faces: ninja specter Scorpion, his rival Sub-Zero, cybernetic assassin Sektor, misshapen clone Mileena, and Hollywood action star Johnny Cage have all made the cut. All told, Mortal Kombat will feature at least 24 fighters — a mix of old favorites as well as newcomers — with more on the way post-launch via PSN downloadable content.

Steve told me each character would have “at least” one alternative costume, so make of that what you will. Characters are definitely coming via DLC.

Mortal Kombat will return to the 2D, juggle-centric fighting style popularized by the earlier titles, but the core fighting mechanics are seeing modern, HD enhancements. Most obvious are the devastating new “X-ray” attacks. The camera sweeps in to show the victim’s innards as the aggressor snaps, cracks, and gouges away. “Ribs shatter, jaws break, teeth pop out,” Beran elaborated. “It’s one of the things we’re most excited about.” What’s more, each character possesses a unique-looking innards, meaning that Reptile’s skeleton looks different than Mileena’s, Sektor’s guts look appropriately cybernetic, and so on.

The gruesome “X-ray” attacks are the most dramatic example of Mortal Kombat’s new Super meter, which builds in power as you inflict and absorb damage during each match. A well-timed “X-ray” attack can wipe out nearly half an opponent’s life bar, particularly when chained into another juggle combo. “X-ray” attacks require a full Super meter but, at lower levels, the Super meter will also enable you to power-up a character’s special move for extra damage and beneficial effects, or swap in a tag-team partner mid-combo for a brutal two-man juggle. How you best leverage the Super meter is up to you.

Then there are the Fatalities, the most recognizable and controversial element in any Mortal Kombat title. “In this game,” Beran told me, “we starting thinking about the Fatalities much earlier.” It shows. The new Fatalities are ghoulishly inventive: Kung Lao dragging his victim through his buzzsaw-like bladed hat, Reptile giving a venom-spewing french kiss, and Scorpion slicing and dicing with his katana will make longtime series fans quiver with delight.

Oh, I also donned a pair of 3D glasses in order to experience a video of a Mortal Kombat match running in stereoscopic 3D on the PS3. The fighting genre seems to be a good fit for 3D: the detailed characters, sparkling projectiles, and gushing bodily fluids popped off the screen at a smooth 60 frames per second.

Mortal Kombat will hit the PS3 in 2011, with online play being a major focus.
 
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Cyrax and Kitana confirmed for Mortal Kombat!

The latest additions to the cast of Mortal Kombat 9 are Cyrax and Kitana. Cyrax is a robotic ninja who shoots green webs and missiles at foes, while Kitana is a sexy fan-wielding warrior.

You can check out screens of the two in the new screens posted in the OP.
 
Mortal Kombat co-creator Ed Boon says that his studio's newest fighting game is being built with better online balancing in mind, letting the developer finesse aspects of the combat after it ship—without the need for software patches.

Boon said at Gamescom this week that the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 fighting game has software "hooks" built into it that will reduce the need for post-launch updates that users will be required to download.

"The past few games, we've had some exploits that we thought 'We'd really like to fix that,'" Boon said in an interview with Kotaku. "With the introduction of online, imbalances become very publicly exploited. You can fix them with patches—and every game has their really powerful characters, like Sagat in Street Fighter IV."

The MK team's last game, Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe, suffered from that very problem. The game's Superman had a combo that could be chained together infinitely—a frustrating exploit.

"Everybody wants to ship the perfectly balanced game, but when it has been played for six months and beat on by everybody, players are going to find its weaknesses," Boon said. "We're actually putting stuff in the game that lets us 'turn knobs' after the [game ships]. We have knobs that we can turn to further tweak the game once we know everyone has been bashing on it.

"I mean, we can't add a special move, but we can slow a projectile down or speed a projectile up or tweak the damage, just to kind of fine tune it after the fact."

One of the Mortal Kombat team's other post-launch plans calls for "aggressive" downloadable content. Since the 2011 Mortal Kombat will be comprised largely (if not exclusively) of characters from the original 1992 Mortal Kombat, Mortal Kombat II and Mortal Kombat 3, don't expect too many new faces. Those three games "really defined the vast majority of the characters that were going to be in it," Boon says.

"We know we're going to be really aggressive with the DLC," he says. "That's a great opportunity for either a brand new character that nobody's ever seen before or bringing back a character that was in MK4 or later.

"That's how we're going to introduce more characters. They're not going to be on the disc and you'll unlock it or something. You'll actually download the data."

"The big challenge is getting the DLC characters to people who didn't buy them," Boon says, addressing the potential problem of splitting the online playerbase into DLC haves and have-nots. Given that the MK team plans on offering downloadable fighters a la carte, it's a thorny problem.

"We're going to need a patch or some kind of delivery method—and we're still trying to solve it," Boon says. "One option is a free character that everybody gets and get you all the purchasable ones too. If you download a free version of Raiden or whoever, you'll get everything." Other options include offering free fatalities or environments, but it sounds like Boon is leaning toward giving away at least some combatants as part of their DLC solution.

Boon says that the Mortal Kombat team may also follow in Street Fighter IV's footsteps and will think about releasing a version of the game for the PC.

"We're definitely considering it," Boon says. "I've thought 'How many fighting game players are PC guys?' Apparently there seems to be a market for that in Europe. Since we're on the Unreal Engine, I guess it's not that much of a change from the console versions." Those plans definitely sound like they're open to change, as publisher Warner Bros. has only announced Mortal Kombat for consoles.

We'll have more on Mortal Kombat and NetherRealm Studios' future plans soon.
 
Mortal Kombat: "We're Coming Back with a Vengeance"

Pretty soon, Mortal Kombat is going to turn 20, but the franchise has no intention of slowing down. Need proof? Look ahead to this week's Penny Arcade Expo. For the first time, the general public is going to get to lay its hands on the brand new Mortal Kombat Warner Brothers is working on right now. It's a Mortal Kombat that's ditching the Babalities and superhero tights for blood, x-ray moves, and grotesque finishers.

But, don't take our word for it. Even though he's hastily getting ready for his game's debut, Ed Boon was nice enough to sit down with IGN and answer some of the burning questions the upcoming debut and today's hot trailer have raised.

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IGN: Ed, thank you for joining us today to talk about Mortal Kombat. The first and primary concern for everyone out there, I think, is "Where is Superman?"

Ed Boon: Where is Superman? He's resting.

IGN: Will he ever return to Mortal Kombat?

Ed Boon: I don't know. There's no current plan.

IGN: All right. Well, those were all of my questions.

Ed Boon: Great.

IGN: It's been a pleasure talking – ah, I'm just kidding with you. Where are we right now? Where are you guys in the development of the game?

Ed Boon: Well, right now we're getting ready for the PAX show. This is going to be the first time that the public gets to play, and we're excited about that. We have a number of these events, shows and things that we're planning for. So we do that while at the same time kind of advancing the game forward in general, but our most immediate goal is getting a version ready for PAX.

IGN: For the people coming into PAX who maybe don't know that much about it, where dos this one stand in the Mortal Kombat legacy? What are people getting into?

Ed Boon: Oh, wow. You mentioned Superman in the beginning, and while [Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe] performed well, it certainly created a hunger or a lust for a little bit more bloodshed and a little bit more of what Mortal Kombat has been notorious for. We saw this opportunity to sort of give [fans] what they want on every single level – not just the fact that we're going to an M-rated presentation, which is big, but give them the gameplay they've been clamoring for. There's been a lot of clamoring for Mortal Kombat to sort of return to the 2D stuff, and I think sort of Street Fighter has verified that's a good direction. And also giving them a lot deeper of a gameplay experience than we've ever given. This Mortal Kombat is probably the one where we're most consciously going after the sort of hardcore fighting game player while staying accessible, which is something Mortal Kombat's always kind of focused on – that anybody can have fun with it.

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This is Mortal Kombat kind of going back on two or three different levels: M-rated presentation with the crazy fatalities, the 2D combat, and a deeper fighting engine.

IGN: So, how hard is it to balance that? You're talking about still wanting to have that "pick up and play" type of thing where anyone can just jump in and have fun but also balance it so the super-hardcore people who put 300 hours into the game can still get more out of it.

Ed Boon: It's a constant source of conversation that we always have, but I guess I would describe it as layers. The analogy I always bring up is that I want anybody to be able to throw Scorpion's spear. I want anybody to make Sub Zero slide through an ice ball. I don't want to do attacks that only 20 percent of the public have the dexterity to perform. That's always, to me, a negative. But at the same time, we're cutting up our moves so that there are opportunities within a move that the casual player might not be interested in or might not dig into – certainly immediately – but the hardcore guy can get into. Like when you throw Scorpion's spear, there might be a moment in there, a few frames where they can break out of it or enhance it or put another move in there.

From the casual guy's standpoint, he can still do cool, macro fun stuff, but we're dissecting things and creating opportunities that the hardcore guys can really dig into.

IGN: Excellent. Who all's going to be back for this? What characters are we looking at?

Ed Boon: Well, the announced characters –

IGN: No, no. I don't want to hear the announced ones. I want to hear the one's you're revealing right here.

Ed Boon: Well, I wish I had the OK to give you that information. I can tell you this though, and I've said this a number of times, this is in some ways a retelling of the Mortal Kombat I-II-III storyline. I think for the most part, if you have a favorite character from Mortal Kombat I, II and III, there's a very good chance that they're going to be in the game.

IGN: As far as PAX then, this is people's first chance really to get hands on with it. We haven't really seen any footage outside of the trailer at Gamescom. Where is this build? What can people expect when get there? Who is actually playable in Seattle?

Ed Boon: There's going to be all the characters from E3 – which I think there were six or eight – with the addition of Kitana from Mortal Kombat 2 and Cyrax from Mortal Kombat 3.

IGN: It seems like there's been a little bit of a Mortal Kombat renaissance. You figure the game we've been hearing about for a while now, but what did you think that trailer that went up that people were freaking out about? The live action one with Jeri Ryan.

Ed Boon: Oh, I was freaking out along with everybody. I was person number 1 million sitting in front of my computer monitor going "What the hell is this? Oh my God." This reimagining of Mortal Kombat, and I thought it was cool. I thought it was something they should be given the chance to make. It certainly had a very defined personality and style and direction. This guy has a vision, clearly, so I would love to see it happen.

IGN: Have they reached out to you since then?

Ed Boon: No. Nobody's reached out to me. I've been asked a number of times about it. To be honest, it's really not my decision. I suppose I could help champion the cause by just throwing in my endorsement or something like that, but I don't own Mortal Kombat. Warner Brothers does. So it's not like "Ed, do you want to make the movie? Nope? Then, OK, we won't."

IGN: But, I mean, you're Noob Saibot. You could make it happen.

Ed Boon: I can have some influence, probably, but I don't know if I could make it happen.

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IGN: Well, great, is there anything else you want to touch on? This is the big reveal for the public; what do you want them to know coming into PAX?

Ed Boon: It's funny. Whenever people play this game, everybody to me kind of volunteers this information of "Wow, this reminds me of playing Mortal Kombat II at the Pizza Hut down the street" or "the 7-11 when I was 15 years old." Just some oddly specific memory that they want to volunteer for me. That's what this game is. It's the Mortal Kombat II and III kind of experience. The 2D stuff. Those great strategies of jumping over projectiles and ducking under projectiles and throwing people and stage Fatalities and really shocking, gruesome Fatalities. Stuff that has been very signature to Mortal Kombat that we took a departure from.

And now, we're coming back with a vengeance. As aggressively as possible in all those categories that I talked about. To me personally, I'm confident that the people who play are going to walk away totally psyched to buy this game.

IGN: Final question: of the announced characters, who has the coolest Fatality?

Ed Boon: Who has the coolest Fatality? Let me run through them in my head.

IGN: Watch them all in slow motion.

Ed Boon: Kung Lao, I think to me, is the coolest Fatality. It's the combination of his two Fatalities from Mortal Kombat II. He throws his hat and it's like a boomerang style. So when it comes back, it cuts the other guy's head off. And that's like one of his Fatalities from last game. But then, before he falls over, he splits the guy like a banana right down. From his neck down, and then those two parts peel away. And then you just have three parts. His head and the two halves of his body. It's awesome.

IGN: Excellent. Can't wait to see it.

Ed Boon: It's even cooler in 3D.
 
Boon: Mortal Kombat 2011 is first to be made with 'hardcore' in mind

Speaking during a chat with ShackNews, Mortal Kombat co-creator Ed Boon has revealed that the latest entry in the venerable beat ‘em up franchise is the first to be made with features specifically designed for hardcore gamers and tournament goers.

Boon revealed that the new Mortal Kombat team have been getting feedback from “expert” players during the course of the game’s development, though was quick to point out that the studio also want the brawler to be accessible to newcomers.

"This is the first Mortal Kombat game where we are consciously putting in features for the hardcore/tournament fighters and we have some amazing fighting game "experts" playing our game and giving us constant feedback," said Boon.

"At the same time we want the game to be accessible for all Mortal Kombat players, so there is something for all types of fans. It's important for us that anyone can pick up the controller and have fun right away," he added.

Elsewhere, Boon also touched on the game’s character roster, hinting that new additions may be included by way of post-launch downloadable content. One thing is for sure though – expect many fan favourites to put in an appearance.

"It's safe to say that many of the fan favorite characters from the original Mortal Kombat game thru Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 will most likely make an appearance in some form or another. With DLC, we will have the opportunity to expand on the character roster after the game is out so there is always potential for more to come."
 
Know what would be bad ass. You know inthe TMNT game you can grab a guy and kinda throw him where his body flies at the screen. Imagine some MK moves where the fatality is something brutal lethal and they throw the guy.

Or remember those old ones where they like put a bomb down their throat or some crap and their body explodes ... I could just see the projectiles in 3D kicking ass!

This is the confirmed going back to "hardcore" gives this game huge potential.
 
Mortal Kombat due out in April 2011

Warner has announced that bloody brawler Mortal Kombat will be released in April 2011.

The publisher also confirmed that punters will be able get their hands on two versions of the game on launch day – a standard release and the Kollector’s Edition, though the contents of the latter remains unknown at present.

Developed by NetherRealm Studios, Mortal Kombat will feature God of War bruiser Kratos as a PS3-exclusive fighter, as well as stereoscopic 3D support. In terms of regular characters, expect a host of familiar faces to pop up, including series regulars Scorpion, Sub-Zero, Johnny Cage and Raiden.
 
Mortal Kombat Gets Kratos Trailer, April Release Window and US Kollector's Edition



How does a double dose of Mortal Kombat news sound? Good? Well forget it, because round these parts, we like to go triple. That's just how we roll. First of all, as you'll already know, the angriest Spartan ever, God of War's Kratos is coming to Mortal Kombat as a PS3-exclusive guest fighter, and there's an extended VGA trailer to celebrate. Be sure to check that out after the break.

Mortal Kombat news drop number 2 is the announcement of a super special Kollector's Edition, which comes with collectible Scorpion and Sub-Zero figurines, a collectible art book and DLC that includes Klassic costumes and avatar items.

For the real hardcore, there's also the MK Tournament Edition, which packages the same downloadable goodies with a portable fight stick. And when we say that this edition is limited, we mean it, as there'll only be 20,000 Tournament Editions available. Both editions are currently US only.

There's also some US pre-order bonuses to consider too, with more classic costumes up for grabs. GameStop is offering the original Scorpion skin with his original fatality, while Sub-Zero and Reptile get the same skin and original fatality combo if you pre-order from Best Buy or Amazon, respectively.

Mortal Kombat is slated for April 2011 and will support full stereoscopic 3D on PS3. Blood flying at the screen in 3D? Sign us up now!
 
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Mortal Kombat Kollector's Edition Images Surface On GameStop

Announced Monday, Mortal Kombat's Kollector's Edition and premium Tournament Edition have now surfaced on GameStop, showing the contents of both in all their shiny and highly collectible glory.

The images of the MK Kollector's Edition show the Scorpion figurine, with Sub Zero presumably inside the box, represented as a silhouette on the packaging. He's definitely in there though, as the figures also double as bookends. There's also a 110-page 'Art of Mortal Kombat' book, a Retro Ninja skin and Mortal Kombat PSN Avatar items in the package, and pre-ordering the game grants you the classic Scorpion skin with his original fatality. GameStop has the Kollector's Edition priced at $99.99.

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Or you could get the Tournament Edition for $149.99. This version bundles the game with a high quality fight stick designed by NetherRealm Studios and inspired by the Mortal Kombat arcade cabinets of yore, with authentic Suzo Happ parts.

The stick's buttons and joystick interface is laid out just like the classic arcade cabinet and also flips open to enable easy customisation of the parts and a handy place to store the game and other bits and bobs, if you so desire. The Tournament Edition also comes with a code to download a 'Retro Ninja Costume' for use in game and GameStop is also offering the same Scorpion skin as a pre-order bonus.

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Mortal Kombat a 'fan service,' says Ed Boon

Mortal Kombat mastermind Ed Boon has said that 2011’s eponymous entry in the venerable beat ‘em up series has been designed specifically to give long time fans the spine-ripping gore fest they’ve been clamouring for.

Due out next spring, the blood-soaked brawler has been crafted as a ‘fan service,’ with Boon commenting that the title feels like a combination between Mortal Kombat II and Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. That’s a good thing, in case you wondered.

Chatting with 1up at the Spike 2010 Video Game Awards over the weekend, Boon said: "Our biggest intention is kind of like a Mortal Kombat fan service."

"Mortal Kombat's taken a number of turns and we've kind of reinvented ourselves a few times and in the last game was the biggest departure because we were actually a T-Rated (Teen) game, so this game will really come back and be as 'Mortal Kombat' as anybody ever remembers."

"It's very much giving the Mortal Kombat fans the Mortal Kombat they've been asking for," he concluded.

From what we’ve seen so far, the game certainly looks set to capture that quintessential Mortal Kombat experience, featuring hosts of classic characters, stages and bone-crunching fatalities. What’s more, PS3 owners will be treated to an exclusive combatant in the form of God of War’s bald brute himself, Kratos.
 
Mortal Kombat Kicks Off PTOM’s List of Biggest Games of 2011

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We knew it would make the cut. How could it not? After all, Mortal Kombat isn’t just destined to be one of the biggest fighting franchises of 2011, but it’s one of the best we’ve played in a long time. It’s fast, it’s fun, it’s brutal, and it harkens back to the series’ gory glory days. The move to a 2D plane, the giddy celebration of everything that’s great about the Mortal Kombat franchise, the mix of faithful fan-service with future-looking gameplay upgrades: It’s exactly what we at PlayStation: The Official Magazine crave in our heavy hitters.

Then we found out Kratos would be in the game, and that’s all it took for Mortal Kombat to kick, punch, impale, and maim its way to the tippy top of our Hugest Games of 2011 issue.

Not only did we get a sneak peek at Kratos’ in-game model, but we’ve got the first-ever screenshots of the God of War in action—along with this unbelievably gorgeous cover. On stands Dec. 21, the January issue of PTOM has our hands-on impressions of the game, along with razor-sharp insight from series creator Ed Boon and his team at developer NetherRealm. We even have the first images of a newly revealed kontestant, Ermac.

It’s all part of our grand look at what’s hot for 2011, a list that includes massive shooters like Killzone 3 and Rage, magnificent adventures like L.A. Noire and The Last Guardian, and brilliant innovators like Metal Gear Solid: Rising and Child of Eden. Be sure to pick up the issue for new screens, information, and insight into all these games and more!

Also in the January issue: a playtest of four MMOs coming to PS3 (including an in-depth look at DC Universe Online); a list of 51 PlayStation resolutions for the new year; the complete Gran Turismo 5 car list in one handy spread; and dozens of previews and reviews of the latest and greatest PS3, PSP and PSN releases. Don’t miss it!
 
Mortal Kombat dev says Kratos will 'stay true' to form

Mortal Kombat mastermind Ed Boon’s revealed that NetherRealm Studios is working hard to ensure that Kratos’ appearance in Mortal Kombat will measure up to gamers expectations.

Boon insisted the team is working closely with the developers of God of War so that the Kratos stays true to form, stating NetherRealm has ‘nothing but respect’ for Kratos’ creators.

"A little bit of both actually," Boon told GamesMaster, when quizzed as to who approached who regarding the prospect of the God of War anti-hero appearing in Mortal Kombat.

"In our discussions with Sony we all wanted a character that was unique to the PS3, and Kratos was at the top of everyone's list.”

"His look and fight style are very compatible to the MK universe. Everyone is really excited about this opportunity, and it's been great working with the God of War team in making this happen."

"With any great IP, there are guidelines that must be followed. We're working really closely with the God of War team to ensure that Kratos looks and feels the way gamers expect him to. We have nothing but respect for the God of War development team, and our goal is to stay true to their creation.”

Elsewhere, the MK creator also teased that fans can expect to see Kratos clobbering his foes with a series of trademark moves, with the studio having made "a very conscious effort” to kit him out with a classic GoW repertoire.

"Kratos is very much a power character," he commented, adding, "in that his attacks can do a lot of damage. After all, he is the God of War."
 
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