AdornedByFire Wrote:The Palace Gates stage was a pretty cool stage. I remember thinking when I played it at the arcades...what the hell is behind those red doors on the right edge of the screen, IIRC? I liked it along with these arenas to this day:
MK1 - every stage except the Warriors Shrine (I could of done without the character statues) Otherwise, it could have been better.
Mk2 - since the story started to go into the whole realm thing such as outworld, I didn't care much for the stages or graphics of this game. Only ones I care for are: The Deadpool and The Wastelands. And even though I believe this stage was set in Outworld, it still would have been plausible to set it on Earth.
Wont bother to mention other games. Nothing really memorable IMO. But what stages did you like from past games Baraka?
Anyways, definitely want MK to go back to the whole oriental theme and I hope we get a bunch of new arenas (since MK really needs to redefine itself, instead of rehashing). If not, there is always DLC :)
Would you include the Lower Mines from Deception in the list of death factories? Hahaha... But I thought that arena was cool. I think it might possibly fall into the whole oriental and archaic scheme of things, if they decide to keep these underground sort of arenas. Just maybe make the death traps look more like less technology was involved in making it. Like the laser bed pit in Quan Chi's Fortress, the Subway, or that rolling barrel in MKA's armory.
Also, they need to make things look more realistic, when they can. In the context of deathtraps: take a look at this of video of MKA's
Belltower. Notice how the victims limbs, come off like butter, when they hit the bottom blades. If they wanted to make that more believable, they should have made the victim hit the blades quicker. Since the force of falling from high above, could make this possible. Also what's up with the rat's dragging your limbs? ....hahaha...but I digress.
I like alot of what you're saying here ABF! Yeah, I'd consider the Lower Mines to be a death factory. Anything that has grinders that don't seem to grind anything beyond MK characters and a large monster mouth that does nothing but, you know, chomp MK characters... That's a death factory.
Any background that looks as though it was created simply for the death traps/stage fatalities, and not as a real fighting arena, which obviously most of Deceptions backgrounds fall in to, are death factories to me and I must say, I'm not a fan.
As far as arenas that I like? Well, like you, I tend to prefer the more asian theme of MK. Everyone on here always talks about how things need to be darker and grittier in MK, like they won't be happy unless they're surrounded by gargoyles and pure darkness or something.
I think that Deception got about as dark and gritty as I care for, but that's just me. At some point it ceases being cool and simply becomes corny.
As for the arenas that I like:
1) House of Pekara (MK:DA): There's just something about this arena that no MK arena has ever been able to replicate. It's almost ethereal and haunting in a sense. It's doesn't need blood water falls or the blacks/grays/browns everywhere to be dark. It looks dark while still looking bright as well. Easily the coolest looking arena they've ever come up with in my mind.
2) Lung Hai Temple (MK:DA): It seems like a rather simple concept, and while having dudes paddle an arena around seemed a bit odd, the overall look of the level is just awesome. The water, the pagodas, it has a very old school feel to it, like something you might see in a classic kung fu movie that features a tournament.
3) The Palace Gates (MK1): I agree with you whole heartedly on this arena. I wanted to see what was in the pagoda behind the statue, but more so I was convinced that you could somehow uppercut someone over the doors at either side of the stage and see what was on the other side. Just a great overall look to an arena.
4) Wu Shi Academy (MK:DA): A bit more out there in the overall idea (sorry, but how did they build this arena over a big hole of nothingness?) But I still like the asian theme and of course the large monks holding up the arena. Just a cool concept in style and execution.
5) The Wasteland (MK2): Probably what most people mean when they say "darker and grittier" when it comes to arenas. I don't know why the wastelands are purple, but it somehow makes sense and works well. It's a rather busy background, but that also works to its advantage. Plus, seeing all of the impaled people does wonders for thinking Shao Khan is a big a-hole.
6) The Pit (MK1): This was just an awesome idea. The first stage fatality. It was a bit plain due to the fact that all you really had was a sky behind you, but the fact that you could knock someone off of the pit gave the whole background a more precarious feel to it. Other versions might be more refined but this is the one that started it all.
7) The Armory (MK2): Another awesome MK2 background. It feels almost medieval given the weapons and what not. The colors work well to convey a sense of foreboding, which I dig.
8) The Temple (MK3): This is one of the few backgrounds from MK3 that I truly enjoy. The music was among the best in any MK arena... Ever. Plus you always wondered who was in that coffin. I also liked the candles in the foreground.
9) Rayden's Temple (MKvsDC): Holy crap, this level is awesome. While the large dragons are a bit overdone, this level is absolutely worthy of a Thunder God and a great addition to list of solid backgrounds in the MK universe.
10)The Warrior Shrine (MK1): I know you'll disagree, but I loved the Warrior Shrine, or at least the concept of it. The execution was solid, but just the idea of having all of the characters standing in front of you in stone somehow made all of the characters more... I dunno, legendary? I guess, that's the word I'm looking for. I'd like to see a modern update of that concept, only leave the MK1 characters in it and make the statues destructable.
Honorable mentions: The Sky Temple (MK:D), The Graveyard (MKvsDC), The Falling Cliffs (MK:D), The Church (MK4/Gold), The Courtyard (MK1) and Khan's Arena (MK2).
So yeah, like I said... I agree about returning to the more asian them. I think that MK:DA actually did a really good job with that to an extent. There were some hits and misses (not a fan of the acid bath and drum arena was kinda...meh).
