For now I think it's still fresh enough to just stick with the engine that's available, and tweak accordingly, for the sake of saving time.

For me, the real way to make a series worthwhile is to focus on the story, the extras, the characters, and things of that nature.

Cramming in all the characters possible is a great start.

More FMVs would be a great step in the right direction, too.

A new engine is diffinately needed, this time more effort needs to be put in it then the current one.

The game engine doesn't need to be overhauled at all. Its not particularly fresh, but its not stagnant either, and its got a lot of variety and depth that all other fighting games still seem to lack. Granted the attention to detail on some of the Martial Arts isn't perfect (for example, almost every style seems to have an axe-kick), but it adds a degree of both realism and diversity between the characters. It ensures that playing as Liu Kang is not exactly the same experience as playing as, say, Baraka, if you don't know their special moves. In past MK games, playing as either of those two WAS the same, and only the Bicycle Kick or Blade Fury made them any different.

I like having an MK game where I can play through as the same character and beat all the enemies and bosses, and get all the endings. I could never do that in the original games, and it was often more trouble than it was worth to complete it as one character, let alone the whole roster.

New characters in the MK games could be good, providing that they do them right. I think Midway needs to put more time and effort into the storyline and character development to ensure that they aren't stuck relying on Scorpion and Sub-Zero for the rest of their days. I don't think the game mechanics need to be fiddled with, other than to swap the graphics of MKDA and MKD over, since the former looked better in my opinion. But the story really needs some work doing to it.

From what I've seen about the MKSM (I've yet to play it), the Vs. mode is actually pretty sweet; if that could be the base for the next engine, maybe with a bit of tweaking here and there, it could work.

Hmmm, MKSM engine is totally different man. Its more free and interactive in VS mode.

Its a Okay idea but i dont think it would go down well maybe with a few tweaks it would be good but i dont know.

Play the game ASAP and see for yourself.

I agreee

at first MKSM vs mode seemed awesome.. but it tires verry quickly..

Maybe just Maybe if they made it 4 players, online and a hell of alot cleaner with more levels... it couuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuld work.. but it would be like rise of the imperfects..... and we all know how that ended.

I say go for a more free flow engines... something like DOA tekken etc..
I do enjoy the MK fighting engine, but its verry blocky and pre formed.. dosnt allow for the fluidity found in other games..

I think it should change a lot of things about its fighting system, maybe even go for a bit of a different one. I think that for most of the characters, they should have 1 unarmed style and 1 weapon style. There needs to be more moves and the moves have to be balanced and logical (e.g. jabs being very fast and safe but close ranged and hit high while sweeps are slower, have longer range, track and hit low). The defensive stuff needs to have more to it. There's more I could say, but I don't feel like it. I guess that it does need an overhaul on gameplay elements, but they need to be done right.

I think they could do a change of fighting engine when they move on to the next-gen consoles, WHENEVER that is(either MK7 or 8). The concept of 3 fighting styles is really cool, even though there are some aspects of it that can go, like Style Branch combos. Even though I've pretty much got the hang of doing them, I STILL hate them. Graphics could do with some upping, make control a little more better, rid the game of brokeness and glitchiness(not speaking from experience, just from what I've heard). The story's alright. Reform the engine when MK is moved to the next generation, fresh start once again, on a more powerful system. That would be pretty good for MK, I think.

I have to agree with everyone that mentioned the 3 fighing styles. I also hated the style branch combos, as they felt too clunky and executing them was more of a chore than anything resembling fun. I think that 1 hand to hand and 1 weapon style would make the fighting feel less disjointed. I'd also like to see alot of the ideas that guys like HDTran, FLStyle, TonyTheTiger, Bleed and others put on various threads regarding attack priority, recovery time, staggering, and a myraid of other ideas that would add greater fluidity to matches.

Overall, as far as the fighting mechanics go, I'd rather they scrap this system they have. Characters need individual moves, not styles with moves that all look similar to other moves. I'm not saying that Jax's wrestling style needs to be like Wolf's from Virtua Fighter, but styles in MK don't reflect their real life counter parts at all, so why have them? I'd rather see each charcter get one hand to hand style, rebuilt from the ground up, and one truly unique weapon for that individual. I'd like to see combos that don't require you to press a button to switch between styles.

As for the rest of the game, I think that the overhaul idea might be best. The graphics engine ranged from good (but not great) to servicable on current gen systems. I'm hoping we'll see something drastically improved for the next generation. I'd also like to see a focus on new modes that take advantage of the single player, versus, and online fighting. Yeah, survival would be great, but how about some new modes that no one has thought of yet? Get creative again! The backgrounds were good in MK:D, but not overly inspired. Lots of spikes. Whether rotating or planted in the ground. Can't we have something a bit...I dunno...different? Oh yeah, and throw out the krypt, konquest, and all other extraneous modes that don't have to do with fighting. Give us a practice mode, maybe a create a character mode (if it could be done right) and focus on 1) The fighting system, 2) the graphics 3) The game modes that actually matter and 4) The characters (be creative!).

That's my ten cents. MK:D was the wall for the current system. They need to go in a new direction for MK7.

Hillarious, would you like to explain what's lacking in other fighting games that the broken crap that is MK:D does have?

Apart from infinates, 50/50 mix-ups, no frame properties, movelists that only have 5% useful moves, no good parry/ reversal systems in sight, MK:D lacks many more fighting game basics and focuses on other things instead, and there was Boon saying he was trying to attract hardcore fighting game fans, the only thing he did was make MK even more less approachable.

Essentially the 50/50 game should not be just a emre guessing game, but itshould stay. Let there be a reason to use attacks with various heights.
You cannot avoid retaliation from below if you gave your entire momentum into a swing on the height of the head.

I'm speaking from experience, but my experience comes from rather old games, like Soul Calibur 2. I found myself using the same moves over and over again, using the same button over and over again, and winning through luck more than skill. I hate that kind of gameplay, whereas MK was at least entertaining and not massively repetitive.

I'm normally an RPG and Survival Horror fan myself, so I'm not really sure I get your point despite how much you've written. MK is a game I can pick up and play and get right into instead of struggling with button-bashing for the first few matches, like I do with every other fighting game I've ever played. Personally I don't care what Boon was going for with MKDA and MKD, hardcore fighters or novices, I liked the system, and I don't think it needs changing just yet, especially if the overhaul is just going to make it more difficult to use.

Maybe you want it to be for veteran fighters so you can feel elitist, but I just want a game I can wear my thumbs out on when I need something to fill my time. And, how does something be "more less approachable"? I understand what you mean, but bad grammar.

MK doesn't need to be complex in terms of the feel. It can made simple and easy to get into, sort of like the Soul Calibur type feel. Some characters should be easier or harder to master than others though.

MK definitely needs the essentials though like FLSTYLE basically said. I think that I'd be satisfied if it was at least half-way decent.

I have Soul Calibur 2, and if that's how you win games then you haven't played against many good players.


In a nut-shell MK:D fails to do what it was created for, being a decent fighting game, if you don't understand why from my use of fighting game terms then you should just take my word for it, you don't have enough knowledge in this area of games to argue with it.


You should put more effort into those "other" games as your experiences and how you win games don't seem to be enough for you to qualify you as someone with the right to judge them.


I don't mind that you liked the system, but it's a very sub-par system that needs bringing up to speed with todays standards.

No I just want a good MK game for the first time since UMK3.

Irrelevant to the discussion, you got the point, if you're looking for perfection then just imagine I wrote more unapproachable, the meaning of what is being said outways how it was said.

I'm sure you thought you were really clever pointing that out, but I'm a qualified A2 English Language and English Literature Student, I'm not impressed, that observation was basic at best.

Rise of the imperfects? How dare you compare that crappy game to Shaolin Monk's versus game. I wouldn't mind a MK game with that type of fighting. It's actually fun, innovative and easy to use.

Hell, the new game could have 2 fighting modes. Regular(like in Deception but tweaked) and Free(like in Shoalin Monks but tweaked). Shaolin Monks only have 8 character, but imagine the game with more characters, more levels and 4 players at once. It would be a nice Mortal Kombat game.

I agree with some of you, Deceptions engine seems tired, and clunky compared to SM Vs. mode. Add more characters, more and bigger levels (The smallest level being the size of the Combat Crage) AI, online, 4 player and a story mode. Tweak the combo system and more options (Vs. Team Vs, three on one, or King of the hill, where a player gets to the highest point of the level and tries to keep it the longest. It could work.

It "could" work? It would work! The engine is far better than any other fighting games like this(Rise Of The Imperfects or Gekido Urban Fighter) and it's Mortal Kombat after all.

I mean...would you guys buy a Mortal Kombat game if the gameplay would be changed to the Shoalin Monks gameplay(considering both modes would be in...FreeRoam and Original, like Deception).

I like the talk about the fighting engine so far. Lots of people have good ideas on this subject. Here are some questions that I'd pose in this thread (in no particular order) as they pertain to the main topic question:


1) Graphics: Do the graphics need to be upgraded style-wise, or should they be completely overhauled? I know the graphics will be a leap when the next gen MK hits, but you've seen what the graphics system for MK5/MK6 has to offer. Do you think that adding more detail and cutting out jaggies, clipping etc would be fine? Or should we see something completely different? Super life-like (with sweat, facial hair, clothing physics, real looking damage and other details like that), would you like to see MK look more plastic and almost action-figure like? That's not really a new direction, but it could be done better on next gen consoles. Or maybe you'd like a return to 2D? I doubt it would happen, but hey, it's your opinion right?

2) Fighting system: Should MK characters have movelists that are more individual to each character along the lines of Soul Calibur for weapons and Virtua Fighter for hand-to-hand? MK has never been particularly geared toward the individual characters regular move sets, despite the introduction of "styles" in MK5. Do you think that MK can make they characters regular moves more tailored to the individual character and still maintain the MK feel (ie uppercuts, roundhouses and sweeps seem to be necessary for every character, or are they?). Should they go in this direction or concentrate on making the current fighting system more fun to use? Going deeper into the fighting system, you have reversals, parrys, the ground game, attack priority, staggering, and a ton of other elements that MK has never been particularly good at doing in the new 3D era. Does MK need to be "brought up to speed," and can this be accomplished in the current fighting engine, or should the engine be scrapped entirely in favor of a new, more "modern" engine?

3) Backgrounds: Do you think that the backgrounds should be more interactive? There's been a push lately to make the backgrounds do more than just slope or move from one level to another. Do you like the MK6 style backgrounds? Are they too simplistic? What about deathtraps? Fighting games have been slowly moving away from the easy deaths, but MK has, if anything, been headed toward the easy kills. Which way would you go? As for style, do you like the direction that MK6 went? The dark gothic/industrial settings with a bit of eastern flavor or do you favor the full on eastern look of MK5/MK1? Would you go someplace new entirely?

4) Sound: Here's one I didn't think of before. What do you think of the music? Industrial style music with eastern overtones suit you? Would you like to see something more gothic? Chant? Industrial? Metal? Operatic? Something else entirely? Are you okay with the voices in the game?

5) Extras: The Krypt, Konquest, Test your Might, Test your Sight, Chess Kombat, Puzzle Kombat, loads of pictures and "unlockable" characters and videos and making-of vignettes. Is this stuff necessary? Do you feel these extras make the game more complete? Do you like the kurrency system? Should it be expanded? Done away with?

6) Modes: MK6 seemed to lag in the overall choices of fighting modes. You basically had 1 player, versus, online and practice. Is this enough for you? Is MK more of a two player game to you regardless? Should MK go with the more standard tag team, survival, time attack modes? Soul Calibur, Tekken and VF have all gone forward with customization for characters, and create a character modes have been growing slowly but steadily. Should MK jump to the forefront and give this option an MK feel? Would you like to create your own vampire? Shokan? Ninja? God of______? Earth Warrior? Something else entirely? Give the player the option to create their story, pick special moves from old and new characters as well as others created for this mode, fighting styles etc. Or does something like this seem like a waste of time and energy that could be better spent elsewhere? What modes would you put in MK7? Something brand new?


Okay, I know that there are a ton of questions in each number, but I figured that if you wanted to focus on one area, go for it, if you want to answer multiple questions, that's cool too.

In terms of graphics and overall look, it should have a nice blend of realistic and unrealistic elements. I think the characters should have a more realistic look to them, but there should also be some fantasy or mystical elements to them and whatnot.

With the fighting system, yes, there should be some depth and definitely have those essentials (ground game, move properties, etc.), but it should feel like a fighting game that's easy to get into. When it comes to the different martial arts styles, one thing that I feel I should address is that some styles will have the same moves. For example, if you take a look at Tae Kwon Do and Tang Soo Do, they pretty much have the exact same fighting stances and techniques due to their ancient Korean and ancient Chinese influences. So, they both use moves like the Axe Kick, Crescent Kick, Hammerfist, Knife Hand Strike, etc. What can be done to separate the two is of course to give them different moves out of the moves that those styles actually use sort of like how in the Tekken games you have Baek Doo San and Hwoarang use their TKD styles differently from each other.

There definitely needs to be more moves in the styles and things need to be balanced out nicely so that there is a usefulness for enough of the moves. I guess that even if there is some good balance there that there will be certain moves that people will gravitate more towards with using than others, but it's nice to have other useful moves and options too.

I'll cover the other stuff later and maybe add some more to what I said here.

The fight engine should be more fluid like in Tekken or DOA, The DA/D engine makes eveyone too stiff.I up for a more improved engine and less extras/pointless minigames.

Well, on one hand the MKDA/MKD engine is garbage and should by all means be replaced with something resembling a proper fighting game engine... but on the other hand I'm not convinced they should be spending all their time and energy making a new one as it'll likely end up just as crap anyway..

even though i do like the current gen of MKs, im definatley expecting a overhaul, with maybe a few key elements from MKDA and MKD. But definatley in the artistic/graphical department.

I'm for a complete overhaul. I know that MKDA was the series brave step into 3D(I don't see MK4 as a 3D game) but by now they should understand how a 3D fighting game is supposed to function. Although the last two MK games were in 3D, they felt really stiff in terms of the actual fighting. We thought that MKD was going to be an upgrade in terms of the fighting system, but it didn't happen. If I remember correctly Boon dodged the question of what new things were done to the system for MKD. If they are taking MK in the direction of becoming a truly serious fighting game capable of competing with other fighters( VF,Tekken, SC) an a complete overhaul is needed.

With so little expertise on my side, I suppose I was wrong to get into a technical debate. Still, whether I know what I am talking about or not, I played the game exhaustively and never found there to be any problem with it. I hear a lot of people complaining about things I don't see any reason to do that with, and reinforcing their claims with technical jargon relating to things that are so obscure as to be trivial. I would think the only concern is just to be able to play the game with relative ease, which you can do with MKDA and MKD, or at least, I could. If no one else sees it that way, then I guess I am just easily pleased. I'm certainly not wrong, because this is a matter of opinion.



Heh, so am I. You take yourself too seriously. Learn some humility maybe, and don't be such a jerk when speaking with someone without as much technical expertise as you. You can make your case as you want, doesn't mean you have to piss on mine, and it doesn't mean I'll agree with you, just because you have the dubious distinction of knowing more than me about the mechanics of fightings games.