''Mortal Kombat: Armageddon'' is a 2006

fighting video game A fighting game, also known as a versus fighting game, is a genre of video game that involves combat between two or more players. Fighting game combat often features mechanics such as blocking, grappling, counter-attacking, and chaining attac ...

and it is the seventh main installment in the ''

Mortal Kombat ''Mortal Kombat'' is an American media franchise centered on a series of video games originally developed by Midway Games in 1992. The development of the first game was originally based on an idea that Ed Boon and John Tobias had of making a v ...

'' franchise and a sequel to 2004's '' Mortal Kombat: Deception''. The

PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October 2000, in Europe on 24 November 2000, and in Australia on 3 ...

and

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versions were released in October 2006, with a

Wii The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America and in December 2006 for most other Regional lockout, regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major ho ...

version released on May 29, 2007 in North America. The

version was not released in

PAL Phase Alternating Line (PAL) is a colour encoding system for analogue television. It was one of three major analogue colour television standards, the others being NTSC and SECAM. In most countries it was broadcast at 625 lines, 50 fields (25 ...

territories. Chronologically the final chapter in the original ''Mortal Kombat'' storyline, it features virtually every character from the previous games. Players select one of them and battle a selection of the other fighters to determine the fate of the ''Mortal Kombat'' universe. The gameplay retains many of the same elements from the previous ''Mortal Kombat'' titles '' Deadly Alliance'' and ''

Deception Deception or falsehood is an act or statement that misleads, hides the truth, or promotes a belief, concept, or idea that is not true. It is often done for personal gain or advantage. Deception can involve dissimulation, propaganda and sleight o ...

'', including characters' multiple fighting styles. Instead of the prescripted Fatalities of the previous games, players can now create their own Fatality from a series of gory attacks. They can also design a custom character using the "Kreate a Fighter" mode. The game also includes the story-based Konquest mode from ''Deception'', now casting the player as the warrior Taven, who must defeat his evil brother Daegon. Succeeding its predecessor "Puzzle Kombat" is a new

mini game The Mini is a small, two-door, four-seat car, developed as ADO15, and produced by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors, from 1959 through 2000. Minus a brief hiatus, original Minis were built for four decades and sold during ...

called "Motor Kombat", a cartoonish driving game influenced by ''

Mario Kart is a series of racing games developed and published by Nintendo. Players compete in go-kart races while using various power-up items. It features characters and courses from the ''Mario'' series as well as other gaming franchises such as ''T ...

''. The game was well-received, particularly for the large number of playable characters and the Konquest mode. However, reviewers criticized the use of the same engine from the previous two games as well as the similar play styles between characters. Reaction to the game's custom Fatality feature was also mixed. ''Armageddon'' is the final ''Mortal Kombat'' game for sixth generation consoles and the first for seventh generation consoles with its release for the

. The next game in the series, which features an alternate timeline, was released exclusively on seventh generation consoles, the

crossover Crossover may refer to: Entertainment Albums and songs * ''Cross Over'' (Dan Peek album) * ''Crossover'' (Dirty Rotten Imbeciles album), 1987 * ''Crossover'' (Intrigue album) * ''Crossover'' (Hitomi Shimatani album) * ''Crossover'' (Yoshino ...

title ''

Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe ''Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe'' is a 2008 fighting video game, developed and published by Midway Games. The last entry in the franchise before the company went bankrupt in 2009 and sold the franchise to Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment ...

''. The main storyline of the series was later revisited in the 2011 ''Mortal Kombat'' reboot, the first production from the newly-formed

NetherRealm Studios NetherRealm Studios (stylized as NetheЯRealm Studios) is an American video game developer based in Chicago and owned by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. Led by video game industry veteran and ''Mortal Kombat'' co-creator Ed Boon, the st ...

Gameplay

Fighting system

Each character possesses two fighting styles (instead of the three previously available in ''Deadly Alliance'' and ''Deception''), one hand-to-hand and one weapon. Some of the larger bosses, like Onaga, have only one fighting style available. Other characters, such as Smoke and Mokap, do not have a weapon style, but a second unarmed style. Also new to the series is the ability to create a Fatality. These custom fatalities are a constant series of commands that players input until the Fatality ends. This method of performing Fatalities replaces the character-specific Fatalities of previous ''Mortal Kombat'' games, where gamers would simply enter one input and view the Fatality cinematically. As the player adds each input, less time is allowed for further inputs and some moves cannot be repeated. There are eleven levels that can be achieved with Kreate a Fatality, the lowest being a basic Fatality and the highest an "Ultimate Fatality". The greater the number of inputs for the Fatality, the more koins (the in-game currency) are given to the player.

Konquest

The Konquest mode in ''Armageddon'' is a combination of the same mode seen in ''Deception'' with elements borrowed from the spin-off adventure title '' Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks''. The storyline centers on Taven and Daegon, two brothers who were put in suspended animation because their mother Delia (a sorceress) and their father Argus (the Edenian protector god) foresaw a cataclysmic event brought about by the ''Mortal Kombat'' fighters. Their awakening leads into the Konquest mode, which in turn leads into the game's standard play. Taven is the main hero that the player controls in Konquest, while Daegon, his brother, is the primary antagonist, plotting with villains such as Shinnok and the Red Dragon Clan in order to destroy both his brother and Blaze to attain full godhood for himself. Certain weapons are available at times in Konquest mode, which appear to handle very much like those found in ''Shaolin Monks''. Various relics can be collected, one for each Kombatant (except Taven,

Chameleon Chameleons or chamaeleons (family Chamaeleonidae) are a distinctive and highly specialized clade of Old World lizards with 202 species described as of June 2015. The members of this family are best known for their distinct range of colors, bein ...

, the two fighters that the player can create in the PS2 version, and additionally

Khameleon This is a list of Player character, playable and boss (video games), boss characters from the ''Mortal Kombat'' fighting game franchise and the games in which they appear. Created by Ed Boon and John Tobias, the series depicts conflicts between ...

in the

version), throughout this mode. Konquest unlocks characters' alternate costumes and other rewards in the rest of the game, while successfully completing the Konquest entirely will unlock Taven for arcade play. Meat, Daegon, and Blaze can be unlocked by collecting enough relics.

Kreate-a-Fighter

In addition to the choice of over 60 characters, ''Armageddon'' gives players the ability to design and use new fighters in the game. From the number of options, there are potentially thousands of different kombinations available. During production, the game offered at least 14 different character classes, which include Humans, Tarkatans, Mercenaries, Black Dragon Members, Ninjas, Retro Ninjas, etc. However, after the game's release, only one preset was available to the two genders, Sorcerer to Male, and Tarkatan to Female. Although the clothing of each class is still available, it must be individually unlocked, and cannot be preset. All these presets can be unlocked by unlocking each piece of clothing that makes up that class. The preset will then appear under the preset menu. Players can give their character a unique fighting style, by changing their stance/win pose animation and assigning different (already named) attacks to the buttons on their controller. There is a range of swords and axes (the only weapons available) and special moves to choose from. Most moves and costume items need to be purchased with Koins earned in the game's other modes, though some moves and items are available for free from the beginning. The fighters can also be given their own storyline. If a player uses their creation to finish a single-player game, they will see the ending that the player designed for them, although the ending will cut off after roughly twelve lines or if the last line consists of one word. They can also be used in multiplayer games and online, using the PlayStation 2's online capability or

Xbox Live The Xbox network, formerly and still sometimes branded as Xbox Live, is an Internet, online multiplayer video game, multiplayer gaming and digital media delivery service created and operated by Microsoft. It was first made available to the Xbox ...

, although the online service for both versions has since been terminated. The ending that the game shows is the same text that the player inputs as the fighter's biography.

Motor Kombat

The

minigame A minigame (also spelled mini game and mini-game, sometimes called a subgame or microgame) is a short game often contained within another video game. A minigame contains different gameplay elements, and is often smaller or more simplistic, than th ...

in ''Mortal Kombat: Armageddon'' is named "Motor Kombat". True to the name,

Ed Boon Edward John Boon (born February 22, 1964) is an American video game programmer, voice actor, and director who was employed for over 15 years at Midway Games and since 2011 has worked for Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment in its daughter c ...

compared it to ''

'' in the September 2006 issue of ''Official Xbox Magazine''. Each of the characters has a customized

go-kart A go-kart, also written as go-cart (often referred to as simply a kart), is a type of sports car, close wheeled car, open-wheel car or quadracycle. Go-karts come in all shapes and forms, from non-motorised models to high-performance Kart rac ...

, as well as their own special moves. The Motor Kombat characters keep their cartoonish "super deformed" style that was introduced in ''Deception'''s ''Puzzle Kombat'' mode. It also includes style-based fatalities for characters, and death traps. The cars are based on the characters' looks and personalities - for instance, Baraka's car has blades on the front bumper as an homage to Baraka's forearm blades and Scorpion's car is powered by a fire-breathing skull as an homage to his "Toasty" Fatality. ''Motor Kombat'' features online play, as well as offline support for up to four players (two players in the PS2 version) with a split-screen display. In the game, players can knock their opponents into various deathtraps on the courses, like rolling pins, stones, crushers, slippery snow caves filled with stalagmites, and endless pits. The character roster for ''Motor Kombat'' is Scorpion, Sub-Zero, Bo' Rai Cho, Jax, Baraka, Raiden, Kitana, Mileena, Cyrax and Johnny Cage.

Plot

In Edenia, the sorceress Delia has a vision of the future where the forces of good and evil will engage in a final battle of Mortal Kombat that threatens to end all realms. In an effort to spare the Realms, Delia’s husband Argus (an Elder God) constructs a pyramid where the battle will take place and has his sons, Taven and Daegon, put into dormant states in caverns. Delia instructs her Elemental, Blaze, to signal their dragons to awaken them just before final battle commences. In the future, Taven is awakened by his dragon Orin in Earthrealm and is told that he and Daegon will be competing against each other in their quest. Wishing to speak with his father, Taven teleports to his father’s temple and fights several members of the Black Dragon as well as mysterious warriors in red only to find it deserted. He eventually finds a message left to him and Daegon by Argus stating that they will be competing to take his place as an Elder God by defeating Blaze and that he has left weapons for each of them. When Taven finds both weapons are missing, he is suddenly stunned unconscious by Sektor. Despite being imprisoned on a Tekunin warship, Taven manages to free himself and defeat Sektor before escaping back to Orin’s portal. Taven then travels to his mother's temple in the mountains where she has left armor for Daegon and himself. Upon reaching the Temple, Taven finds that it has been occupied by the Lin Kuei and is forced to fight through their assassins including Frost and their Grand Master Sub-Zero. Upon defeating the latter, Taven retrieves his armor and is soon attacked by Dark Lin-Kuei. Alongside Sub-Zero, Taven defeats the attackers after fighting both Smoke and Noob Saibot. With Taven’s assistance, Sub-Zero reveals the identity of the mysterious warriors attacking him as the Red Dragon and that they are based out of Charred Mountain. Upon traveling through the portal, Taven is forced to fight Fujin when the latter warns him to return to Edenia. Taven reluctantly defeats the wind god and proceeds to the Red Dragon stronghold and finds Daegon, who is now much older. Despite being reunited, Daegon reveals himself as the leader of the Red Dragon and his intention to kill Taven in order to kill Blaze first. Taven then fights several enemies and eventually finds Daegon’s dragon Caro, who had been imprisoned and experimented on. Upon being freed, Caro reveals that he had accidentally awoken Daegon earlier than planned which resulted in Daegon seeking out and murdering Argus and Delia upon learning the true nature of the competition. Hoping to atone for his mistake, Caro informs Taven that Daegon has gone to the Netherrealm and stays behind to destroy the Red Dragon stronghold. Arriving in the Netherrealm, Taven repels an ambush by Drahmin before noticing Shinnok being attacked by Li Mei. Believing that he is still an Elder God, Taven comes to Shinnok’s defense and is later tasked to help reclaim his Spire in exchange for answers of Daegon’s whereabouts. After Taven defeats Havik, Sheeva, and Kintaro, Shinnok reclaims his throne and informs Taven that Daegon has returned to Earthrealm and transports him there. However, it is revealed that Shinnok is actually assisting Daegon and has informed other warriors of the contest’s prize in order to eliminate all the competitors. Upon returning to Orin’s cave, Taven finds him mortally wounded from an attack by Quan Chi. On the verge of death, Orin keeps Quan Chi’s portal open to prevent Taven from remaining trapped in the cave with him. Vowing revenge, Taven goes through the portal and arrives at Shao Khan’s palace in Outworld. After reaching the palace dungeons, Taven fights and defeats Mileena and comes across a captive Shujinko who informs him of a meeting taking place in Shao Kahn’s throne room. After fighting through Goro and Reiko, Taven reaches the meeting between Quan Chi, Shang Tsung, Onaga, and Shao Khan where they agree to an alliance to take possession of the contests prize before transporting themselves to Argus’s pyramid. Before he can follow however, Taven is confronted by Raiden who reveals he has made a deal with Shao Khan to assist him in exchange for Earthrealm’s independence. Shocked at Raiden’s betrayal, Taven defeats him before taking Quan Chi’s portal to Edenia. Once through the portal, Taven fights and defeats Scorpion before being confronted by Daegon. Before they can fight however, they are interrupted by Blaze who informs them that the competition has been corrupted and that they’re fighting in the wrong place. Transported to the edge of the crater, Taven and Daegon engage in a final battle. Although Taven ultimately kills Daegon, he becomes disillusioned with the quest and refuses to go further until Blaze reveals the true nature of the quest. With all the fighters engaged in Mortal Kombat in the crater, Blaze reveals that it will be the epicenter of the apocalypse unless the quest is fulfilled. With their respective armors being the catalysts for ending Armageddon, only Taven and Daegon are meant to defeat Blaze with one of two outcomes occurring depending on which brother completed the quest first and will either destroy all the warriors or strip them of powers and abilities. Reclaiming his sword from his fallen brother, Taven travels through a portal to confront Blaze. In the non-canon ending, after fighting his way to the top of the pyramid, Taven confronts Blaze. Taven manages to defeat Blaze and becomes an Elder God. However, neither outcome occurs and instead the fighters power are increased. Taven vows to use his status as Elder God to find another solution to prevent Armageddon. In the canon ending, Shao Kahn defeats and kills Blaze, granting him godlike powers and allowing him to overpower the only remaining kombatant: Raiden. On the verge of death, Raiden uses his amulet to send a cryptic message to his past self: " He must win."

Characters

The

and

versions of ''Armageddon'' contain 62 fighters (as well as two extra slots for user created characters), the most of any ''Mortal Kombat'' or tournament fighter game to date. Only two characters, Daegon and Taven, are new to the series, while

Sareena This is a list of Player character, playable and boss (video games), boss characters from the ''Mortal Kombat'' fighting game franchise and the games in which they appear. Created by Ed Boon and John Tobias, the series depicts conflicts between ...

makes her playable debut on non-portable consoles, and

Meat Meat is animal flesh that is eaten as food. Humans have hunted, farmed, and scavenged animals for meat since prehistoric times. The establishment of settlements in the Neolithic Revolution allowed the domestication of animals such as chic ...

makes his debut as a legitimate character. The

version contains all the original characters from both the original versions, as well as exclusive character

from the

Nintendo 64 The (N64) is a home video game console developed by Nintendo. The successor to the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, it was released on June 23, 1996, in Japan, on September 29, 1996, in North America, and on March 1, 1997, in Europe and Au ...

port of '' Mortal Kombat Trilogy'', increasing the roster to 63. Playable characters in bold are returning characters with new designs or characters entirely new to the series. The rest of the roster's character models are recycled from '' Deadly Alliance'', ''

'' and ''

Shaolin Monks Shaolin Monastery (少林寺 ''Shàolínsì''), also known as Shaolin Temple, is a renowned monastic institution recognized as the birthplace of Chan Buddhism and the cradle of Shaolin Kung Fu. It is located at the foot of Wuru Peak of the So ...

''.

Development

''Armageddon'' contains every single playable fighter from the six main fighting game installments of the franchise and their upgraded versions, not counting the adventure games like ''

Special Forces Special forces and special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...

'' and ''Shaolin Monks''.

, a secret character from the

version of '' Mortal Kombat Trilogy'' (not to be confused with the male Chameleon) was absent from the

and

versions of ''Armageddon'', but was added to the character roster of the

version due to fan demand. The "Krypt" feature in the game's story mode included an unused concept video of Ermac's ''MK: Deception'' biography, which was intended to be the first of a series of animated bios but no others were created. Only seventeen total characters in ''Armageddon'' received official still-image biographies.

Release

The

version was released in stores on October 11, 2006 while the

version was released on October 16, with a

version released on May 29, 2007 in North America. The

version was not released in

territories. It was later released as part of the ''Mortal Kombat Kollection'' on September 29, 2008 for the

. A "Premium" edition was released in North America for the

, featuring the following content in a steelbook case: a 60-minute bonus DVD with a "History of Fatalities" documentary and new videos for more than 50 characters, an animation cel of the cover art autographed by creator Ed Boon, and an arcade-perfect version of ''

Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 ''Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3'' is a fighting game in the '' Mortal Kombat'' series, developed and released by Midway to arcades in 1995. It is a standalone update of 1995's earlier ''Mortal Kombat 3'' with an altered gameplay system, additional c ...

'' included on the main disc. There are four package design variations, some exclusive to certain stores featuring different character sets or the Mortal Kombat dragon emblem. The

version of ''Armageddon'' has a new motion-based control system, along with compatibility with the classic and GameCube controllers. It has a new Endurance Mode, a Wii Remote Training Mode, new menu screens, and Khameleon as a playable character. However, this version does not have online features.

Reception

Reception for ''Mortal Kombat: Armageddon'' has been generally favorable. The game was often praised for including a complete character roster;

IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...

stated that "the inclusion of 62 total warriors is a massive achievement," while ''

Game Informer ''Game Informer'' (''GI'', most often stylized ''gameinformer'' from the 2010s onward) is an American monthly video game magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of video games and associated consoles. It debuted in August 1991 w ...

'' said that "nothing really comes close to what Midway has thrown together here."

GameSpot ''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. In addition ...

praised the Konquest mode, "which was such a low point of ''MK: Deception,'' as one of the relative strengths of ''MK: Armageddon''." Reception to the Kreate-A-Fatality feature was mixed. While ''GameSpot'' called it "a disappointing replacement to the classics," ''IGN'' noted not having set fatalities added variety to gameplay. The reception to the Kreate-A-Fighter mode was also mixed, where some noted limitations yet with others like

GameSpy GameSpy was an American provider of online multiplayer and matchmaking middleware for video games founded in 1996 by Mark Surfas. After the release of a multiplayer server browser for the game, QSpy, Surfas licensed the software under the GameS ...

saying they "haven't seen a character creation tool this robust since

City of Heroes ''City of Heroes'' (''CoH'') was a massively multiplayer online role-playing game which was developed by Cryptic Studios and published by NCSOFT. The game was launched in North America on April 28, 2004, and in Europe by NCsoft Europe on Febru ...

." The game's engine was criticized for being built entirely upon that of the previous 3D ''Mortal Kombat'' titles. '' PSM'' went as far as saying the system was not innovative. While many of the gameplay flaws in '' Mortal Kombat: Deception'' have been fixed (lack of a wake-up game that allows 50/50 attacks upon knocking down an opponent, and the slow jumping system, which prevents players from jumping over most projectiles, infinite combos), new

glitch A glitch is a short-lived fault in a system, such as a transient fault that corrects itself, making it difficult to troubleshoot. The term is particularly common in the computing and electronics industries, in circuit bending, as well as among ...

es arise with the new Air Kombat and Parry systems.

Eurogamer ''Eurogamer'' is a British video game journalism website launched in 1999 and owned by alongside formed company Gamer Network. Its editor-in-chief is Martin Robinson. Since 2008, it is known for the formerly eponymous games trade fair EGX ...

noted that despite the large choice of characters, "much of this number is made up by the huge number of clone characters" and that "so many characters look and play alike." The game won the award for Best Fighting Game at the

Spike Video Game Awards The Spike Video Game Awards (in short VGAs, known as the VGX for the final show) was an annual award show hosted by American television network Spike from 2003 to 2013 that recognized the best computer and video games of the year. Produced by ...

in 2006. ''IGN'' named it the Best PS2 Fighting Game. ''

Official Xbox Magazine ''Official Xbox Magazine'' (or OXM for short) was a British monthly video game magazine which started in November 2001 around the launch of the original Xbox. A preview issue was released at E3 2001, with another preview issue in November 2001. Th ...

'' put ''Armageddon'' as the "Xbox Game of the Year" in a 2006 issue. Gaming Target put the game in its "52 Games We'll Still Be Playing From 2006" selection.

References

External links

''Mortal Kombat: Armageddon''
at

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