Re: General fighting game banter
So to stir up a little bit of discussion, here is the first impression of MK 11 from a guy whose opinions I trust on fighting games. He is very critical, but that's fine with me since I'm about as obsessed with fighting games as he is. His site is fightersgeneration.com, which people may or may not know about and while most probably see his reviews as harsh, I like how much he disects games he reviews. Thoughts on this exerpt? The game's profile was updated a couple days ago, so this is recent. Gotta say.. I pretty much agree with sot of what he says.
First Impression:
(Full review still in progress.) For better or worse... MK11 is unapologetically everything Mortal Kombat ever tried to be. Nearly everything in one package. The unsettling / awkward levels of violence, the unintended quirkiness, the unparalleled polish (mostly in aspects that have nothing to do with gameplay depth), the mainstream overhype-ness, Ed Boon's Twitter trolling, hidden Microtransactions... yes indeed, McKombat is back again. Some might even call it "More-of-the-same Kombat".
So we've all lived long enough to see the 11th installment of MK. Feel old yet? (Or maybe you're a new kid playing MK11 on your Nintendo Switch... and I fear for our future.) With undeniable next-gen polish and new-ish gameplay based on old school mechanics, MK11 makes a lot of noise in the modern era of fighting games. It's a twisted visual masterpiece of sorts... with the deranged NRS devs showing us new grotesque ways dissect the human anatomy. More importantly, does MK11 have what it takes to last competitively and retain a steady player base in the modern fighting genre?
The sequel to 2015's MKX (which added big-name horror guests like Jason, Alien & Leatherface), MK11 pushes the mainstream hype by bringing in Terminator, Joker, Spawn & Robocop... with all the gore you could imagine, and then some. NRS insists we get back to virtually ripping faces off (and much worse), live on stream. Time for that one friend who "quit" fighting games to return for a few months just to watch the Fatalities (only to 'quit' fighting games again after 73 rage quits). I'm convinced MK11 was made for people who mostly like to "watch" fighting games, not for people who actually play them. Your great uncle's goat's gran-gran from Australia knows the name "Mortal Kombat". Old folks and casuals will definitely get a kick out of seeing faux Arnold fight Robocop. So who really cares about gameplay? Let's state the obvious; out of any fighting game, MK still has the most name recognition on the planet. The mainstream movie spin-offs, piles of Warner Bros money, and annual payments to IGN reviewers have clearly paid off.
NetherRealm Studios has adapted a systematic and "safe" approach to selling fighting games over the past few years, ever since their renewed success with 2011's Mortal Kombat (9) reboot. The MK9 formula also evolved into the Injustice series, with Injustice's background interaction gimmicks coming full circle back to Mortal Kombat. MK11's "simplified" mechanics are incredibly easy-to-get-into for casuals, but in my opinion, MK11 lacks the gameplay depth and replayability of most modern fighting games of this era. A "return to basics" is a fine idea, but many (most?) FG players don't want to go back to Pre-Algebra 1 when they've been enjoying Calculus in fighting games for years.
While anyone can enjoy NRS games for their rich single-player content and presentation (and then self-respectably quit playing in about 2 months), long-time FG players know what to expect by now, and maybe even hope NRS evolves their standard "cookie cutter" 2D gameplay formula - which as history has shown, hasn't delivered a long-lasting competitive run for any NRS title, something many other fighting games of this generation have experienced organically. Injustice 2, for example, saw a massive drop in players less than 6 months after its launch and died in less than 2 years in the eSports arena (while certain fighting games released before Injustice 2 are still going strong to this day). All that polish and WB money, and nobody really wanted to keep spamming strings & projectiles in Injustice 2. In my opinion, MK11 feels like a slower, simplified version of Injustice 2.
MK11 looks great. Looks. The cinematics and presentation are over the top. The violence looks so good... to the point that I don't really enjoy it. (It's not just me, right?) To quote Tyrion Lannister from Game of Thrones: "There has always been more than enough death in this world for my taste. I can do without it in my leisure time." In short, MK11 is less about "fighting" and much closer to "virtual murder". It's disgusting. Considering how many hours I dedicate to playing fighting games, I'd rather not be force-fed and subjected to self-serving scenes of nonstop stabbing, gouging, and ripping of limbs. You NRS devs might want get help and seek therapy. (Some even had to do so... you can Google that.) Indeed, some NRS developers made claims of having PTSD from working on this game for many months straight. If that's not pushing the envelope "too far" I don't know what is.
Gameplay-wise, I'm not feelin' MK11 or the game's cookie cutter combo system. If I'm being honest, MK11's gameplay is simplified to the point that I think it's an insult to modern fighting games. MK11 is fast food. This gameplay is dumbed down more than I can stomach. It's too restrictive, too simple, too early 00's, and not particularly open-ended or fun... but no, it's not terrible. The streamlining and simplifying of the "classic" 2D fighting game has certainly never looked more polished-up... so MK11 will inevitably appeal to a certain type of fighting game fan. However, even MKX's combo system was more "fun" and open-ended (and I didn't even enjoy MKX very much).
The loot system is flawed... The entire game is designed like a cellphone game / gimmick to entice users to spend real money. No other modern fighting game is designed this way. This is a NRS / Warner Bros thing. (Even MK11's in-game purchasing system seems like a gimmick - with menus promoting "accidental clicks" to purchase the DLC. Yeah, it's bad. Even professional esports players (ex: Tom Brady) have expressed their frustration with MK11's loot system. Personally, I happen to like customizing my characters "for FREE" in my favorite fighting games. What's all this Time Krystals bullshit? NRS continues to bring the most annoying shit from other gaming genres into fighting games. Lame.
Basically, MK11 forces you to grind in offline modes with the CPU for "weeks on end" in order to have any hope unlocking specific customization items you might want. Loyal players (or simply players who don't want to spend 50+ hours grinding in offline modes) are enticed into spending real money to unlock cosmetic items. This is a fundamental flaw in how MK11 was designed - a formula that began in MKX, evolved in Injustice 2, and "perfected" in MK11. That Warner Bros. money and their billion-dollar earning mindsets... Wow, just wow.
MK11's character models and backgrounds, again, look stunning. They are perhaps most enjoyable in pre-fight scenes and Customization mode. One can't deny MK11's in-game camera angles & special effects are spectacular. While I was "wowed" by win poses, Fatality animations, and disturbing new levels of gore... the actual gameplay (and stiff fighting animation) slows my interest to a halt. Some MK11 characters don't seem to know how to throw a proper punch or kick, much less walk or jump, without looking completely unhumanlike and awkward.
Thankfully, NRS seems to have taken past criticism about "animation quality" and made some improvements. However, there's still plenty of jank, stiff, wonky and unhumanlike character animations (example: jumping without bending knees, most kicks / punches, Arnold's infamously ugly crouch kick meme, etc). Even so, with "realistic" visuals and insane pre-fight interactions packed with fan service and Easter Eggs, NRS has indeed mastered their brand of fighting game presentation. And in fairness, they do what they do very well. They're also experts at marketing a video game. I'll give them that.
In recent times, Mortal Kombat as a series steered itself in away from "martial arts" and more in the direction of Hollywood movie clichés (shut up Johnny Cage), horror-movie gimmicks, gore fetishists, and suckers who simply buy "popular" video games. Watching characters talk and being force-fed "virtual murders" onscreen, over and over, isn't my cup of tea. (Remember, I actually like to play fighting games.) In mid-90's / early 2000's MK games, the gore was tolerable and "funny". MK11's gore is a different category and comes off as self-serving "inside jokes" for the devs. It's disturbing and unsettling. All this, and they couldn't bring back "sexy" costumes for most of the females? Interesting set of priorities..
Story mode? Sure, it's "good". MK11's story presentation continues NRS's tradition of awesomely-polished single-player experiences that most gamers play through once. Quick rant: Story modes are not why I put countless tokens into arcade machines back in the day... not why I enter tournaments... and not why I continue to play fighting games after 30 years. If I wanted to go watch a gory C-grade action film filled with clichés, villains getting their asses kicked predictably, and "alleged" political wokeness; then I would pay for overpriced movie tickets, crappy food, and go torture myself. I actually like to play fighting games. That said, MK11 doesn't seem to be made for me.
I saw the red flags early at the MK11 reveal event, when Ed Boon took the stage after showing the reveal trailer, and said, "Now, we'll talk about some of the nerdy gameplay stuff." Wow, okay. Again, it couldn't be more clear where NRS priorities are. In many ways, MK11 is painful to play (and not for the reason most would think). Ironically, playing through MK11's ultra-polished Story Mode has been mostly unenjoyable for me due to MK11's clunky gameplay. I'm still trying to stomach it... but I'm getting distracted by other fighting games of 2020 that are actually fun to play.
TLDR: MK 11's cinematics, presentation and singleplayer are great. Gameplay is great for casuals but is simplified to the point of being boring, and microtransactions are stupid.
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