Over on the Midway Boards, everyone's favorite Midway Boards moderator, Cinder, has posted a new bit of media from the upcoming Mortal Kombat: Armageddon. This time, instead of renders or concept art, he's posted something a bit more final: the character select screen from Kombat mode! Unlike previous character select screens, Armageddon's select screen is a bit more organized, with all the females grouped together, all of the (current and former) ninjas on the top row with the created character, and all of the boss characters on the bottom rows. ( EDIT - 9:33 PM CDT - As for the question mark boxes, all Cinder had to say was, "khameleons tend to hide...")

To see the Midway Boards thread in which this artwork was originally posted, click here.

Our thanks to forum/chat member for the heads-up on this piece of artwork!

The latest issue of Official XBox Magazine hitting news stands August 1st will be showcasing Midway's upcoming Mortal Kombat: Armageddon as its cover story! This issue, which has already reached some subscribers, goes in depth into the game and releases new information about the game, especially things that have changed since E3. These include:

• The character select screen has changed. Instead of being a rotating grid with two sides, all 64 viewable characters are on one single grid reminiscent of Mortal Kombat: Trilogy. In addition, Noob Saibot and Smoke are separate characters, and "Inferno" Blaze is a playable character.
• The secret minigame mode that had been secret until now has been revealed as Motor Kombat, an up to eight player cart racing game. The playable racers are Scorpion, Sub-Zero, Bo'Rai Cho, Jax, Raiden, Kitana, Mileena, and Baraka. (UPDATE - Cyrax and Johnny Cage are also available. Thanks for the correction, !) The characters are capable of using their own special moves during the match (Sub-Zero freezes cars, and Bo'Rai Cho can cause cars behind to slip on his puke, for example), and can even knock cars into course deathtraps. The minigame is playable alone, via online with eight people, and with up to four people with split-screen.

In addition, the article briefly discusses the first next-generation Mortal Kombat. Not much is said, however, other than Ed stating his intention to make the next game a clean slate, saying, "We always feel an obligation to carry something over, but [with] this one, we're going to draw a line and say, here's a new Mortal Kombat... there's a going to be a very clear line drawn that a lot of people won't cross." Ed also hinted that he would love to see a Mortal Kombat vs Street Fighter, but stresses that there are no plans and it's not in the near future.

If you're an OXM subscriber, this issue should be making its way to you any day now. If not, keep an eye out on newsstands as this issue should be hitting around August 1st!

Our thanks to everyone who sent in News Leads about this news article!

There has been a definite drought of information regarding Mortal Kombat: Armageddon recently; however, our friends over at Midway know that interest in new information is strong. To that end, to give us a bit of a teaser as to what to expect, they've released to us seven exclusive load screen images! These loading screen images features grudge matches made popular in the games (and one from the movies!); they show Johnny Cage and Goro, Cyrax and Sektor, Kitana and Mileena, Reiko and Shao Kahn, two images of Sub-Zero and Scorpion, and Liu Kang (in zombie form) and Shang Tsung!

More information about MK: Armageddon should be coming in the coming weeks. Keep it tuned here; as we learn more official news, we'll be sure to report it!

Our thanks to our sources over at Midway for these loading screens!

The official Mortal Kombat: Armageddon website has been updated. While there are only a couple of changes, one is a rather significant one. The main logo on the page has been changed from the white MK dragon on the dark background that was previously used for E3. Now it shows a blood red MK dragon surrounded by crimson flames, and the images of skulls can be seen within the flames. In addition, the links to the E3 trailer and arena concept art have been removed. (The logo still links to the large cast wallpaper, however.)

Could this be the new logo/artwork for Mortal Kombat: Armageddon? We'll keep an eye on the site and keep an ear out; as we learn for sure, we'll be sure to report it here!

To visit the official MK Armageddon website, click here.

Our thanks to forum member for the heads-up on the official site update!

UPDATE 18 July 2006 5:10 PM CDT - It turns out that there's a slightly hidden secret on the site! If you look underneath where it says "Sign up for the Mortal Kombat: Armageddon Newsletter", there is a pixel that is a link to an audio file that is a sound effect of either water or lava. Our thanks to forum member for the heads-up on this additional information!

UPDATE 18 July 2006 7:17 PM CDT - If you highlight the page around the hidden link, one finds a hidden code written vertically: 7 ? 1 0 6. It's unknown for now what the code is; a very likely explanation could be a date, as this Friday is 7/21/06. Time will tell, however. Our thanks to forum member for the heads-up on this code!

When the Xbox 360 was announced, one of the surprises it brought was the fact that backwards-compatibility was implemented in software. As a result, for Xbox games to work on the Xbox 360, a special profile is needed from Microsoft. Since the Xbox 360's release, the MK community has been waiting for the MK series to make it to the backwards compatibility list. Well, the time for passively waiting is over; it's time to show Microsoft how we feel!

Mortal Kombat Online, The Realm of Mortal Kombat, Dave's Mortal Kombat, Total Mortal Kombat, Mortal Kombat Outworld, and Kamidogu are teaming up with Midway Games to create the Xbox 360 Mortal Kombat Deception/Armageddon Petition! By signing this petition (and even giving your own message to Microsoft), you'll be helping tell the Xbox team that you definitely want to play Mortal Kombat on your 360. Midway will be giving the signature list directly to Microsoft, so you can rest assured your pleas WILL be seen by those who matter!

Whether you're a current Xbox 360 owner or plan on buying one in the future, please help us make MK on the 360 a reality. Sign the petition, and let's make the MK community's voice heard!

To sign your name on the petition, click the logo above, or click here.

EDIT - August 6 2006 10:55 AM CDT - The petition is now closed, and the signatures are on their way to Microsoft! On behalf of everyone here and the other participating sites, thank you for coming together and making your voices heard.