Midway Games has just released a press release announcing its official lineup of games for the Sony PSP handheld system, including the portable version of MK: Deception, Mortal Kombat: Unchained! From the press release:

"In 2006, Midway will begin our strong support of the PSP handheld market by bringing some of our top franchises to the system," said Steve Allison, chief marketing officer, Midway. "All of these titles are perfect for gaming on the go, whether ita39;s a picka8211;up game of NBA Ballers: Rebound, a quick race in RUSH or a fight to the death in Mortal Kombat: Unchained."

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Mortal Kombat: Unchained takes the Mortal Kombat franchise to new heights with an innovative fighting system tailored for Wia8211;Fi functionality, unparalleled depth and brutally intense action that will appeal to longa8211;time Mortal Kombat fans, as well as PSP gamers. The game features lightninga8211;fast combat, new moves and combinations and PSP exclusive characters and environments.

MK: Unchained is currently slated for a Fall 2006 release. As always, we'll be keeping an eye on this game, and will report on new information as soon as we receive it.

To read the press release in its entirety, click here.

IGN has posted a new article concerning Midway's upcoming PSP port of MK: Deception, Mortal Kombat: Unchained. While the article mostly covers ground already covered, it DOES name the six exclusive characters in this new port. From the article:

Players can expect multiple fatalities per character, multi-tiered interactive backgrounds and six new fighters. The game will offer playable versions Kitana, Jax, Frost, Blaze, Goro and Shao Kahn.

The fact that Goro and Shao Kahn are listed as exclusives is puzzling, as they were already exclusives in the GameCube version of the original game. In addition, the article touches on the fact that the mini-games from the original will be available, including a new mode. Furthermore, it also has a brief mention of the online multiplayer. Again, from the article:

One of the elements new to Unchained, the mini-games, will let players engage in lethal bouts of Chess and Puzzle Kombat. Also, there's an all-new Endurance mode where players will contend with waves of combatants. It's unclear whether these modes will come locked, or whether players will access them straight out of the box.

And yes, the game will make use of the PSP's wireless Ad-Hoc functionality. Currently, Midway has revealed that Unchained includes head-to-head matches, but there's no word on other multiplayer modes.

The game is currently scheduled for a fall release. As we learn more, we'll be sure to report it here!

To read the article in its entirety (plus see five gameplay images), click here.

Our thanks to forum member for the heads-up on this new article!

Continuing with tonight's trend of exclusive Mortal Kombat: Armageddon material, IGN steps up to the plate with an interview with series co-creator Ed Boon. Some fresh new details are finally revealed, as well as confirmation that Motaro won't be absent from the 60 plus roster after all! From the interview:

IGN: Also, from a technical standpoint, are there any complications or difficulties you had to overcome to get all of these characters to fight one another? Do different character sizes or fighting styles make a difference from a design or programming standpoint?

Ed: Absolutely. We are going to be including all the boss characters from MK's past. Goro, Shao Kahn, even Motaro!! Some of these characters are HUGE and have never been playable characters before. So we will need to make sure they are not too powerful or un-fun to play. We are doing extensive testing on them against every single other character in the game to make sure they are fair and fun to play.

IGN: What create-a-player modes have you seen in previous games that you've liked? And which one did you base Mortal Kombat: Armageddon on, if any? How exactly does it work? Can you explain how the feature is robust and deep?

Ed: There have been a number of create-a-character modes in various wrestling, boxing and golf games. They all have the standard "dress-your-fighter" functionality with a number of different costume items to select. We really didn't base MK on of any particular one but we did a good amount of research and wanted to make sure we did more than they did. For example, we thought it was important to let players define their attacks as well as the look of their fighters. Armageddon lets you define your fighting styles, right down to the attack associated with each button. Another thing we knew was important was to let players take their created fighter and go online against other created fighters. This is one of the most exciting features of our create-a-fighter mode.

Fans should be pleased to hear that balancing issues that might have flawed previous installments of Mortal Kombat are going to be worked on harder this last time around on current-gen systems. IGN has also released an assortment of fifteen screenshots; more importantly, they have a teaser trailer showcasing such things as aerial kombat, a quick glimpse of the new Konquest mode, and an FMV that features the good and evil kombatants rushing towards each other on a desolate battlefield..

Thanks goes out to for the help on this update!

Midway Games has come through for the fans again! Midway has released two character renders from the upcoming Mortal Kombat: Armageddon! OThe first render, which is exclusive to MK Online, is of Stryker, who has not been seen since Mortal Kombat Trilogy. The other render is of that fan favorite Shokan warrior not seen in a tournament fighter since Mortal Kombat II, Kintaro! In addition, Midway has released the MK: Armageddon official logo as an MK Online exclusive!

Mortal Kombat: Armageddon will be out this fall. As we learn more about this game, we'll be sure to report it here!

Our thanks to our contacts at Midway for providing these renders to the fans!

The folks over at TRMK have reviewed the classic ports of MK1, MK2, and MK3 included on Midway Arcade Treasures: Deluxe Edition for the PC. Keep in mind this is the first time all 3 MK games are available on the PC in one port. Their review begins with problems using the copy-protection software that the disc uses:

As with all recent Midway PC games, Midway Arcade Treasures Deluxe Edition contains a controversial Star Force copy protection software. Just type "starforce" into Google and you'll see many of the issues people have with this type of copy protection. The first annoyance this copy protection causes is a mandatory reboot of the system in order to play any of the games after installing them, unless you have already installed a game previously with Star Force protection.

If you have previously purchased Midway Arcade Treasures 2, then you have seen everything there is to see here. Both Mortal Kombat II and Mortal Kombat 3 are exactly the same games seen on the consoles, quirks and all. All of the terrible oversights are present, such as flickering and dissapearing shadows and the poorly mapped pause and start buttons on the same button resulting in no hidden Smoke battle and no Random Select. Unfortunately, instead of fixing these problems plaguing the console release of these games, the developers have introduced a new serious flaw that affects ALL games in the Midway Arcade Treasures 2 compilation. Every game's music is non-existant. Not a single background music song is heard in any of the games on Midway Arcade Treasures 2. The console version of the arcade Mortal Kombat 3 had some big problems with the music and it seems like the baby might have been thrown out with the bath water in this instance. This is an inexcusable omission that cannot be overlooked as the games feel soulless without their background tracks.

Be sure to visit their site to read the mini-review in its entirety. Our thanks go to MK Online Realm Ambassador for the heads-up on this news article!