We were able to obtain some of the first exclusive details of the next major Mortal Kombat release by series co-creator, Ed Boon. This will hopefully settle some confusion of news of the game in recent magazine publications. This information we received on MK6 came personally from Ed Boon himself while we were covering this year's E3 convention in Los Angeles. From our conversation:

• MK6 will use an improved version of the MK:DA engine; there will not be a complete rewrite.
• The next installment of Mortal Kombat will feature more platform-specific code. Each version of MK6 will use the same engine, but it will be tweaked to use the strengths of each specific console. The focus will be more on pushing each system to its limit, as opposed to trying to keep all 3 versions of the game as close to each other as possible.
• The backgrounds will be much more interactive than anything we've seen yet. When asked about background items that could impale you, Ed assured us, "That's only the beginning."
• Multiple fatalities are an extreme definite.
• An online component is confirmed, and will play a major role in the game.

The game, which is currently referred to as "MK6", has not yet been officially named. Chances are, however, that the final name will include a subtitle like Deadly Alliance and Tournament Edition, and not the number 6. MK5.ORG will follow the development of Mortal Kombat 6 straight to its completion, which is reported to be released sometime in 2004.

As promised to the fans by Midway, they have added some video footage for their upcoming Mortal Kombat: Tournament Edition. What they have actually added was essentially footage from the infamous Scorpion vs. Quan Chi fight that was shown at several movie theaters last year to promote MK:DA and was also available elsewhere on Midway's site. A similar video to this one was also shown at this year's E3 convention.

Here is the direct link to the trailer.

Thanks go to MK5.ORG forum user Kombat19 for the tip!

Our coverage from the Electronic Entertainment Expo might be over, but the same isn't true for our coverage of Mortal Kombat: Tournament Edition! If you've seen any of the videos from the previous update, you can be rest assured that this will be a worthy entry into the Mortal Kombat Series. To the right is one of the latest advertisement spots that will eventually make its way into circulation as the release draws closer. On a side note, we have a correction to make from our E3 Coverage. What we referred to as yellow coins in the Krypt of MK:TE are actually gold coins. We apologize for the mistake.

MK5.ORG would like to thank our sources within Midway Games for providing us with this print ad! Click on the thumbnail for a large version.

 

Although it may be a little late, today's update was certainly worth the wait. Below you will find links to 16 gameplay videos recorded directly from a copy of MK:TE. These videos include demonstrations of the new tournament and tag team modes, as well as the profiles of the new kombatant Sareena and of Reptile. These videos demonstrate that MK:TE is summing up to be a worthy sequel to the GBA version of MK:DA. We would like to give special Thanks to the Midway staff for letting us tape these videos.

Note: Some of these videos are quite large and may take a significant amount of time to download.

• Scorpion VS Quan Chi
• Sareena VS Quan Chi
• The Krypt
• Main Menu
• Select Screen
• Intro Screen
• Options Screen
• Practice Mode
• Survival Mode
• Tag Team Mode (Single Player)
• Tag Team Mode (Multiplayer)
• Tournament Mode
• Tournament Mode Winning Screen
• Reptile's Bio
• Sareena's Bio
• The Ending Credits

In addition the recording these movies on Friday, the MK5.ORG staff was given a demonstration of the game ESPionage (which looks to become one of Midway's top games) by Ray de Guzman, one of the playtesters for MK: Deadly Alliance and a member of the ESPionage design team. In ESPionage, you play a freelance commando with psychic abilities. Using these abilities and conventional weapons, the commando must try to take down a secret terrorist network named "The Movement" whose only goal is the destruction of the world. The game's engine, although not entirely complete, looks very detailed, especially when the commando uses his psychic abilities, which include the ability to levitate and throw enemies and to set people and objects on fire. In addition, the commando has the ability to "mind drain" an enemy, in order to refill his "ESP energy". This action is usually done when the enemy is dead, but can be done while it is alive, resulting in the enemy's head exploding. All in all, the demonstration was very interesting and we thank Midway for the opportunity to see the game.

We hope you enjoyed this year's E3 coverage and would like to thank you for continuing to make MK5.ORG the Voice of the Mortal Kombat Community.

As promised, today we will have our in-depth look at MKTE's Tournament Mode. As a side note, we should mention that everything in The Krypt can be unlocked with either Red or Yellow Coins - it doesn't just use one coin type as MKDA for GBA did. Other E3'ers actually unlocked Reptile, Hsu Hao, and Drahmin... no sign of Sektor or Noob Saibot yet, however, some of the Koffins couldn't be opened in the E3 version of MKTE.

Tournament Mode works when all 4 GBA units are connected. If all 4 are not connected, the choice will not be accessible. Once you start Tournament Mode, a shared character select screen comes up on all 4 units, showing who you and your oppenents are. After that, it shows the Tournament Ladder, Players 1 and 3 would go first, followed by Players 2 and 4. If a player was not playing, his screen would show the Tournament Ladder screen, with the word "WAITING" flashing across the top. The winners of the two matches would then fight each other for the championship.

Tomorrow, we will have our final impressions of the game, hopefully accompanied by a surprise or two. This is ]{0MBAT, with D'Arque Bishop and CCShadow, signing off for now.