I've mentioned this concept in other threads but I don't think I've managed to explain myself clearly. One of the things I disliked most about MKDA was the fact that performing special moves and performing combos were two seperate acts. Only in rare instances could you use a special move (like Li Mei's backflip kick) to lead into a combo. Even rarer could you use one to end a combo (ex. Scorpion's flip kick at the end of his 2,2,4 string). Thus MKDA is reduced to a combo...fireball...fireball...special attack...another combo affair.

What I propose I believe would make the Mortal Kombat fighting experience more deep and stylish: Combo starters and combo finishers. A combo starter is reminiscent of the moves used to initiate combos in the Killer Instinct series. This, naturally, leads to a standing combo, which is then punctuated (or punchuated - couldn't resist ) by a combo finisher - a special move performed just as the last blow is landed.

First, combo starters: These can be made out of existing special moves. And for those that normally result in a knockdown, back up to just beyond "sweep distance", to borrow from the old MK lexicon. Say that Ashrah's "torpedo" knocks down foes. To perform that move from a further distance would not cause a knockdown and would only cause the opponent to stagger. This move sets you up to perform your combo.

Now for finishers: First of all it blows my mind why there is no buffering in MKDA. (For those who don't know, "buffering" is inputting the commands for a move while your character is still in the animation of a preceding move.) The previous MK's had it. Almost every other fighting game does. I think ending a combo with a close quarters fireball or a flip kick looks a lot flashier than with a simple punch or kick.

Let's create a combo for Scorpion using these combo starters and finishers: Starting with a teleport punch (don't remember if that causes a knockdown, but oh well), he continues with that 2,2,4 string we know so well, and just as that kick is being delivered, tap "f,b,3" to finish the combo off with a flaming flip kick!

So what do you think? Would this make the game more fun to play? Keep in mind that a character may have more than one combo starter and/or finisher. What's more is that the secrets behind these special moves won't be in the strategy guides - it would be something more for us fans to discover on our own through experimentation. Can the MK team incorporate this with only three months left? Are there any holes in my concept? Right now I can tell you that the game engine can be tweaked such as to disallow infinites (ex. Sub-Zero's ice ball can't be used as a combo finisher, or if so only once). I hope I get some good feedback after all this typing...