FINISH HIM !!!!

Those two words started it all. While many of us were playing a very cartoony SFII at our local arcades , a mysterious unheard of machine showed up, that scared the shit out of many arcade goers.

Life like digital graphics, tons of blood, a dark brooding atmosphere, ancient martial arts symbols and themes, spooky music ..... but most importantly ......... ripping someones fucking head off, spine and all. Ed Boon himself has said in the history of MK feature, that had Mortal Kombat not featured the fatalities, gamers would have brushed it off as another fighting game jumping on the SFII bandwagon.

So what makes Mortal Kombat , MORTAL KOMBAT , and not just another fighting game ? There are 2 things that set MK apart from the pack and make it unique. First of all, it was the FIRST fighting game to be considered "mature", and some could argue it was the first MAIN STREAM mature game. The second was the characters and storyline. While most fighters had very stereotypical " Fighters from around the world gather to show who's best ", Mortal Kombat had a much darker story, with darker characters. The human race was at stake, and failing meant death. The characters from Mortal Kombat didn't fuck around.

As the series had its ups ( MK II, Deception ) and downs ( Pretty much everything else ), what kept MK true to its nature, was the mature content and the story. No matter how bad the game play was, or how bad a character sucked, you still played every character to see how their story went, and how they killed their opponent. Don't believe me ? Why did everyone hate Armaggedon ?? Because their were no bio's, shitty endings, the story sucked, and everyone had the same fatalities.

Considering how poorly recieved the last game was by fans, Ed Boon decided he must do something radically different to increase sales of Mortal Kombat and make it popular again. The logical step would be to take MK back it its glory days, create a new dark story with new characters, make it violent and serious .................

Instead he consulted his marketing team .........

In the MK vs DC interview, Ed Boon specifically mentions 2 things, SALES and MARKETING. THIS ... is what makes the fans upset. THIS is why TRUE MK fans won't give this game a chance. Ed Boon has sold out. Instead of being creative with his game, he is being creative with marketing. Instead of making the best MK game possible, he is trying to make the most marketable game profitable. No self respecting Mortal Kombat fan can honestly believe that Ed Boon has created this game for the fans. He himself said in the interview that he wasn't even excited when he first heard the idea, which is probably until he started seeing dollars signs.

So whats the big deal right ? Its one game, there will be others, give it a chance right ? Wrong ......How would a Teen rated Grand Theft Auto sale ? How successful would a HALO game be without multiplayer ? WE ... The MK fans that support the product have expectations, and by removing the 2 elements that make Mortal Kombat what it is, you take away our faith in the product. You make us NOT CARE about whats next.

Smackdown, Tony Hawk, Madden and the list goes on and on, all games that had one shitty or lazy effort, and I have not returned to these series since.

Maybe we MK fans seem like we are making a big deal out of nothing, but dont forget that WE make Mortal Kombat what it is, NOT ED BOON. If we turn our backs on the game, the way he turned his back on us, Mortal Kombat dies ...... its not the fatalities themselves that are important, its the idea behind them, and taking them away along with a great story and replacing it with men in tights had killed the franchise for good.

Sorry for the long rant, but this is my final post here. Im done with Mortal Kombat for good. It was nice talking to many of you, and hopefully you'll show Ed Boon how poor his decision was not only through the internet but with your wallets as well.