Ed Boon and John Tobias in interviews from 1995. They specifically said they wanted Nightwolf to look like a modern man and not a stereotype like T. Hawk. That's the exact reason why his costume is a black leather biker vest with a big stylized logo on the back.

Then whoever designed him in Deception apparently never got the memo and totally stereotyped him up.

I love how this game is bringing out the old regulars!

Anyways, I like what I see. The style is consistent with the MK universe. It has that MK feel, with fast gameplay tacked on this time. I'm not 100% sure what's going on here though, if it is a retelling or a sequel, because I see elements of both possibilities being true.
More than likely it seems they will follow the story mode that MKvsDC has. If that is the case, I may have found my first gripe. I really liked the full-blown exploration factor of MKD's Konquest mode, and thought MKvsDC's mode was kinda boring and too linear.
Second possible gripe: music. If the music in the trailer is indicitive of what is going to be in the game, then they are going with the orchestrated, gladiator-movie or superhero movie-type sound, which doesn't seem to fit into MK's atmosphere at all. Really, bring back Forden. He had the mood right from the get-go with the sound.
I can see how some may be disappointed. As for me, though, I am thoroughly excited and cannot wait to see more.
One poster on here said he hasn't been this excited about MK since MKDA was announced. I think I am right there with you buddy

Wow!

EDIT: Ok, so, I finally saw the trailer in HD (very small-size sadly) and I have to say I'm very impressed and super excited with this game. The graphics do look really good. The more I think about it, the more I like it and the more I want to know .

I am still disappointed that its probably going to take a while before we know *exactly* what happened during and after MKA, but it has always been my dream to see the first games retold with todays technology, amazing graphics, and with movies and cinematics in a fantastic story mode.

That's one of the reasons I loved MKvsDC so much. It brought some serious life to the characters!! I never thought it would happen, but (hopefully) finally, it looks like we will see everything that happened during Mk1, Mk2, and Mk3 in the form of a movie and cut scenes with new twists, new stories, and classic events that we all love, all of it in amazing cut-scenes.

END OF EDIT

I have mixed feelings about this.

THE AWESOME

- Great characters: Johnny Cage is back and he damn well deserves it (though I wish he had a sexier haircut)! Great to see Mileena, Sektor, Raiden, and Nightwolf as well.

- The arenas look beautiful and impressive. I adore the visuals and colors in each of them.

- The amazing graphic sequences of Johnny breaking bones and tearing skin. very good quality.

- The amazing graphics of Sub-Zero's ice stab, Reptiles teleport, Reptile's spit, Mileena's roll.

- The super cool and super fun "easter eggs" and bits of "trivia" for the fans (if that's what they are supposed to be) when you see certain characters on the backgrounds (Kira, Li Mei, Kenshi, Shang Tsung, Daegon, Taven, etc).

- Fatalities look violent and wicked.

- The Cinematic and rendered animation looks absolutely amazing!

- Tag Team/Co-op looks fun.

- The combos, special moves, fighting and overall gameplay looks promising and super fun. I personally love the special effects in Cage's green fire balls, Reptile's acid and teleport, and Mileena's roll and sais.

THE BAD:

- I'm truly not that surprised/excited with most of the characters graphics and the visual style. Maybe its because of the video, but the characters do look very cartoony AND kind of stiff.

I expected a more realistic and improved animation in characters. MKvsDC did this very very well (Jax's face, Sonya's hair, general expressions in the characters eyes, mouths, faces, etc), but this one reminds me a bit too much of the not-so-great graphics of MKSM. I certainly hope I'm wrong and that as they reveal more stuff, we get super surprised with amazing/realistic facial animations.

- Most of what we saw isn't new...it doesn't feel new. I ADORE the classic costumes and classic look of the characters, but, I am quite disappointed to see such a normal looking Raiden instead of having him in a fresh and new outfit. Same with the boring Mr. Kahn and the boring Mr. Kang Lao, who look exactly like they did in other games.

I guess this won't matter as much when we know FOR SURE what this game is: A reboot? A remake? A sequel? Only time will tell. I can understand the choice of making characters exactly like they were before if its a remake, but, come on, even so, we should see new costumes and looks for the characters so the game doesn't feel old and boring.

- I'm kind of worried that I THINK I saw some re-used animations and visuals (Sektor's green stuff? Sub-Zero's ice moves?). I really hope this is not the case.

- Characters look stiff and still feel like robots. It's time they move in a more realistic, fluid, and credible way. I also hope they all have unique individual poses and fighting attacks/styles (no, not talking about the same fighting system of MKDA/MKD, that's done forever).

- Characters look a bit too cartoony. I was hoping/expecting them to look more realistic, human, and to step up from the awesomeness of MKvsDC.

WHAT I'M NOT SO SURE HOW I FEEL ABOUT....YET

- The whole concept.

I'm honestly worried. What is going on with Mortal Kombat? I'm a huge huge HUGE fan of the storyline, so, I hope that they treat it well and with the respect it deserves.

I wanted to see a sequel more than anything (I still hope this is a sequel), a continuation of MKA....but, at the same time, I have to admit I'm super excited about the idea of seeing MK1, MK2, and MK3 storyline retold with todays incredible technology and with superb amazing and fun movie/cinematic sequences.

It has always been my dream to see the storyline of the games told in a vivid super amazing way, and I think we are finally going to see that happen. MKvsDC was the first one to really do something like this with their story mode (though MKSM and the Konquests of MKD and MKA were pretty cool, except MKSM was an insult to the story of the games).

I have to say I'm super excited about this idea. For the first time ever, we might finally see what really happened during those amazing events of MK1, MK2, and MK3. We will see how these characters interacted with each other when they first met, we might see the "how", the "why" and the "what happened" of many stories and many characters. I am certainly hoping for fresh new ideas and fresh new stories to be added within the original story that we all love and know. Say, a new interesting reason why Kahn captured Sonya and Kano and why he did it. Or for example, have some cool background and details of things we never thought about or that we now know because of the new games.

Tthe potential and level of awesomeness of seeing the story of the first 3 games as if it was a movie, with characters interacting, speaking, and doing awesome things we only read in texts....wow, I can't wait!!!

I just hope its good.

The video made me go wow and be super happy. But at the same time, after watching it more and more, it makes me worried that its probably a bit TOO much of the same old stuff we have seen before. I guess I wouldn't mind this so much if the characters looked new, fresh, original, and distinct from how they have looked in the past. Really, as much as I love most of the characters we saw, none of them made me feel as happy as when I first saw them in MKDA and MKD, because they look the same as before, while in those games they looked completely new, fresh and revamped.

I'm done for now, but, honestly, I will have high hopes for the game. It looks amazing and fun. I just hope they fix what needs to be fixed so it feels new and fresh.

I could've SWORN it was confirmed Forden would be returning...Can anyone confirm?

Yep. I think the interview was actually in an MK3 "book" that had the interview in it. Think I still have it somewhere....
It is a shame though that they didn't go with the original concept. What they ended up with kinda screams "rip off".

Here's my reaction.

PROS
- I'm happy they've reverted to 2.5 combat, a'la Street Fighter IV. There's obviously a strong market for it, and MK existed as a better 2D fighter than a 3D one, especially compared to its competition.
- I can't say I'm upset with the iconic cast of characters. Of course, it's just a sampling of the final cast.
- The environments do look very nice and atmospheric.
- I looks like the dreaded dial-a-combos will be more limited and special moves emphasized, like MK vs DC.
- The nostalgic feeling of the Pit, the Acid Bath, the Living Forest, Shang Tsung's Palace, and Shao Kahn's arena certainly time-warped me back to my adolescence.
- I like the brutality of it. The bones snapping. The fatalities back in fine form. Makes it look like it hurts, as it should.
- I'm excited at the notion of the "biggest/best story mode of any fighting game", but BlazBlue set the bar insanely high. I hope the team realizes just how high.

NEGATIVES
- The visual style is still too cartoonish. The models, themselves, are perfectly fine and adequately constructed, but those texture maps need some wear and tear in them. Dirtying them up, scuff them, scratch them, cut them. It doesn't have to be extreme, but until then that "plastic" look that has plagued the franchise for years will remain.
- I worry that it IS a reboot/retelling. I just think that's entirely unnecessary. We already know how the story ends. We've explored it in the games, comics, spin-offs, and other media many times. Armageddon, as terrible as it was, left a ton of gaps and cliffhangers I dread will never be touched upon again.
- With a huge emphasis on "classic" MK characters and stages, I fear fantastic characters from the newer installments, like Kenshi, Sareena, Li Mei, and even Quan Chi might be cast aside, while characters with potential, like Nitara, Mavado, and Hotaru, will just fade into the nether.
- Maybe the recently released movie demo spoiled me, but while fans complained it was TOO different, these feels TOO similar. No evolution or maturation. It seems time-frozen in the MK: Shaolin Monks/MKvsDC era, which is especially disappointing considering how much Boon talked up MK9 as a dark, gritty, grown-up version of the franchise.
- MK has been called "stiff" and "robotic" for years. Almost every single fighting game on the market now has silky smooth animation, nuanced reactions and attacks, secondary follow-through and believably shifts of weight and flowing cloth physics. This still looks clunky and firmly stuck in uncanny valley territory.

It looks like more of the same. That's not bad. That's not necessarily good either. MK has been a shot in the arm for years. "More of the same" isn't necessarily the best way to revitalize the flagging franchise, but we were told this is the game that's the result of fan-feedback, so if it ends up being a wholly unnecessary installment with gore-over-substance, nostalgia-over-evolution, and gimmicks-over-gameplay, I guess we have no one to blame but ourselves.

Also, I want Sareena in it. But that's a personal thing.

Meh, I pray it's not a scene by scene remake or "prequel" spitting out stuff we already know. I hope it's a rebooted story that switches things up, a new beginning! I also hope it's a tournament again and that all of the characters have new motives and stories, but nothing drastic.

I just don't want this to be MK1-MK3 in a shiny new package. Just no. I want this to be fresh.

Darker, Grittier, and more serious in tone...Check
Old School Fighters...Check
Deep Story...Check
2D Fighting...Check
Brutal Fatalities...Check

It's everything I have been asking for. No reason to complain, and no reason to argue.

One thing I'd like to point out, is that some people are saying it's too bright, well when the level is a day level how else would it be? I understand and fully support and want grit etc., but when it's daylight it can only be so gritty. That's why in the night levels such as the Pit and Living forest etc. it looks really dark and gritty.

I'll try and help you out. It's freaking brilliant. There taking the combo system from MKvsDC and applying it to a traditional 2D MK. I don't want MK to take that many risk for this game. They already did that with the 3D MKs and MKvsDC. The last 3D MKs haven't aged well and they don't stand a snowballs chance in hell of being better than VF, SC, and Tekken.

I don't see what your complaining about. They're taking the best parts of MK and giving them the next gen treatment. I will agree the graphics can be hit or miss, but for the most part their the same as MKvsDC. Each character model looks different, but still keeping the original impression of the characters. Maybe it'll help if you think about how awesome 2D MK is and how awesome MkvsDC combo system is. Well that's the best I can do for you.

Looking at this now, I guess it's obvious this is alpha stuff now. Considering that Shao Kahn's model seems to be taken directly from MK vs DC as a placeholder vs his look in the intro sequence. Here's a comparison image, so you can look at it.

Ba-dow.

Sub-Zero's model seems to be using his mask from MK vs DC too.

Why is everyone acting all surprised they're re-using some stuff from MKVSDC?

TRMK confirmed the game is due out March 2011. So less than a year. Sounds like a decent amount of time to make the game better but not take forever.

Exactly. That's pretty great.

So this AND Marvel vs. Capcom 3 are due out in the same time period...

I have not read this whole thread but I am trying to figure out who the guy is that is being lowered into the dead pool at 0.41 and who is that next to the throne crouched down at exactly 1.01...is that Sheeva?
I also noticed odd looking characters cranking the wheels in the background of the dead pool...wtf are they lol?

I wouldn't say surprised. Just making observations.

Those are just a random Tarkatan and slaves, sir. Nobody with an important identity, just NPCs.

So it's called Mortal Kombat

This is going to be confusing. So how are we going to refer to the new Mortal Kombat? As NMK? New Mortal Kombat? NMK sounds good to me

Last time I checked, everyone calls the first game "MK1", not "MK". So I'd assume they'll call this one "MK9" or just "MK".

i dunno man...that sure does look like Sheeva's mohawk. them other characters cranking the wheels look almost like a mixture between meat/drahmin and hsu hao. the guy lowered into the dead pool looks a bit like a black guy...not a tarkatan. almost looks like the black guy from the first movie that got killed by goro.

I just saw the trailer in HD (small) and I have to say I'm very impressed. The video I was watching was one of Youtube, so I wasn't so convinced, but the one I saw in IGN looked freaking amazing.

I can't wait to see Sonya.

....wait, its gonna be out in 2011?????????? WTF!!!!!!? And they already revealed so many characters and arenas, etc? Not the best move....maybe.



Exactly what I want and exactly what I hope for as well. That's why I said I'm a bit disappointed characters look almost exactly like in past games and that I'm worried we won't get to see some new and unique stories and events that make the game feel new and fresh.

I too want to see new stories, motives, and events that did not exist before or that did not happen during Mk1, Mk2, Mk3 but we later found out that did while playing MKDA, MKD, and MKA.

Also, that's why I gave some examples of how they should make this game feel fresh (like, giving us some awesome new backstory of why Kahn captured Sonya in MK2 and what he could had done to her and Kano while they were prisoners, etc). I hope for exactly the same thing you hope.

So far so good. I want my favorite fighter of course, but who doesn't? (Shang Tsung) I love this board though, where it is just deader than dead until a new game. Then we're back!

Well I've been clicking frame by frame through the HD version and they look to me like who I said they look like.

Okay,here's my take on this.

You know how SF4 is basically nothing but SF2 in 2.5D? It's the very definition of rehash,but it's very solidly done done,looks very pretty,includes most of the old favorites,has plenty of attention to detail for the nostalgia factor and actually plays pretty well. After years of stagnation,it reinvigorated the franchise and reintroduced a whole new generation to SF.

That's what this game is going to be.

Of course,there are some things that still need to be worked on,like the stiff animations. If previous games are of any indication,I really doubt they'll get fixed,but let's see and wait. Remember,this time the team doesn't have Midway breathing down their neck with their bullshit deadlines,so they should have way more time to polish things.

As far as the overall look is concerned,I glanced at the posts in this thread,and MOTHER OF FUCK,there's just no pleasing you people! DURR HURR MOVIE LOOKS TOO GRITTY BUT TEH GAEM DON'T LOOK GRIMDARK ENOUGH HERPA DERP.

Of course I'm a bit disappointed that we didn't see the massive maturation in style and presentation like we did with MKDA. But however much crap that Rebirth teaser is getting,I really think it's onto something with the GRIMDARK MCGRIT look to everything. I,for one,think the Gears of War-style look would be a wonderful change of pace for the series.

On the other hand,consider that this game seems to be copying the graphic style of the most well-loved and critically acclaimed MK game of the last generation - Shaolin Monks. And there ain't nothing wrong with that,because Shaolin Monks was FUCKING AWESOME. Seriously,the only bad thing I can really say about it is the storyline. In every other way,it was a wet dream come true.

I'm pumped as fuck. Goddamn,I watched that teaser like 10 times already,and I'm loving every second of it. I feel like my life has purpose again. Can't wait to see the shitstorm that's gonna hit this place around E3. :3

On one hand I do really wish that the Unreal powered ultra violent MK that Boon promised was what was shown today, but as a MK fan, how can I honestly be upset with a fully realized HD 2D MK game? I do hope the character designs are refined a bit and made more dark and gritty and that a few alt appearances per character are thrown in, and man do some with Cage please. That tat on his chest and the haircut just scream douche bag and I like Cage. Also I hope that the Kung Lao fatality shown at the end, isn't indicative of them just rehashing all the old stuff from pass MK games and MKSM, and that a lot of new fatalities per character are being created.

Also if this is a reboot/retelling of the first three MK's, I love too see more revamped re-workings of past stages from those games in, and perhaps add some type of BG fatality ala the Pit too every stage. And how about some awesome CGI too tell the story, I loved the CGI in the past MK games on the Xbox and PS2, so more of that please. And I hope and pray for special events/fights like in MK2 and MK when certain triggers occur, like double flawless victories and a fatality on certain fights.