In the penultimate Kombat Kast before the game’s launch on the 14th of April, the chaps over at NetherRealm gave us some details on Mortal Kombat X Mobile, as well as showing off the Variations for Sonya Blade and Kenshi. The mobile game will be a 3 on 3 card battler, where you fight through a series of Towers to gain Koins, Faction Points and better versions of your Kombatants. Players will be able to choose a specific champion who will represent them online, with this character having the ability to be summoned into other players’ games to help them out in a tight spot. This summon mechanic seems very reminiscent of Destiny of Spirits on the Playstation Vita, where other players could summon in your strongest characters for some help in a tough fight.
We also got a clear look of how the console version of Mortal Kombat X will link up with the mobile version. Like the Injustice mobile game, players will be able to link their games together through the use of a WBPlay account, which will allow them to gain special bonuses across games, like skins and extra Koins. In the stream, we saw two skins that were available if you linked the two versions, being Ninja Mime Johnny Cage and Farmer Jax. We still have no news on a release date but you can be sure it will be around April 14th. The mobile game will also be free to download, so the only thing you have to spend is your time to get all the skins in Mortal Kombat X.
Onto the Variations shown off this week, with veterans Kenshi and Sonya Blade finally getting their time in the limelight. Kenshi seems to be a very technical fighter, with players having to master his close range combos, as well as his mid range telekinetic moves to be the most effective blind swordsman they can be. His first Variation is Balanced, where a telekinetic spirit augments all of his specials. This ranges from a spirit aiding any extra bit of oomph to his push move, or giving him a second slice on his rising sword slice. In this form, Kenshi gains a Blade Reflect which can reflect both high and low projectiles back at your opponent.
Possessed is Kenshi’s swordless Variation, as this form has his sword broken into several pieces and him being possessed by the spirits that dwell within his blade. Kenshi cannot use his sword in this Variation but he does gain a samurai demon familiar, which replaces his telekinetic spirit. Like Balanced, all of his specials have the demon feature somewhere, either by flinging enemies into the air with his scythe or by stabbing them in the chest with his pointy weapons. This Variation is less about combos and more about doing single, meaty hits that do a lot of damage. Kenshi gains a tracking teleport move which replaces his Blade Reflect, as well as a special overheard called Demonic Strike, which has the demon hitting enemies with a scythe from on high.
Lastly for Kenshi, we have Kenjustu. This Variation centres around Kenshi’s skill with the blade, with all of his specials doing something interesting with his spirit sword. He gains a Sword Uppercut, an overhead in which he spins his sword around for maximum pain, as well as a tracking telekinetic grab for stunning your enemies to deliver that decisive strike. This Kenshi Variation is all about doing some flashy combos with his sword, whilst keeping your enemy both scared to back away, but afraid to get in too close.Kenshi Variations:
For Sonya, her Variations range from being all about countering to managing grenades and a special drone. Her Covert Ops Variation gives Sonya a Garrote counter, which allows her to transition into 4 separate moves depending on the situation. She can throw enemies to the other side of the screen, pop them up into the air or even have Sonya flip over their head to get behind them. Along with this Counter, Sonya gets access to an air throw and her traditional Military Stance, which also allows her to transition into various specials.
Demolition is her dedicated zoning special, with Sonya get accessing to 3 grenades. These grenades can be toggled between frag and stun mode, giving her the ability to both damage and freeze her opponent in place. You have to keep an eye on your explosive count, as once they are all used up, you will have to summon a Drone in to supply you with three new grenades. You can EX the Drone, which drops its entire payload onto the enemy and Sonya can EX her grenade toss to have the explosives denoted early. If you are in a real spot of bother, Sonya gains an explosive get up attack, which has her quickly rolling away to escape danger whilst dropping 2 grenades in her wake.
Finally, her Special Forces Variation calls in the delivery Drone to do some damage, acting as a mini assist, very similar to Quan Chi’s bat demon. This Drone can be set to follow you around or be parked in a specific location, giving Sonya players great potential to set up full screen traps or corner pressure depending on the situation. The Drone has a short range Heavy Blast which hits opponents straight in front of it, a Homing Missile which follows enemies for a short period as well as a low hitting Kamikaze, which is great to use if your Drone is just about to disappear. The radar band on Sonya’s wrist will tell you the Drone’s battery level, allowing you to keep track of how useful the Drone will be in battle.
Next week’s Kombat Kast will be the final one before the game’s launch and will focus mainly on the Briggs family and certain online modes for Mortal Kombat X. Unless there is a secret character (which is heavily rumoured), we now know the full starting roster for Mortal Kombat X so get picking your mains now!
Expect our final Kombat Kast summary and our review of Mortal Kombat X in the next 2 weeks.