Introduction Since the Fight Night chats we had with Ed Boon in 99, fans have been awaiting new information on Mortal Kombat 5's development. It was then that the game began it's early stages of production. The game was put on hold however, due to the development of the first person shooter called, The GRID. The MK team needed a break from the series and took some time to try something new. This was good, because they have learned much from that experience. Returning to MK5 refreshed and with new knowledge, they can now make a much better game. Now that the team can put their focus on MK5, things should start to roll much more then they have in the last year. Not too long ago, Ed Boon stirred up some excitement when he posted the first MK5 teaser on his website, "www.noob.com". Later on, he participated in another chat, as well as a video interview. Both events revealed some tidbits of info on MK5. The game is still in early development, so not too much has been confirmed as of yet. The current release date is set for late 2001. Here's what we are expecting so far... Back to Top.. Graphics In the past, the development team had planned to use the 3dfx chip for MK5. However, since some time has past since the game's initial stages, many chips have become availible. As of right now, they seem to be in favor of the NVIDIA chip. They assure us that the game will make many advances in terms of detail. All new animations for the characters will be featured, so we should expect new looks. From what was said, characters will be more detailed with good joints, hair, clothes, moving mouths, ect., and look totally different in the way they are sculpted. They say we'll freak out when we see Scorpion.The stages should become more detailed as well. Many things said a year ago in the Fight Night chats may or may not come to be, since the game was so early in production then. However, Ed Boon had mentioned in one of those chats, a stage where you'd be atop some kind of floating device, and would be able to see the water under you. They say they are taking big steps with the presentation of this game, and that we will be BLOWN AWAY when we see MK5! Back to Top.. Gameplay Gameplay is also in for a change, and apparently making many advancements from what we've experienced in the past! It seems they will be changing the layout of the control board, so this may be the among the most interesting things to see. The good thing about this will be their freedom to explore new gameplay elements and advance certain aspects of it. Ed Boon has said, with all other MKs, some new original features in gameplay would be added, however, he doesn't want to reveal them just yet. The game will be a 3D fighter of course, and will probably feature more 3D aspects of gameplay then MK4 did. However, it's not going to be of the same nature of games such as Soul Calibur or Tekken 3, where your moving in a circle alot. MK5 will still be a game where you do alot of jumping. Remember, this is a Mortal Kombat game. The game will feature a more advance weapon system then MK4, with more moves and different attacks per weapon. It's been said that there will be multiple fighting styles for each character, and that style will change when holding a weapon. Perhaps the style will be different depending on what kind of weapon you are holding. Team member Nigel Casey is said to be researching different martial arts for the game. This will make for a much better look for the fighters, and a better feel, bringing a sense of realism to the characters. Dynamic animations for hit detections are being thought of, which would be cool. Suppose your character gets hit on a certain part of the body, it'll react to that hit. Multiple kinds of throws and bone breakers are a possibility for MK5, and maybe some counters/reversals of some sort. Also, expect objects to pick up and/or other interactions within the stages. Things like slanted floors, stairs, and multi-levels are being considered. I don't expect the stages to interfere with gameplay too much, as Ed doesn't seem to care for such interference, so don't worry about that. They can always add kodes to type in on the versus screen for certain stage mulipulations that affect gameplay, so stuff like that should be an option of the player I would assume. I think it's safe to say, MK5 will have the most in-depth gameplay of any other MK. Features MK5 is sure to have many new features to be found, yet they'll be returning features as well. One of the features is something we haven't seen since the first MK game! Test Your Might is said to be returning, along with other things, such as Test Your Sight (not sure what that will be like). Also, Ed Boon has stated in the past that there may be a feature of some kind that would deeply involve the story and it's outcome, which would be very cool, considering MK has alot of story to it. Perhaps this could mean multiple endings depending on who you fight or perform a fatality on. It would certainly make for great reply value, especially on those days when no one wants to challenge you. I'm not sure if the versus screen will have the kode bar of MK3 and 4, but I don't see why not. This would allow for many features to be included. Expect the usual secrets that accompany the series, such as secret characters and so forth. After all, what is a MK game without secrets? Fatalities are a given, but who knows what other finishing moves to expect. The series got rid of everything except fatalities for MK4. Will they decide to bring anything back? Perhaps come up with some new alities? MK5 is sure to have many more features yet to be revealed. Story The team is in early stages of developing a story for MK5. They usually don't focus on this part of the game too much until later on. However, I'm not sure what to expect without the series' co-creator, John Tobias. He was the main story teller and brought alot to MK, so it's unknown how much the story will be affected from his absence (he resigned from Midway last year). MK5 will survive without him in terms of gameplay and such, but storywise... we'll have to wait and see. Ed Boon stated that MK5 would take place in another dimension. This is all we've heard so far. However, many story elements are already being rumored by the fans. Possible Returning Characters Although character models have been done for Scorpion, Raiden, and Jax, Ed Boon has said Scorpion is the only character they have decided on for sure. However, many of you may recall seeing a picture of Raiden on a computer monitor behind Louis Mangubat (who is doing the character models), during the video interview held at mortalkombat.com. Ed Boon had said in that interview, "if Scorpion returns, there's a good chance we'll see Sub-Zero too". I think with the popularity of these two characters, it's a safe bet they both will return. If Jax is chosen to make the list, expect Sonya as a possibility as well. In the past, Ed has also expressed interest in bringing Shang Tsung back, if they can smoothly handle the morphing. Liu Kang is always a safe bet as well, since he is the hero of the series. They are considering a female ninja, similar to Sub-Zero or Scorpion. Fujin's MK4 ending suggests he is a likely candidate, since he was chosen by Raiden to become the new protector of Earth Realm. It's common to see all the characters' bios connect in some way to show every aspect of the story. Therefore, expect characters that touch upon all the popular aspects of Mortal Kombat's story, such as Edenians, Elder Gods, Netherealm warriors, Outworld warriors, OIA (Outerworld Investigation Agency), Shaolin Monks, Lin Kuei, ect. We are also expecting a new sub-boss, instead of a shokan or centaur. The sub-boss will probably be something we haven't seen before, as will many things in MK5. Who the main villain will be is unknown for now. Unlike certain endings of MK Trilogy, MK4 didn't really reveal who the main boss would be. The ONLY character we know will appear for sure at this time is Scorpion. Rumors As with any new MK game, rumors are commonly found. Some of these rumors include the appearance of characters such as Liu Kang's brother, Chow Kang, Sub-Zero's sister, and the original Kung Lao. Fans are hoping the Reiko/Kahn mystery will be solved as well. In a recent chat, Ed Boon had thrown out some odd remarks which included, "W-I-D-E-S-C-R-E-E-N" as well as, "ORSMAB". Maybe hints at MK5, not sure. We'll have to wait and see.