Mortal Kombat: Special Forces

***Mortal Kombat: Special Forces*** is a 3D action-adventure game developed and released by Midway Games for the PlayStation in 2000. The game stars the character Jackson "Jax" Briggs from the *Mortal Kombat* fighting game series.[1] The game was panned by critics for its lack of traditional Mortal Kombat-style violence, poor level design, and tedious gameplay.

## Gameplay

*Mortal Kombat: Special Forces* is a third-person view action-adventure game. The only playable character is Jax, who uses not only hand-to-hand combat techniques but also firearms and explosives. There are five levels set on Earth in Otherrealm, with a boss battle at the end of each of them. Exploring the locations in the search for keys, the players solve puzzles, find the codes to unlock the doors, and blast hidden passages in walls. Jax can ascend to a higher level platforms even as he can not jump, but he can push large blocks.

The player can restore Jax's health meter using first-aid kits. The player also has a limited energy reserve: whenever Jax performs one of his special techniques, he spends energy that can be replenished by performing certain combos. Jax can attack with his hands and feet, as well as block counter strikes. Although there are no Fatality systems, the combo system allows finishing off the opponent with the final blow in case the enemy's health line is exhausted by this moment. The experience points that a player gains by defeating enemies allow one to get new combos. In-game menu displays the presence of items in the player's inventory, and also contains information on the purpose of the current mission. After completing the game, the player can activate the cheat menu to start a new game with additional bonuses.

## Plot

*Special Forces* is chronologically the first game in the *Mortal Kombat* storyline, as its events take place even before *Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero*. The story of the game involves Kano freeing his gang, the Black Dragon from a maximum security prison. Major Jax, seeking revenge for the slaughter of his Special Forces comrades at the hands of the Black Dragon, undertakes a mission to stop them from retrieving an artifact of great power, the Eye of Chitian. The true power of the artifact is shown in the ending that it can open portals to other realms when Jax uses the artifact to teleport himself and Kano back to Earthrealm after defeating him.

## Characters

Besides Jax, Kano, and Kano's Black Dragon subordinates Tremor and Jarek, the game features three characters exclusive to this entry in the series:

* Gemini: Jax's base operative, relaying information and messages to him from headquarters. The two share a friendship, and Gemini worries excessively about Jax. Operating over radio only, she is never seen in-game.
* No Face: A member of the Black Dragon organization led by Kano, who freed him from a high-security prison. He is described as only having knowledge of explosive devices, he wears sticks of dynamites strapped to his chest and uses a flame thrower as a weapon. He has no nose, ears, hair and a pale complexion, based on his name.
* Tasia: An expert swordswoman and deadly ninja master who is a member of Kano's Black Dragon organization.[2] Like Tremor, No Face and Jarek, Kano freed her from a high-security prison. She wields two ninjatō swords and has an ability to teleport. She appears along with Jarek to capture Cassie and Jacqui by the orders of Black Dragon in *Mortal Kombat X* comic book.