Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance

***Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance*** is a fighting video game developed and published by Midway for the Xbox, PlayStation 2, GameCube, and Game Boy Advance. It was the first all-new *Mortal Kombat* fighting game produced exclusively for home consoles, with no preceding arcade release. *Deadly Alliance* is chronologically the fifth main game in the *Mortal Kombat* series. Its story focuses on the titular alliance between sorcerers Quan Chi and Shang Tsung and their schemes to revive an ancient army to conquer Outworld and Earthrealm.

Two different Game Boy Advance games based on *Deadly Alliance* were released. The first version, also titled *Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance* was released on November 2002, during the same week as the home console versions, while the second GBA version, ***Mortal Kombat: Tournament Edition*** (originally titled *Mortal Kombat: Deadly Revenge*, which was printed in the manual), was released on August 25, 2003.

## Gameplay

Like all of the *Mortal Kombat* games, *Deadly Alliance* focuses heavily on its fighting modes. The gameplay is completely different from that of previous entries in the franchise. Each character now possesses three individual fighting styles,[1] generally two hand-to-hand styles and one weapon style (excepting Blaze and Mokap, who received three hand-to hand styles and no weapon style) which players can switch between with the push of a button. In previous games, aside from "dial-a-combos" all the characters fought virtually identically, with only special moves to differentiate them. The number of special moves per character (usable in any fighting style) has also been reduced, varying only from two to four for most, thus forcing the player to make use of the improved fighting system. The characters can no longer run, and there is no run meter. However, while still limited to only moving into the background and foreground, movement in the third dimension is much easier and can be used continuously (in *Mortal Kombat 4*, sidestepping was mapped to two different buttons and could be performed at a rate of about one a second). To prevent fighters from leaving the arena, boundaries that are otherwise invisible appear when a fighter is knocked against the edge.

Characters models became more realistic. Flesh will move or jiggle on a character as he or she moves around. Environmental interaction is present, but infrequent. Several levels include obstacles —- such as pillars or statues — that can be shattered to damage an opponent standing near one. There is just one Fatality per character, while the previous games included many ways to finish the opponent. Along with *Mortal Kombat X* (until the MKXL patch added them to Mortal Kombat X), it is the only other *Mortal Kombat* game that does not include Stage Fatalities, although the Acid Bath level still possesses special acid-vomiting statues called Acid Buddhas that do damage directly to fighters that stray too close to them.

*Deadly Alliance* introduces the Konquest mode, which expands on the storyline and acts as a tutorial for each character. The Konquest mode consists of a series of missions to complete with each of the characters. In between each sequence, a video of a monk moving between various locations on the path of Konquest is shown, but this has no actual bearing on the gameplay itself other than to simulate the sense of a journey. After completing eight initial "kombat tasks" with Sub-Zero, the player is instructed to complete a specific set of tasks with each character, which vary from performing difficult combos to defeating opponents. Each series comes with text instructions that include a basic storyline that delves further into each character's backgrounds and motives. The characters Blaze and Mokap can only be unlocked by completing all stages of Konquest. Upon completing each mission (of a starting difficulty for each character that increases per mission), the player is rewarded with a number of "koins" that act as the in-game currency to open Koffins in the Krypt and unlock secrets in the game.

The Krypt is a feature in which the player can buy extras with koins earned in regular play and in Konquest mode. The Krypt consists of 676 "koffins" arranged in a square format with each designated alphabetically by a two-letter designation (AA–ZZ). The koffins are filled with a vast number of secrets and unlockables. Each koffin has a different designated price, listed in a number (anywhere from 1 up to the thousands) and type (Gold, Ruby, Sapphire, Jade, Onyx, and Platinum) of koins that it would cost to open the koffin. The Krypt includes unlockable characters, arenas, and alternative costumes. Also included among the koffins are various videos, images, concept sketches, and the entire *Mortal Kombat Collector's Edition* comic book. Some koffins contained koins that could be used towards other koffins, others contained hints as to where other items were located, and others were even empty.

Test Your Might, the original minigame of the *Mortal Kombat* series, returns for the first time since the original game, and a variation, Test Your Sight, is also included. In Test Your Sight, the character stands in front of a set of cups, and the game shows the player which cup contains the *Mortal Kombat* logo icon. The cups then begin to move in a random order, and by the end one has to select the cup containing the icon. As the player progresses through the minigame, the number of cups increases, as does the speed at which the cups move. At higher levels, the camera would even move in order to make it more difficult for the player to keep track of the movement of the icon. Succeeding at both Test Your Might and Test Your Sight rewards the player with koins.

Game Boy Advance-only *Mortal Kombat: Tournament Edition* adds three modes: Survival, Tag Team and Practice, as well as weapon Fatalities. Although both of the GBA versions feature 2D sprites, *Tournament Edition* was the first portable *Mortal Kombat* games to feature 3D style gameplay.

## Plot

At the end of *Mortal Kombat 4* (which is Scorpion's canon ending), Quan Chi revealed himself to be the murderer of Scorpion's family and clan, before attempting to send him back to the Netherrealm. Scorpion, fueled with homicidal rage, grabbed Quan Chi at the last minute, taking the sorcerer with him. In the intro to *Deadly Alliance*, it is revealed that Quan Chi was able to escape the Netherrealm, using the amulet he had stolen from Shinnok. He appears in a tomb containing several mummified remains and an ancient runestone, which reveals that the remains are the "undefeatable" army of the long forgotten ruler of Outworld, known simply as the "Dragon King". Learning that it can be revived, Quan Chi forms an alliance with Shang Tsung, offering him an endless supply of souls in return for him transplanting the souls of defeated warriors into the army. The two work together to defeat, and kill, Shao Kahn and Liu Kang, the two greatest threats to their plans. Unable to interfere as an Elder God, Raiden surrenders his status after realizing that, should the alliance be victorious, Earthrealm is doomed.

In *Deadly Alliance*, the player receives information concerning the backstories of the characters and their relationships with one another mainly during Konquest mode, but also in way of biographies that can be obtained in the Krypt. The game takes place in a science fantasy setting, with most of the game's events occurring in the fictional realms of the *Mortal Kombat* series. The story begins in the Netherealm (although this is not a playable level), and later switches to Outworld, Edenia and eventually Earthrealm. To fully understand the plot of *Deadly Alliance*, the player must not only complete the Konquest mode but the Arcade mode as well. As usual, completing the Arcade mode unlocks endings for each character, but only a few endings or a part of them are considered part of the continuity of the *Mortal Kombat* storyline. Some endings even contradict one another. What really happened to the characters was only revealed in the sequel *Mortal Kombat: Deception*, making *Deadly Alliance* the first game in the series to have an in-continuity ending that involves the heroes losing and the villains emerging victorious.

## Kombatants

* **Blaze**
* **Bo' Rai Cho**
* Cyrax
* **Drahmin**
* **Frost**
* **Hsu Hao**
* Jax Briggs
* Johnny Cage
* Kano
* **Kenshi Takahashi**
* Kitana
* Kung Lao
* **Li Mei**
* Lord Raiden
* **Mavado**
* **Moloch**
* **Nitara**
* Quan Chi
* Reptile
* Scorpion
* Shang Tsung
* Sonya Blade
* Sub-Zero

## Arenas

* Acid Bath
* Drum Arena
* Portal
* Lost Tomb
* Shang Tsung's Palace
* Quan Chi's Fortress
* Kuatan Palace
* Lin Kuei Temple
* Wu Shi Academy
* Lung Hai Temple
* Moloch's Lair
* Lava Shrine
* House of Pekara
* Sarna Ruins
* Nethership
* Palace Grounds
* Dragonfly