MK back to basics

A new Mortal Kombat trailer dropped yesterday, featuring some slick combos from uber-ninja Scorpion.

The usual array of teleport punches and 'Get Over Here' spears are present, but the video speaks to what I think will be Mortal Kombat's saving grace; a return to basics.

The MK fighting system had become complex and convoluted, almost to a suffocating level. While giving each fighter three different fighting styles that can be switched on the fly is a nice idea in theory, it meant that many more combinations that needed to be memorized. Having every character ever to appear in an MK game was ambitious, you lost some of the intimacy gained by having a smaller, more focused roster.

MK creator Ed Boon has said that this game's fighting system will be deep enough for tournament play, a la Street Fighter. Fortunately, it looks like his team hasn't confused deep with overly complex, which should make the game all the more enjoyable.

For a brutal example of one of the game's new features, skip to the :55 mark of the video