🚀 go-pugleaf

ct...@nodisk.webo.dg.com (Henry Tam) writes:

>how come we have so few msgs in this newsgroup?  i mean, there are usually
>people playing MK when I go to an arcade.  SF2 is almost dead but
>there are still a lot of msgs in alt.games.sf2.  could it be that MK
>is so simple that we've found out all the tricks, combos in it?

     It's hard to say.  Part of it could be because SF2 Turbo just came
out for the SNES, which would mean that the bulk of your SF2 fanatics
are saving their quarters and playing it at home.  Of course, it may
also be due to the fact that there isn't a home version of MK that comes
quite close enough to th arcade game.  The SNES butchered 4 of the 7
fatalities that Nintendo thought to be too bloody; the Genesis comes a
little closer with the now-infamous Mode A, but suffers a bit in the
graphics and sound departments; the Game Gear version, while it looks
like a very good one, has problems caused by the 2-button controller and
a dinky screen; and the Game Boy version is, to put it nicely, lousy.
(A footnote about the SNES version:  isn't it kind of a double standard
when the fatalities are screwed up and the blood changed from red to
grey (????????????????), but they left in moves like Johnny Cage's nut
punch?  Go figure.)
     I will admit that, for the most part, MK is not that tough of a
game to learn (fatalities aside).  Even the least skilled of players
are likely to go far once they learn the basics, like the foot sweep,
the throw, and the ever-popular rapid-fire punching trick (which, if you
do it right, will often work better than even the flashiest special
move...at least, in my opinion).  The special moves add a different
twist to the game, but let's face it:  what's the first thing people
notice about MK?  The realistic animation of the players?  Maybe.  The
cleverly designed special moves?  Doubtful.  The truth is, MK pretty
much had 1 thing going for it:  blood.  Gallons of it.  (And the
fatalities didn't hurt too much, either...at least not the people who
won.  :)  )  I hate to have to point fingers because I personally love
MK, and would gladly take it over SF2 if I had the choice, but it kinda
seems to me like MK could very well be a one-trick pony.  Besides MK and
SF2, how many other fighting games are out there?  (World Heroes 1 and
2, Samurai Showdown, Hollusseum (which I'm positive is spelled wrong),
Fatal Fury....I could probably go on for days.)  The thing that set MK
apart from the rest was that it was bloodier and more realistically
violent than anything else on the market (and still is.  :)  ).  I read
somewhere that the designers of MK thought that SF2 played a lot like a
Japanese cartoon.  I like cartoons, too, but let's face it:  we don't
live in Toontown.  (If you think you do, you may want to think about
giving up acid.)
     It's an interesting topic, I think, and one that needs to be
discussed more.  Let me know what you think, either publicly or by
e-mail.

-mu...@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu
   

In article <26sr7p$s...@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu>,
Michael J. Pettitt <mu...@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu> wrote:
>ct...@nodisk.webo.dg.com (Henry Tam) writes:
>
>>how come we have so few msgs in this newsgroup?  i mean, there are usually
>>people playing MK when I go to an arcade.  SF2 is almost dead but
>>there are still a lot of msgs in alt.games.sf2.  could it be that MK
>>is so simple that we've found out all the tricks, combos in it?
>
>     It's hard to say.  Part of it could be because SF2 Turbo just came
>out for the SNES, which would mean that the bulk of your SF2 fanatics
>are saving their quarters and playing it at home.  Of course, it may

	I agree.  I have SF2 turbo for SNES-- the arcade version has
	little appeal for me now, now that I can save on quarters.

>(A footnote about the SNES version:  isn't it kind of a double standard
>when the fatalities are screwed up and the blood changed from red to
>grey (????????????????), but they left in moves like Johnny Cage's nut
>punch?  Go figure.)

	I agree-- but I don't think many people will refuse to
	buy Mortal Kombat because of these changes.  The reason
	this group is dead might be:  people can find out what
	the want by asking people at the arcade.  Most messages
	here are one of these varieties:

		1.  request for move-lists
		2.  home-version bashing
		3.  how do I beat X with Y?

	Not the type of stuff that good threads are made of.

>move...at least, in my opinion).  The special moves add a different
>twist to the game, but let's face it:  what's the first thing people
>notice about MK?  The realistic animation of the players?  Maybe.  The
>cleverly designed special moves?  Doubtful.  The truth is, MK pretty
>much had 1 thing going for it:  blood.  Gallons of it.  (And the
>fatalities didn't hurt too much, either...at least not the people who

	I think it's the competition associated with the game.
	We all like the feeling of beating somebody--  each arcade's
	got a heirarchy of players.. and everyone wants to
	move up the ranks.  The home-versions cannot duplicate
	this aspect.

--
va...@wpi.wpi.edu

>how come we have so few msgs in this newsgroup?  i mean, there are usually
>people playing MK when I go to an arcade.  SF2 is almost dead but
>there are still a lot of msgs in alt.games.sf2.  could it be that MK
>is so simple that we've found out all the tricks, combos in it?

The popularity of SF2 has diminished greatly, but there are still many
die hard fans out there.  SF2 also has a lot more subtleties than MK -
by that I mean that many questions of the type, "what would happen if"
or "what is the best thing too if" still seem open ended among players. 
MK intercation is much cleaner and predictable, and most of the best
combos/strategies have been more or less exhausted.  One of MK's
strengths, character balance, is also a weakness when it comes to
promoting discussion.

Are there any tricks/combos left to discover in MK?  I doubt it.  The
devastation that is possible seems to be maximized in the FAQ.  Even the
discovery of obscure bugs seem to have been exhausted...

I mean, there is only so much that can be discussed about ping pong.  It
is much more fun to play.

Maybe someone could post some MK fan fiction?

Phil