Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe preview

On paper, it’s a gaming geek’s dream. The rough-and-tumble bruisers from the Mortal Kombat saga dukeing it out with the crime-fighting crusaders from DC Comics. Imagine Scorpion throwing his harpoon at Superman, only to see it bounce off his chest as the Man of Steel bounds into action with a counter-attack. Imagine Batman reaching for one of his nifty gadgets, only to be frozen mid-move by Scorpio. Imagine Sonya Blade mud-wrestling Wonder Woman while wearing – sorry, I’m getting carried away here.

But wait a second. The Mortal Kombat games’ unique selling point is their fatality moves, gory finishers with which the characters kill a defeated opponent. Can you imagine Kano thrusting his hand into The Green Lantern’s chest and ripping his heart out? Would Shazam! or The Flash finish off Liu Kang by ripping him to shreds? Can you even contemplate the powers-that-be at DC allowing their characters to be used in this way?

Mortal Kombat co-creator Ed Boon promises ‘fatality-like finishing moves’, but let’s face it. We’re unlikely to see the blood, guts and death which makes Mortal Kombat so controversial – and profitable. Could we be facing another travesty like the defanged, toned-down SNES version of the original Mortal Kombat, which was universally derided by fans of the series?

I expect we’ll find out this Autumn, when Mortal Kombat Vs DC Universe appears on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360…