Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance: 2002
Developer: Midway
Genre: Fighting

Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance on the Game Boy Advance adapts the console game of the same name to the portable platform, presenting a subset of characters, arenas and modes, with simplified controls and graphics in line with the handheld’s capabilities.

The game includes 12 characters (down from 23 in the console version) and 13 arenas (down from 17). 7 Fighters and 9 arenas are selectable from the start, the rest have to be unlocked. The unlocking works through the acquisition of “koins” (of which there is only one type compared to the six of the console version) that are earned in the game’s various modes. The koins can then be spent in the “Krypt”, unlocking “koffins” that reveal characters, arenas, several alternate costumes for each character, and some other surprises. 120 different koffins are available.

The game’s modes include Arcade (a series of consecutive fights against all other characters in the game), Survival (subsequent fights with only a small amount of health restored after each bout) and Link Mode (one-on-one fights via link cable, with players being able to wager their koins). The same two mini-games as in the console version are also included: Test Your Might (the classic button-smasher to break an object) and Test Your Sight (a variation of the shell game: picking out which shell a symbol is under after the shells are shuffled quickly).

Fights are displayed in a pseudo-3D view, simulated through a scaled and rotated textured floor with 2D backgrounds and the fighters animated in 2D. Fighting takes place on a 2D plane, but side-stepping with the camera then rotating to keep up is possible. Controls are less complex than in the console version: only two attack buttons remain out of the original five: one usually used for kicks, one for punches. The right shoulder button blocks, while the left shoulder button switches between two different fighting styles for each character, each with its unique moves and combos. The third weapon stance from the console version is gone, being replaced instead by special weapon moves for most characters. Fatalities, a Mortal Kombat series trademark, are of course also featured. Exclusive to the GBA version is the inclusion of the morphing ability of series mainstay baddie Shang Tsung, allowing him to take the form of other characters.