The Mortal Kombat 1 gameplay showcase is still doing the rounds across the internet, with people reeling at just how gorgeous and amazing the title is looking. But, in other circles people are digging up further cool information about the game – and one such feature has my mind positively bending with how cool it is.
Mortal Kombat 1 has hidden the loading screen between character select and jumping into your fight – with some clever trickery that makes the entire process seamless. I was so impressed by it, I made a video showing off the feature:
Hidden load screens are nothing new – but their implementation is always the key factor to their success. Even all the way back on the PlayStation 2 with Jak II – you’d experience the odd airlock door that seemed to take a little long to open. What about Mass Effect and their long-ass elevators? A good place for some inter-party banter, wouldn’t you say? A small price to pay when the alternative is an obnoxious NOW LOADING screen.
With modern hardware, load screens are either entirely absent or barely a fraction of a second – But Mortal Kombat 1’s incorporation of character dialogue during a sneaky load screen does a super awesome job of embracing the aesthetic and story of the game to get you pumped.
Both characters rush each other, and all the other UI elements from the character select screen vanish. During their fevered clash, they will address each other – questioning motives or casually chatting, until one breaks away and reveals that they are actually within the fighting area with the voiceover announcing ROUND 1: FIGHT. This all takes place in a few scant seconds – and is infinitely more interesting than a fade to black.
Many small narrative moments can highlighted during this banter, with adjacent characters and events mentioned in passing – widening the scope of what is going on in the new era. Relationships are fleshed out and rivalries are made known to anyone who cares about Mortal Kombat lore (stop laughing) and what may be in store for the story moving forward.
Hell, the game isn’t even out yet and I am already buzzing with the fact that this dialogue revealed that Sub Zero’s brother Kuai Liang is alive in the new timeline – and I want to know what he is getting up to.
Sisters having a heated discussion about each of their motives
It replaces the ‘Match Intro’ dialogue that has been present for a few of NetherRealm’s titles – a feature that I loved, but it was oft skipped by those that were ready to spill blood. I can’t really blame them; that incarnation of the feature was wholly optional and did actually delay the initial throwing of fists.
This implementation of a hidden load screen feels super futuristic – and does a lot to highlight the awesome potential of current-gen gaming. It’s a moment that actually filled me with awe in regards to what modern hardware can do – at a time where things just seemed to be trending towards being bigger and more detailed.
Creative solutions to long term problems will always be my favourite kind of innovation.
What do you think of MK1’s clever match intro detail? Let us know in the comments or on social media.
