Apologies, in advance, for the wall of text.
So, we know that the Ps3 version of Mortal Kombat has Kratos in it. We know that Kratos will definitely not be in the 360 version. We also know that the MK demo is only available on PSN at the moment, and nobody is quite sure when the demo will be released on 360.
I am absolutely certain that there will be a demo on the 360 at some point, though whether it appears before or after the games release will remain a mystery, for now. The 360 has a market that is too vast for any multi-console publisher to ignore, and the palpable desire for the demo’s 360 debut will not go unnoticed by Netherrealm and Warner Bros.
But why would the demo be delayed for so long? Here’s my theory:
Netherrealm may have held an auction between Sony and Microsoft to decide which console version would have exclusive on-disc DLC. There may have also been a clause in there, somewhere, that forbids the losing bidder’s DLC announcement, which would explain why we have heard nothing about the 360’s possible exclusive and also help explain how Sony is successfully billing MK as a Ps3 game first and a 360 game second.
Ed Boon has stated – on the subject of 360 exclusives: “well, there’s nothing we have ready to announce, but we love our 360 players and we love our Ps3 players and I think everybody’s gonna get something to be happy with”.
If that doesn’t sound like “they are both getting the same thing”, I don’t know what does.
Regardless, it’s been rumoured that what the 360 is getting is an “exclusive online mode” – with many people claiming it to be Puzzle Kombat.
I stated earlier that this may have been to do with some sort of auction behind the scenes for on-disc DLC. That is what I believe Kratos to be. It is totally believable, to me, that Kratos’ announcement is part of the deal along with his presence in the retail disc. The 360 version’s “online feature” may be a download code for the 360’s exclusive character.
Now, what about the 360’s exclusive character? Who would it be? The main rumour, at this point, is that the “Lady in Red” will be exclusively free for 360 players for a limited time. My understanding of the situation, however, is that this has been ruled out by statements from Netherrealm.
I’ve heard people say that the 360 doesn’t have the character-stable that the Ps3 does, and as a result, there are hardly any potential characters who could fit into MK.
I’ll agree that there are no 360-exclusive characters that fit into MK as well as Kratos does. He ticks almost every box in the MK universe: he’s a God; he uses magic; he has a ton of weapons; he rips people in half – but the MK universe also has cyborg ninjas, clones, aliens, grenades, guns and flamethrowers.
There is enough room, in the fiction, for any character from almost any game ever, including: Fable, Halo, Gears of War, Crackdown, Perfect Dark, Kameo or Too Human.
Not that this makes it easier to discern who the secret character could be. One would think that, if it were Marcus Fenix or Master Chief, we’d have heard by now – Microsoft surely wouldn’t let Netherrealm use one of their most iconic characters and not want them to shout about it?
This is what makes me think the answer is either that Netherrealm’s lips are sealed because of Sony’s wallet, or that the character is relatively unknown to the audience and has been plucked from one of Microsoft’s less famous game franchises, like Kameo.
Kameo can transform into a dragon, by the way.
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