Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks.(Brief Article)

Midway's recent Mortal Kombat: Deception successfully augmented the series' established 1-on-1 fighting gameplay with a smattering of additional gameplay types, including a Tetris-inspired puzzler, a quick-and-bloody take on chess, and even a scaled-down role-playing game. These miniature genre experiments offered a glimpse of the franchise's future--starting in 2005, Midway plans to ship a new MK game every year...and not all of them fighters. First up on the blood-soaked conveyer belt: Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks, a 3D brawler that pits heroic pugilists Lui Kang and Kung Lao against the denizens of Outworld.

Gameplay unfolds in the traditional hack-n-slash mold …