Last year's Mortal Kombat 11 was another solid entry in the legendary fighting franchise, but its reliance on unnecessary grinding left us colder than a Sub-Zero fatality. Aftermath, the series' first story-focused DLC, is similarly fun to play but offers a distinct lack of content for the price it charges.
The first thing to note is that Aftermath launches alongside a chunk of content that's free for all players, regardless of whether you pick up the DLC or not. That means you can play the three new stages, and enjoy their stage fatalities for each character, as well as fresh Challenge Towers and Friendships – a way to finish a fight in a comically wholesome manner.
Considering the generosity of the free update, the actual paid content feels steeply priced. Your £34.99/$39.99 investment nets you three characters and less than three hours of new story, as well as new character skins that are unlocked over time. Considering the game's previous six DLC characters cost less than half of that combined, it's a tough pill to swallow.
Mortal Kombat 11 Spoilers Ahead
Thankfully, Aftermath's story picks up where Mortal Kombat 11 left off both in terms of the storyline it presents and in terms of the quality of its telling. As Liu Kang attempts to rebuild history after Kronika's defeat, Shang Tsung, Nightwolf, and Fujin arrive to explain that the process isn't as easy as first thought.
With Shang Tsung, the villainous sorcerer involved (portrayed by Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa with true mystique and power) nothing is ever as it seems, and while the story is over all too quickly it does add some fun choreographed set pieces that rival anything the main game has to offer. Just as before, chapters put you in the shoes of one fighter at a time, pulling from Kontent Pack and Aftermath newcomers alike, meaning this is a great way to be introduced to each.
Aside from the campaign, Aftermath adds Fuijin, Sheeva, and Robocop to the mix. Of the three, we're disappointed to report that Robocop is the weakest, though. A zoning fighter with a penchant for projectiles, the character's inherently stiff animations simply don't feel like a good fit for Mortal Kombat's weighty but kinetic combat, despite actor Peter Weller reprising his role.
Thankfully, Fujin and Sheeva are both a blast. The former is making his first appearance in the franchise in 14 years, and uses his wind powers for both attacks and movement. Able to slide under ranged attacks or run on air to close the gap on opponents, he actually ends up being the perfect foil for Robocop.
Sheeva, as you might imagine for a warrior with four arms, is quite the grappler, able to use her trademark aerial stomp attacks as well as mix grabs into her standard combos. We're still hoping to see Goro added to the mix one day, and that brings us to a major gripe.
While the game's roster has now grown by ten characters since launch (including pre-order bonus Shao Khan), there are still plenty of fan favourites missing. We're still yet to see Ermac, Smoke, or even Reptile in Mortal Kombat 11, and skirting around some series staples to shoehorn in Robocop, a character that feels out of place, is disappointing.
If you're looking for more Mortal Kombat, Aftermath will undoubtedly satiate your bloodlust for a short period of time, but it feels overpriced for what it actually offers. Of course, your mileage will vary, but for now it's more of an already excellent fighter – just not much more.
Are you planning to pick up Mortal Kombat 11's new Aftermath expansion at any point? Get over here in the comments section below, and don't forget to check out our Mortal Kombat 11 Aftermath guide.
Comments (18)
Regarding American currency.
Base game last year had 20+ characters, story and side content for 60.
This dlc has around a 3 hour story mode 3 characters and a few costumes for 40.
Nope.
That price is a joke. Greedy as f.
Love this game, but absolutely not paying them $40 for this. Also where are Cyrax/Sektor? Guessing they’ll be in the next character pack, seeing as they already have the models complete with movesets... Robocop ain’t gonna fill those shoes. And yeah, no Reptile still is a major bummer...
I only purchased the base game very recently during a ps store sale and immediately picked up the add on pack with the exception of Shao Kahn who is ridiculously overpriced. I was tempted to get this when it was announced because I had a great time with the main game, but at that price I will wait for the inevitable sale
Bought it in spite of the price, couldn't help myself. The only way I feel the price is justifiable is because the production values of story mode are way higher than dlc characters... and still. 20€ would have been more reasonable I guess
The first expansion of 6 characters was $40...do you think that was a rip-off too? Based on the pricing for the base game, that would be worth $15 tops, eh?
The pricing on this one...3 characters and a 3-4 hour story (that you can watch on YouTube for free) for $40 too. Same thing: based on the price of the base game, that shouldn't be worth more than $15, right?
Despite all of this, I think it's fine. NRS did an incredible job with the quality of the added content that it doesn't feel bad throwing an extra $40 at them every 12 months. And yeah, I'm an MK fanboy, so of course I'm gonna bite! Plus, players have the option starting June 16 to buy all the characters and skin packs separately, so you could just spend $6 if you just wanted Robocop, for example.
Altogether, MK11 isn't special in its pricing. Compared to other fighting games, it's the exact same model. And compared to, say, spending $15 for ONE skin in Fortnite or Modern Warfare, it's almost a deal! Or spending $40 in Overwatch for lootboxes...see how good you feel after that one! Sure, it's no excuse, but let's call some other devs out here, too!
MK11 is super polished and fun. But fighting games in general are the worst offenders for price gouging and dlc. I remember reading the new DoA is over 400 dollars if you add it all up. MK11 is at about 130 including this which is crazy to me. The argument is games are still 59.99. True. But in some instances incredibly fragmented. I would imagine though that part of this DLC price involves licensing costs
Don't know why anyone is surprised. This studio's business model is and has been bad for the consumer. Great developers on their team though!
@keihtg it was also the 5th best selling game of 2019 so to thank the fans WB slapped a big fat price on this paltry dlc.
You could have bought Streets of Rage 4 and had change to buy a large Domino's. Its your money of course and £35 isnt going to change the world order.
@themcnoisy Oh yeah, I forgot that it sold extremely well! It definitely deserves it!
But yeah, in the end, it's all relative. I mean...instead of Streets of Rage 4, I could get Metro Exodus and a frozen pizza! Or instead of that, I could get 2 months of PS Now and finally play Control and a bunch of other games.
That's the problem these days...too many deals! It's why I stick to one or two games amidst a giant sea of backloggable games. Too many games out there, it'll drive ya mad if you try and play 'em all! It's all those killer deals and indecision that drove me to get this $40 DLC and only play MK11!
@keihtg you could get 12 months of ps now. As mentioned it's your choice, but it's hardly a choice if everyone accepts it as the norm......
It already has hasn't it?
Damn.
That said I don't spend much time with the waves of social games, buying a skin will always be a distant last when I can try something new. Heck gaming's changed and if your happy I'm happy.
$6 each character = $18, 3 skin packs at $4 each = $12 and story add on = $10. The $40 actually makes more sense when you break it down.
I was going to bite the bullet and buy this it would be my first MK game since Deadly Alliance on PS2, but I just have this feeling there going to be a MK 11 XXL edition at some point for £50
@Nakatomi_Uk There will definitely be more expansions...I think there was a leak listing 8 more character slots, so that would be another Kombat Pack with 5 characters, and then the final DLC story expansion with 3 more characters?
BUT if you get the game now, you can compete in the open global tournament for EVO Online at the end of next month! You could even pick-up just the base game for £20 right now and get to trainin'! Great game, highly recommended.
Hi... I own the game.
What "pay to win" microtransactions that Coombes is claiming exist in abundance are there?
As far as I've seen, every micro-transaction is purely cosmetic...
@lloydcoombes
@Gunnerzaurus In fairness, perhaps pay-to-win was a tad strong, but purchasable fatality tokens and an impetus on grinding are more the issue. Thanks for pointing this out!
@lloydcoombes Cheers mate! Will the article be edited with the more accurate correction?
Don't mean to be annoying, just want the site to have the most accurate info for readers 👍
@Gunnerzaurus done!
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