Parents' Guide to Mortal Kombat

While this classic fighting franchise has made its way to mobile devices, it doesn't pack nearly as much of a punch as the console or computer versions. It was way back in 1992 that gamers first heard the infamous battle cry "FINISH HIM!" -- but since then, the Mortal Kombat franchise has dished out its own brutally bloody brand of combat, changing the landscape of the fighting game genre forever. Timed with the 2015 release of Mortal Kombat X on consoles, the deadly martial arts tournament finally made its way to iOS and Android devices. Now, the app has been tweaked and updated to coincide with the release of Mortal Kombat 11, including the addition of a Netherrealm map, the addition of new characters and new versions of existing characters, and a game engine upgrade from Unreal Engine 3 to Unreal Engine 4, bringing sharper details and more fluid animation to the Mortal Kombat tournament.

Although the game's been expanded and its presentation improved, underneath it all, the gameplay is fundamentally the same as it's always been. Unfortunately, that also means the gameplay is feeling more than a bit outdated. Combat is just a matter of tapping the screen to attack and holding two fingers down to block. More recent mobile fighting games, including those developed by NetherRealm, have evolved into more robust outings and seem to have left Mortal Kombat behind. The basic gameplay isn't helped by the fact that progress is a slow and repetitive grind. Earning decent rewards through gameplay feels like it takes forever. And while spending real-world money on any of the game's multiple microtransactions is an alternate option, even that never feels like it adds anything substantial to the gameplay. Mortal Kombat's mobile outing might not have been dealt a Fatality, but it's a far cry from a Flawless Victory.