Addictive, but not good if you're in it for the long term.

User Rating: 6 | Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks XBOX
Moreso based in the Mortal Kombat universe than Mortal Kombat, this "adventure" game, which is more of a brawler, has you taking control of Liu Kang or Kung Lao. You can also unlock Sub-Zero and Scorpion. All play similar and it doesn't make a bit of difference which you choose. Taking place after Mortal Kombat 1, you must stop Shang Tsung from destroying Earth Realm. You go to Outworld to defeat his assasins, and ultimately weaken and destroy him. "Raiden," or should I say Shang Tsung, guides you through this. Halfway through, you find out it's him, and turn on him. I won't give the ending away, since my Shaolin training has taught me that you must go for yourself. The quote "multi-directional kombat," end quote, is okay, but not particularly useful. Probably your most valued move is jumping. Yes, jumping. Jump in the air, come down with a power kick, repeat 20 times and the average enemy grunt is defeated. An average enemy grunt does, no kidding, take about 20 hits to deafeat. And the sad thing is that, even some of the bosses are like this. There is a co-op mode, which happens to save the entire game. Playing with a buddy is pretty fun. Doing team combos and fatalities together is pretty entertaining. Theres a versus mode, but it plays pretty unfairly, and is definitely not even a thought when you have a buddy sitting next to you. Addictive, but not really something you play after a single play through.
The graphics are overall blocky, and a little too colorful for a Mortal Kombat game. The sound is pretty bad, especially the voice acting. I swear my ears started bleeding within seconds of hearing Liu Kang talk.
Overall, if you like the old games, or the new ones, then this is a good novelty item that should distract you for a bit. I would say that you wait until the price goes down before considering this. I much more readily recommend The Warriors. Snake, out!