Mortal Kombat Vs. DC Universe - Reception

Reception

Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe received generally positive reviews from critics. Adam Sessler of X-Play wrote: "Whether it's a decade-late answer to the Marvel/Capcom team up games or an off-the-cuff boardroom joke gone wildly too far, Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe is destined to make just about anyone's shortlist of bizarre video game team-ups. Still, sometimes two disparate things can merge to create a unique synergy that makes the melding work, however unlikely it may have seemed at the outset." In GamePro, Sid Shuman called it "surprisingly enjoyable." Wired.com's preview stated that the concept of the game was "nose-pokingly ludicrous" stating that Superman's powers could be used to easily defeat a character with the comment, "from Sub-Zero to Well-Done in eight seconds flat."

ABC News praised the game's story that it did "a great job of giving players a cohesive, if far-fetched, story line that's fun if not engaging," as well as "comic book-like" dialogue. MK vs. DC's Kombo Challenge mode was criticized as a thin and frustrating mode with combos that required very exact timing. The modes of Klose Kombat and Free-fall Kombat were praised as concepts but were criticized in their execution as they appeared to slow down the gameplay and took the player out of the fast gameplay experience. Critics noted that the change in the amount of gore was disappointing to longtime fans of the series who were used to the "insane amounts of gore."

The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry approved of MK vs. DC because of its departure from the earlier M-rated games of the series praising its, "simpler play, familiar graphics and adjustable gore content" but still not recommending it for younger players. In 2008, GamePro, ranked it as the 15th best fighting game.

Midway Games announced that as of January 26, 2009, Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe had shipped 1.8 million copies since its release in mid November 2008, not including the sales of Kollector's Edition. The chief operating officer of GameStop stated however that the Kollector's Edition of MK vs. DC made up 55% of Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe total sales at GameStop locations in its first week. In their 10-K filing, Midway Games revealed the title had sold over 1.9 million units, making it one of the company's most successful titles since 2002. According to Wired.com, Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe also "holds the distinction of being the most pre-ordered MK game of all time." In a ranking by Rentrak, the Xbox 360 version of Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe was the sixth most rented game of 2009.