D Volsung

Full game (non-demo) review for the Xbox series x as a solo player. Outriders is a game that would have been a hit 5 years ago, but since the year is 2021 and not 2016, Outriders ends up being a game that does what a lot of other games have done, just not as well. The waved based combat, the lackluster guns, clunky movements/aiming, chunky character/asset models, boring environments, poor mobility, useless cover system, server issues, endless cutscenes, and annoying feedback systems (like a red flashing screen when hit, holding buttons to interact, and blood splattering on the HUD to name a few) actively take away from any semblance of real fun I may have had in this game. Outriders clearly takes its inspiration from games like Gears of War, Destiny 1, Mass Effect 3, possibly Remnant from Ashes, and the Diablo series. At times, the material the game borrows from just comes across as blatant copy right infringements. However, when porting over other game’s “inspirations” People Can Fly failed to implement any of the quality-of-life changes that made those games better or improve on any of the mechanics. The overall experience I had with Outriders was mediocre at best. If you still want to play this game, pick it up on sale or for free on the game pass.

Mortal Kombat is a confused mess of a movie that does a worse job narratively than Mortal Kombat Annihilation. The action can be satisfying at times; Joe Taslim and Hiroyuki Sanada do a phenomenal job with their fighting sequences as well as selling us on their rivalry (though a more interesting movie would have been how that rivalry got to where it was). They both even manage to deliver the clunky dialogue of the script well. The rest of the cast come across like they’re doing parodies of 90s soap operas. The standout exception -dialogue wise- is Josh Lawson's Kano who nails the character. The characters themselves are also not fleshed out in a meaningful way and story arcs that may have been more interesting to explore are replaced by uninteresting plot movers. A good example of this is how Jessica McNamee's Sonya Blade and Mehcad Brooks' Jax are treated. They are special forces operators, yet Sonya is presented as a disillusioned conspiracy nut living in a trailer who is collecting other chosen ones though she isn't one. But what led her and Jax to do this? Is Jax, despite being the commanding officer, but given no development just along for the ride? Is the op sanctioned by the US government? Is there a global defense force for the other-worldly threat? If so, why is she in a trailer with no resources? Let’s not even talk about Jax ‘s horror movie logic that results in his arms being removed. At least Sonya's choreography was well executed, and McNamee clearly worked hard as it is the best behind Scorpion and Sub-Zero, but all the characters just feel rushed and empty with too many important questions just dangling in the air. Lewis Tan's Cole Young is another issue. The acting is fine, but his fight scenes are a bit underwhelming given his actual martial arts background. Beyond that, the character is a new character that serves as a medium for the audience. Lewis could have been given any in universe character and we would have been better served in my opinion, hell I cared more for Scorpion's family than I did for Cole's. Cole's back story and lineage only creates more questions and confusion and I honestly think the movie really falls apart around this character and the world attempting to make the audience care for him. And without spoiling the ending, I don't think his character deserved the conclusion of Sub Zero and Scorpion's fight. Lastly, we get tons of exposition about the tournament and the first and second act are all about the preparing for the pending tournament...But the third act throws it all away and instead there is no tournament, so you're left wondering why the movie wasted so much time on it. If you want to watch people randomly thrown together punching each other with some occasional "daaaaamn" moments, then this movie will suffice. But if you're looking for the next universe to get into or need more than some blood on the screen, then you'll likely not like this movie. If you’re on the fence, view it on HBO Max.