Play Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance Online

Summary

Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance on the Game Boy Advance feels like a compact but surprisingly deep slice of the franchise. It was the first all‑new MK title built for home consoles without an arcade precursor, and the handheld version carries that same ambition.

The combat system is a clear departure from earlier games: each fighter swaps between three distinct styles – two hand‑to‑hand and one weapon – with just two to four special moves total. Running is gone, but you can glide between foreground and background, and invisible walls keep the action contained. The sprites are surprisingly realistic, even showing flesh jiggle, and a few stages let you smash pillars or statues for extra damage.

Konquest mode doubles as a tutorial, stringing together mission‑style tasks for each character while doling out "koins" that unlock a massive 676‑slot Krypt. Those coffins hide extra fighters, arenas, costumes, and even the full Mortal Kombat Collector’s Edition comic.

Classic mini‑games return, too: Test Your Might and a new Test Your Sight challenge reward more koins for the Krypt. The GBA version also introduced the lone Fatality per character and quirky Acid Buddhas that bite anyone who wanders too close.

Critics responded warmly, with scores hovering around 8‑9 out of 10 and praise for the polish, graphics engine, and sheer amount of content packed into a handheld cartridge.

Storyline

In the opening of Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance, the sorcerer Quan Chi escapes the Netherrealm using a stolen amulet and appears in a tomb that houses the mummified army of the forgotten Outworld ruler known as the Dragon King. He teams up with Shang Tsung, promising an endless supply of souls in exchange for resurrecting the army, and together they eliminate Shao Kahn and Liu Kang, the two greatest threats to their scheme. Raiden, unable to intervene as an Elder God, relinquishes his god‑hood to prevent the alliance from dooming Earthrealm.

The story unfolds first in the Netherrealm (a non‑playable intro), then moves through Outworld, Edenia, and finally Earthrealm. Players learn character backstories during Konquest mode and via biographies in the Krypt, and must finish both Konquest and Arcade modes to see the multiple, often contradictory, endings—most of which show the heroes defeated and the villains victorious, a plot later clarified in Mortal Kombat: Deception.

Because of hardware limits, the Game Boy Advance version of Deadly Alliance includes only twelve of the twenty‑one fighters: Frost, Jax, Kano, Kung Lao, Kenshi, Kitana, Li Mei, Quan Chi, Scorpion, Shang Tsung, Sonya Blade, and Sub‑Zero.

A separate GBA port titled Tournament Edition retains Quan Chi, Scorpion, and Shang Tsung, adds Bo’ Rai Cho, Cyrax, Drahmin, Hsu Hao, Johnny Cage, Mavado, Nitara, Raiden, and Reptile, and introduces palette‑swap characters Sektor, Noob Saibot, and Sareena, while notably omitting Sub‑Zero entirely.