Artists will often display their concept art on their websites after a game is completed as part of their résumé, which can offer a glimpse into an alternate version of the game, or feature stuff that was never put to use for various reasons. In the latest example, Daanish Syed, an artist at NetherRealm Studios, has posted some unused concept designs from various Mortal Kombat projects over on his website. The posts appear to be a few months old, but too good not to share with the community.

One of the most interesting concepts comes from the PlayStation Vita port of Mortal Kombat (2011), which demonstrates an impressive Interactive Main Menu using the touch-screen. Unfortunately, this didn't make the game, likely due to time constraints.



Here's an original proof of concept for Mortal Kombat (2011)'s King of the Hill mode, complete with MK trivia and a humorous cell phone warning from everyone's favorite ninja specter.



Last but not least, here's some avatar themes from a would-be Xbox 360 dashboard theme. While Xbox users got Mortal Kombat themed avatar costumes, no dashboard theme was ever offered. The theme sections appear to be styled after some of the arenas from the game.




Other concepts he has posted include some title sequences for Mortal Kombat Legacy, the Test Your Slice title animation for Mortal Kombat (2011) on the PlayStation Vita, and a variant of the NetherRealm Studios logo animation used on Arkham City Lockdown.

Anyone who has played through the new exclusive Bonus Challenge Tower Mortal Kombat on the PlayStation Vita's knows how hard some of the challenges can get.

When you reach Challenge #130 you may even ask yourself: "Who thought up the challenge to hit Shao Kahn 60 times in 60 seconds? This is impossible!"

Well we say to please refrain from smashing your Vita, as the fine folks at NetherRealm Studios stepped up to show how it's actually possible in a new video. In the video below they clear the challenge with 8 seconds to spare!



But you may be thinking, that's a narrow margin of Victory. What's the lowest someone can get? Well our reader @Iam_FACEL3SS has an answer. He video recorded himself doing it in 30 seconds flat!



Do you have a few tough spots in the Bonus Challenge Tower that you need help with? Or doy you have a tip that someone may have looked over? Then head on over to our Bonus Challenge Tower Strategy thread.

Our friend 9.95 Phil over at Kombat Network is running a big fighting game tournament this weekend in the NYC area. The tournament, On The Edge II, will take place in Valley Stream, NY at The Gamers Edge. They'll have tournaments for not only Mortal Kombat 9 but also Mortal Kombat 2 and Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. Here's the entire game lineup for the weekend:

Saturday

• Super Street Fighter IV AE 2012
  
• Soul Calibur V
  
• Ultimate Marvel Vs. Capcom 3
  
• Skull Girls(side tournament)
  
• SSF2 Turbo(side tournament on HDR Classic Mode)

Sunday

• Mortal Kombat 9
  
• Street Fighter x Tekken
  
• King Of Fighters XIII
  
• UMK3(Side tournament)
  
• MK2(Side tournament)
  
• Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike OE(Side Tournament)
  

Admission is only $10 for EVO games or $5 for side games. Plus they have lots of prizes for players: like iPhone accessories, PDP Mortal Kombat Sticks and even one winner will go home with their a copy of Mortal Kombat for the PS Vita AND a PlayStation Vita to play it on!

Here's the flyer, for more info check out it's Tournament detail page over on TestYourMight


Sounds like it's a no brainer for people in the NYC area looking for some competition this weekend. Good luck to everyone who attends, break a leg or two X-ray style!

Those not in NY area and who can't attend, the tournament will be streamed as well at: http://twitch.tv/kombatnetwork

Deal alert for everyone waiting for a deal on the PlayStation Vita this can't be beat. Until May 12th, Amazon will be offering a free copy of Mortal Kombat for the Vita and 4GB PS Vita Memory Card with a purchase of a Wi-Fi PlayStation Vita. You even get free shipping!

This is an incredible $60 savings, a deal that may not be matchable for a while. So run, do not walk, over to Amazon to place your order now before May 12th.

Source: Amazon.com - Free Mortal Kombat & 4GB Memory Card with PS Vita Purchase

It is now officially May 1st and you can now buy Mortal Kombat for the PlayStation Vita at your local and online retailers. It should be made available for direct download to your Vita via the PlayStation Network late afternoon (Central Time).

To celebrate Warner Bros and NetherRealm also released a brand new trailer for the game, check it out below.



We also were lucky enough to get our hands on an advanced copy of the game to prepare a comprehensive review for you, our readers. Overall we feel the game is the best portable version of any Mortal Kombat game to date, despite taking a necessary graphical step backwards from it's big console brother. Not only does the game play just like Mortal Kombat (2011), it also delivers even more content and features for a lower price tag. We rated it a 4 out of 5 but be sure to read our complete review for even more details.

We're not alone either in our feelings it seems. As reviews are showing up online everywhere and the overall consensus is pretty positive. Here's a quick recap of reviews so far and their scores, we will add more as they come in through out the day.

• GamesRadar - 8 / 10


• IGN - 8.5 / 10


• Joystiq - No Score


• PlayStation LifeStyle - 8.5 / 10


• The Gamer Access - 9 / 10


• Just Push Start - 9 / 10


• Lawrence.com - 4 / 5

To wrap things up here is the official Press Release from Warner Bros on the Release of the Game.

MORTAL KOMBAT NOW AVAILABLE FOR PLAYSTATION® VITA SYSTEM

Burbank, Calif. – May 1, 2012 – Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and NetherRealm Studios announced today the exclusive release of Mortal Kombat for the PlayStation®Vita handheld system in North America. Making its debut on the new handheld device, the acclaimed fighting franchise delivers lethal action to gamers on-the-go, priced at $39.99.

“Mortal Kombat for PlayStation®Vita allows us to bring the best possible fighting experience to our loyal fans - anytime, anywhere,” said Ed Boon, Creative Director, NetherRealm Studios. “The game runs at a seamless 60 frames per second, and provides unique gameplay modes and features that take advantage of PlayStation®Vita’s exciting new hardware capabilities. Mortal Kombat for PlayStation®Vita is the ultimate portable fighting game and provides hours of fun for mobile gamers.”

Selling more than three million units worldwide, the reinvention of the franchise was released on consoles in 2011. Mortal Kombat became the highest-selling fighting game of the year and won numerous “Best Fighting Game of 2011” awards, including Spike TV’s 2011 Video Game Awards, Game Informer, Official Xbox Magazine and GameTrailers.com.

Bringing new and exclusive content to the PS Vita system, this edition of Mortal Kombat offers over-the-top fatalities and cringe-worthy X-ray moves. Players will get to test themselves with 150 brand new Challenge Tower missions, including touchscreen Fatalities, Test Your Slice and Test Your Balance. Players can also take the fight to their friends wherever they go with local multiplayer using ad-hoc connectivity or against friends near and far with a Wi-Fi connection.

The legendary fighting game is now available exclusively for the PS Vita system in North America.
For more information about Mortal Kombat, please visit www.themortalkombat.com, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/mortalkombat or on Twitter @MK_Mortalkombat.